The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-08-10
John DictZ Tells the Story
Of His Defense.
HAS KILLED NO ONE YET.
These Are So Complicated That IL Is
Often Difficult to Diaeern 6s-
tween Right or Wrons.

DletZ, the defender or the Cameron uaLl,
lis a fighter, and he declared that he
would fight to the finish. In an inter
view on the present situation Mr. Dietz
said:
Reports in the newspapers put me
up as an outlaw, fugitive and muir
derer. 1t should not cause the public to
have nervous prostrations, however, to
read that Dietz has killed whole armies.
But rest assured that will harm no one
except in the necessary defense of my
self, family or property, and that would
be justifable, for seflpreservation is the
first law of nature.
Bear in mind, if anybody has trou-
bic with me it is because they come here
with that purpose III view. The Chip
pewa Logging and Boom company owes
me for S45 days work for watching
Price DAM This debt Mr.. Irvine ack-
nOwledged before witnesses when he was
here July 20, 1904, and said he would like
to settle it. When | asked him how he
wanted to settle he said he would sell
me the northeast one quarter of $685.
for $3.50 per acre as per agreement with
Chichester When L asked him about
my wages he said: ooh, the increase in
the value of the land would more than
make the difference of my wages
81 told him if they kept their agree
ment they were not entitled to any in
crease in value. All they were entitled
to was interest on investment and taxes
paid over and above the purchase price
agreed upon. Conner claims that they
have receipt in full bearing my sigma
ture for all services performed for this
company, but all they have is receipt
for $72 for thirtysiX days work per
formed for John Ryan.
"When Mr.. Irvine was here July 20,
1904, under the representation of a
brother Mason, he guaranteed all hos
tilities would cease from that time on,
and said if | would give them peaceable
possession of the dam they would have
all proceedings at law dropped This was
as much as to say that he held the JUS
tice or injustice all in his own hands.
Can any reasonable person believe
that L am guilty as alleged? If SO, can
you believe Mr.. Irvine would come up
here to incriminate himself by making
such proposition and place an OBJ
struction in the way of justice for sell
| fish motives? Soon after Mr.. Irvine left,
our spring where we get our drinking
water was poisoned. My daughter Al
mira, took drink and Immediately had
spasms and vomited. l went down to
Rice Lake, called Mr.. Irvine up by tele-
phone and notified him of the fact He
said it must be some of the neighbors'
acts, for he had given, his men at the
camp strict injunctions not to interfere
with me in any manner.
81 asked him who that Indian was at
the camp. He said: 81 do not know;
his name is Murphy; he is a new man ON
our books. l asked him if it was Gus
tomary for his company to have new
man and an Indian watching camp and
supplies. He said No. Then / asked
him if it was not customary to give
such jobs to an old trusty, and he said
it was. l asked why that Indian
was there. He said that he did not know
"Said 1: 4 don't know either, but APP
parently he is there to carry out Null
ligan's threat that 'he will live longer
on ThOrnapple than L would" Mr..
Irvine then said he would have the In
dian removed, and when | got back home
the blackbird had flown.
"To show how well Mr.. Irvine has kept
his word, can mention the several arm
ed mobs that have been here since that
time, and especially the gang that held
up my brother last fall in hunting sea-
son and robbed him. Did you hear of
call for the militia by the district at
torney or circuit court Judge to hunt
these highway robbers down? Did the
| judge call them any vulgar names? No,
because it would be similar to the kettle
calling the pot black.
''The people who have lived in the lum
bering regions are aware of the fact
that it has always been the custom of
the numbering companies to override pri-
vate rights and take property by con-
quest or any other convenient manner,
in testimony whereof stand thousands
upon thousands of silent witnesses-the
black pine stumps. Very few homestead
ers found their claims untouched by the
trespasser's axe, and yet there is a
commandment that says: Thou shall
not steal
II may possibly have violated some of
mans laws, for they are so complicated
that it is sometimes very difficult to dis
1 Germ what is lawful or unlawful. but
i l am satisfied l have not violated any of
Gods laws, for my conscience has been