The copper era. (Clifton, Graham County, Ariz.) 1899-1911, 1906-06-14
A THRILLING EXPERIENCE.
Manager Prudential Of the Solomon
Commercial Co. in the Cananea
Trouble.
From the B1lletin.

From the B1lletfn,
Manager Ph. Prudential returned
Monday evening from a trip filled
with thrilling and exciting expert
ences enough to satisfy the most adj
venturous spirit. He left Solomon
vile last week for Cananea upon the
prOsaic mission of selling alfalfa hay,
but remained in Cananea to witness
scenes of incendiarrism, pillage, riot
ing and bloodshed.
Mr., Prudential says that he ar
rived in Cananea one day last week
and soon went to the mining COM
pany's Office in search of Mr. MetCalf,
who had charge of the company's
lumber, hay and grain business. At
the Office he was told that there was
little strike trouble on and that
Mr.. Metcalf was not about. This
was Mr.. Freudenthal's first knowl-
edge that anything was wrong. In
the afternoon he returned and found
Mr.. Metcalf in the office and with
him went into the corral to examine
a lot of hay that was being unloaded.
Before going into the corral, how
ever, Metcalt went to his house and
DlOSul Gu d llAC duO
saying that the strikers were making
trouble but that they were ready for
them. Soon after returning to the
corral a crowd of strikers was seen
advancing with the intention of
forcing the laborers at work in the
lumber and hay yard to quit. Met
calf ordered the gates closed and the
hose turned on the crowd if an at
tempt was made to enter the corral.
His instructions were followed and
the strikers at the gate were met
with stream of water. This pre-
cipitated perfect shower of stones,
clubs and brick bats. Mr.. Freuden-
thai stepped into lumber shed out
of the way of the flying missiles and
Metcalf took up his stand at the
gate, rifle in hand and warned the
rioters that the man who attempted
to climb the corral would be shot
Suddenly a shot was fired, and
them" said Mr.. Prudential, 'the
strikers seemed to literally swarm
over into the corral. In less time
than it takes to tell it the yard was
filled with bowling mob of frenzied
Mexican strikers, armed with clubs,
stones, miners candlesticks and
knives"
Mr.. Prudential walked out into
the yard and at sight of him the mob
left Metcalf, bleeding from a hun
dred wounds, dying upon the steps
of the office, and rushed upon him.
Then it was that Mr.. Freudenthal's
perfect knowledge of Spanish stood
him in hand. He says that if ever
he talked Spanish he did so then, and
as though his life depended on it,
too. He explained to the leader that
he was an inoffensive citizen who
dealt in nothing more dangerous
the-less, they searched him and one
big, burly rutfian reached for his
watch. eyes" said Mr.. Prudential
"that's my watch, but you are well
come to it; take it." "No" said the
leader, "we are not robbers; we only
want our rights. Let the watch
alone" And it was with a great
deal of reluctance the big fellow
released his grasp on the time piece
After some parleying, a striker
escorted him through the mob to the
gate and by mixing in the crowd on
the street Mr.. Prudential finally
reaCed his hotel in safety. Within
a few minutes after he left the lum-
Der yard was fred, the office broker
into and Will Metcalf Inu another
American stabbed and dubbed to
death. ---------
That night Mr.. Prudential was
one of number of men who stood
guard at the Greene residence ex-
pecting an attack at any moment
Lack of arms on the part of the
strikers probably saved the city from
a fearful night of carnage.