The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1906-05-04
A PITCHED BATTLE
AT COAL MINES
Lob Drives Police to Cover in Mount
Carmel.
NINE SHOT DOWN IN THE STREETS
Pennsylvania State Police, Which Went to As.
sistance Of Nonuuion Men Belng Mobbed,
Surrounded By Several Hundred Men-'Police
Attempt to Shoot Way Through Defiant
Crowd, Dropping Three Men.

Mount Carmel, Pa, (SpeciaD .-Riot-
ing among mineworkers at Mount Car
mel started Sunday night, when, follow
ing a mass meeting at which fiery ad-
dresses were made by leaders OF the
mineworkers mob of 800 men and boys
armed with clubs and stones attacked
gang of men who have for the past week
been engaged in cutting coal at the
Sayre mine Of the Lehigh Coal Company.
A pitched battle then took place. The
rioting continued several hours. "A score
of men were injured, but none seriously.
The citizens then made an appeal
for the state police and detail OF ~
men, under command of Lieut.. W. +.
Smith, which was located temporarily
at Pottsville, received orders at 2 o'clock
A. NJ, to proceed to Mount Carmel.
The policemen and the horses were load
ed on special train, which reached
Mount Carmel at S o'clock. They stabbed
their horses at the Bear Ridge shaft, and
at about 8 o'clock marched into the town
for breakfast
AS soon as the forerunners saw them
they became incensed and tsarted to Jeer.
The officers marched on steadily, looking
neither to the right or left. The first
hotel they went to was the Locust Noun
tain House, where the proprietor refused
to feed them. They then proceeded to
the Commercial Hotel, the leading hos
telry in the town They entered the
hotel at about o'clock, the proprietor
was willing to feed them, but the ser
want girls refused to serve them, and
the cooks, following their lead, refused to
prepare food for them. The officers
then proceeded to cook their own break.
fast. In the meantime an immense crowd
gathered on the streets.
Everytime one of the policemen ap-
peared at the window chorus of jeers
and maledictions went up from the
crowd. Finally the detachment came out,
and the crowd began to close in about
them The men tried to force passage
way through the mob, but to no avail.
Suddenly piece of brick came whizzing
through the air. 1t grazed the cheek of
a big policeman and the blood trickled
down on his blouse Another stone
struck a second policeman's helmet, and
the next moment a fusillade was flying
through the air. Drawing their long
clubs, the policemen battered their way
through the. crowd. Two men who spat
d and struck the officers were token
prisoners
From the roof OF the hotei Burgess
Penman called the mob to disperse, and
his words we're needed by some of them.
In the meantime the officers proceeded
to the office of Squire Reed, where their
prisoners were arraigned and held under
bail The detachment then marched
south on Maple Street to Fifth, where
the crowd again became dense and
blocked their way Again the officers
were bombarded with sticks and stones
and several of them were injured.
The situation being desperate, the lieu
tenant ordered his men to draw their re-
volvers and fire in the air. This, how
ever, did not scare the crowd, but only
seemed to incense them more. several
of the policemen were struck by the sticks
and stones and injured and the crowd
began to close in on the little force.
Bullets from the pistols of the police
men passed through the residences of
Charles Goldsmith and DR.. ]. B. Kistler.
Mrs. Goldsmith was slightly injured. AT
ter firing on the crowd the officers re-
treated down Fifth Street to the borough
line, where they made a stand. Again
the mob advanced upon them and again
the big revolvers of the officers blazed
deadly fire into the crowd