The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1904-07-08
petrators of the crime. President Moy-
er from his cell offered a reward OF
$4,000 for the capture OF the murde2eri
Five Minutes TO Resinn

er from his cell offered a reward OF
$4,000 for the capture of the murderer.
Five Minutes to Resign.
II was assumed that union men wera
the criminals. Excitement ran high
Members of the Citizens Alliance met
In Victor at 1 / O'Clock and appoint
ed committee OF safety. They also
issued II call for Il mass meeting at
O'Clock. The committee WAS busy
during the intervening three hours, and
had transacted the business that usual
ly requires nominating conventions and
three months of campaigning. They
changed nearly All the officers of Tel
Ter county and the police officers of
Victor and Cripple Creek. They sent
for Sheriff Robertson. who was Il
member Of the Cripple Creek union,
and requested his resignation. He re
fused. a long new rope was brought
from under the table and moose was
tied in one end. Robertson "as given
I'VE minutes to reconsider. He re
signed and left Sic building white and
trembling like an aspen leaf. The
county commissioners We're Brought in
and under persuasion OF the noosed
rope, appointed Edward Bell Sheriff,
vice Robertson resigned.
Marshal O'COnncll of Victor was then
sent for, He no, only refused TO re-
sign but bluffcd the committee. got
out of the room. hurried to Union hall
and swore in one hundred union police
men and badged ana armed them.
Mayor French dcposed Marshall OCon-
mel, but the special policemen refused
to surrender their badges and masscd
themselves in the streets and adjacent
buildings. Such were conditions when
the mass meeting was called to order
at o'clock.
4 The Battle Was On.
u Clarence II. Hamlin, secretary of the
mine owners association opened the
meeting and had spoken only few
words when he said: 1T is up to us
now. We must drive every member
of the Federation from the camp, If we
nope for peace
Who'll you drive out?' shouted Alf
Miller, Il union leader. YOU" Hamlin
shouted back Miller pulled revolver
and fired at Hamlin. and the battle was
on. The melee had ceased at the end
OF live minutes. One man WIS dead
another was dying, and four were Sc
Verely wounded.
The Victor militia company was
called out 1t marched down the street
and surrounded Union hall where 1925
union men had intrenched themselves
Another battle was begun and at the
end Of twenty minutes of sharp firing
the union men raised a white flag and
surrendered. -Four OF them had been
wounded and the windows of their
building had been rddled with bull
let's.
y A lawIcss thing was planned that
would have branded the Citizens league
with shame forever 1t was agreed that
, the local military company should turn
over to Sheriff Bell. Marshall OConnel
| who had sworn in the special police
men. AL Miller who had fired the shot
at Hamlin in the mass meeting, and
Nick James who had killed one of the
men in the riot at the Citizens meeting.
Sheriff Bell was to start to Cripple
Creek to incarcerate his prisoners in
the county Jail. At Il point half way
between the two places they were to
be hanged. Had not james escaped the
program would have been carried out,
and another blot, almost as dark as the
j Independence horror. would have been
added to Colorado's history.
Bu! Pen Held Many.
The law and order people did more
than eight hours of hard work to the
day on Monday and Tuesday. They
secured the resignation Of every mem
Der OF the city council of Victor, the
county coroner. one police justice and
one justice of the peace, and the city
marshals of Godfield, Independence
and Cripple Creek We're forced to re-
sign and the first two named wxre
thrown into the bull pen Law and
order men, endorsed by the committee
of safety were selec>ed to fill the plac-
ea made vacant
Tuesday morning the law and ORDER
people began II career of vandalism for
which there was no excuse. They
demolished the four union stores in the
district, destroying. thousands of dol
lars worth of goods. Union hall in
Victor was attacked and wrecked
In the safe of Union hall twenty
seven group photographs OF miners
!, were found, and these photographs eth
err give evidence of a diabolical conspir-
81 " hale Ia mn rfnr
or the explanation by w. d. Haywood
secretary of the Federation, must be
accepted.
Assumee: Conspiracy.
Several faces in each group We're
numbered and on the back of the photo
graphs were corresponding numbers
with the names OF the Individuals One
group was marked "Vindicator." and
the faces Of five of the men were num-
bered and on the back the following
corresponding rotations:
Il. Charlie Mccormick,
.. Alex Barr,
g. William Ramsey,
| 4. Mel Beck,
S. Joe Permort,"
The names OF Charlie Mccormick and
Mel Beck We're crossed with ink and
opposite was the suggestive notation
Attended to Nov. 23.'--the day when
Mccormick and Peck were killed by
the explosion of an Internal machine
on the sixth level Of the Vindicator
mine.
The law and order people assume that
the men were marked tor death. Armed
| guards were sent over the hills and q
large number of arrests were made
and twenty-seven union men were
evicted
Secretary Haywood gives the follow
| ing explanation of the marked photo
graphs, and his statement may be given
| reasonable credentt until more evil
dence to the contrary is discovered:
| Haywards Explanation.
THE photographs in question are
those of strike breakers and We're kept
for the purpose of publishing a scab
list with the pictures of the men ac-
companying their description, so that
members of organized labor all over
the country would become thoroughly
acquainted with these men who have
| committed treason to themselves, and
their class Had not the notation:
Attended to Nov. 30" been made
opposite the names of the men muir
dered in the Nindicator Mine, Secretary
| Haywoods explanation would be gem
orally accepted
General Bell came to Cripple Creek
| Tuesday night with 4 proclamation of
martial law and on Wednesday he
started for Dunnville to capture Nick
James. who had killed John Davis in
the mass meeting riot. His force was
| ambushed in a ravine and Il noisy
skirmish ensued resulting In the death
\ of one union man and the capture of
| nineteen others.
/ Thus ended the fighting, and the
rounding UP and eviction of union men
4 began Under orders from General
Bell, ninety-three union men were
/ placed on board cars at Victor and
NJ i
/ - = 9, =