The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-03-10
REPORT Is
PRESENTED
Concerning the Shooting of
Miners in VI est Virginia.
OFFICERS WERE BRUTAL
Pleas of Women and Children
Met With DeriSion.
OFFICERS WERE BRUTAL

Indianapolis. Ind. March s,-The official
report of Chris Evans. who was sent to
the West Virginia coal fields 10 investi-
gate the case of the colored miners at
Atkinsville, was received at the headGuar-
tiers of the United Mine Workers today.
The report says that General st. Clair,
who is the attorney for the coal compa-
MES, created an agitation 10 have the men
arrested and taken TO Charleston and
that Immediately sfterward arrangements
were made with the United States mar
shall by the Mine Workers officials 10
give bond for all who were arrested, but
that later. on account of the agitation
created by Deputy Marshal Cunningham.
the agreement entered into with the mar
shall was broken and Cunningham was
sent to arrest the men.
According TO the report. ther- vas great
feeling against Cunningham, and the
men decided not TO allow MIN u arrest
them, and he was driven away Mr..
Evans says that he sent a telegram 10
the men to submit quietly. bat that the
coal companies here. who own all of the
telegraph and telephone lines connecting
with the town. refused to deliver il. ana
Before he could get any message to the
Iaen, Cunningham and his deputies. VINO,
Re said, were the worst characters he
could collect went TO tie town Sec
end time and killed the miners in the
right time in their beds.
Mr. Evans says that he went to the
scene of the trouble the next morning
and found that forty-eight men had been
arrested for conspiracy 10 kill Cunning
ham, and found there in a house occu-
pied by a colored man called "Stonewalr'
Jackson the dead bodies of William bod
son. William Clark and Richard Clay
ton, all colored.
The report continues:
ION inquiry We found that the wife of
jackson. with four children, together with
eight colored men, were in the house,
and that. about daybreak, all that were
inside were awakened by shots being
fired into the house from the outside.
This shooting took place without any
thing being said to those on the inside,
and the three colored men 1 have men
toned were found dead on the floor Two
were in their night clothes. and the
other one was partly dressed. with one
shoe on, partly laced, and the other foot
bare We visited another house. where
Joseph Hizer laid in bed mortally wound
ed having been shot through the win
dow as he was stopping to put his trou-
sers on. after getting out of bed. Hizer
lived with his sister. and she made the
statement at the inquest that she plead
ed with those shooting not to XIII her
children. and in reply Cunningham said;
Women and children must take care OF
themselves In no instance could we ma
where these people had been asked TO
surrender until after the deputies had
commenced to shoot at the occupants OF
the houses named.
1--WE next went to the house of Lucien
Lawson, who was considered mortally
wounded. 1 am led TO understand that,
after the shooting referred TO. this man,
with others. returned the fire of the posse.
and this is the only instance where any
attempt was made to return fire on the
mart of the miners. During the shooting
in many instances the men ond women
pleaded with the men outside TO have
mercy on them, but their cries were met
with derision and curses. our investlga-
ton proves conclusively that no effort
had been made to shoot or resist except
in the one case mentioned. but that all
would have been too glad to have sur
rendered If they had been allowed the op-
portunity to do SO"
Mr. Evans says that III coroner's jury
returned a verdict CT felonious killing
against Cunningham for the killing OF
William DOdson