Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1906-05-09
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steunenherg Murder TrIal.


The trial Of the alleged murderers Of ox-
GovenorFmnk stounenberg OF Idaho is
set 10 commence on May 18th at Caldwell,
Canyon county, in that State, and as the
date draws near interest in the event I'M
creasos. IL promises to be. one of the
most notable murder trials ever known
In this country.
steunenberg was the victim Of an as
sassination, and the crime grow out Of
labor troubles. AS result, two mem
bem Of the Western Federation Of Miners
are held for murder on their own conles-
sions and three men, two Of whom are
the president and secretary Of the associa-
iion, are awaiting trial charged with con-
spiracy 10 bring about the assassination.
The crime wns committed on the even
ing Of December 3Oth, 1905. Gov.
steunenberg was about TO enter his home
in Caldwell. and as he pushed open the
gate of the front yard he exploded
deadly bomb which had been fixed under
the sidewalk SO as TO be- set off when
touched by the opening gate. lie was
instantly killed The bomb had been
placed by a man who had preceded the
governor along the street only by a few
minutes.
The man who placed this deadly bomb
at Governor Sieunenbergs gate was
Harry Orchard, and he was soon after
wards arrested Since his arrest he has
made a confession, in which he charged
this and many other crimes 10 tho Inner
Circle of tho Western Federation of
Miners The result of this confession was
the arrest Of President Charles H. Meyer
and Secretary William ID. Haywood of the
Federation, C. A. Pettibone, formerly
an active member Of its supreme govern
ing body, and stephen Adams, another
member, on the charge OF conspiring to
assassinate Mr. Steunenborg. All Of
these men have been indicted with Or
ohard, and will be put on trial at the term
of the court beginning in Caldwell on May
18th. /. J, Simpkins a member of the
executive board Of the Federation, is
under indictment on the same charge.
but he has eluded the detectives and is a
fugitive from Justice.
The assassination Of Steunenbere was
the final tragedy Of years Of violence
and bloodshed in Idaho and Colorado.
for which the authorities hold the West
ern Federation Of Miners responsible.
This union, one of tho richest and most
completely organized bodies of work
ingmen in the country, is charged with
crimes as terrible as those that dis
tinguished tho operations of the Molly
Maguires in the Pennsylvania coal regions
a generation ago. Murders decreed
liy the federation's Inner Circle were
carried out by its faithful members
men like Orchard and Adams. who
stopped at no crime and did their work
with q cold blooded attention 10 detail
and remarkable ingenuity. All who
opposed the Federation's rule were SEN
fenced TO death, and many of these
sentences were executed. Steunenberg's
assassination was ordered because he
sent the State troops to the mining dis
tricts to maintain order. The life Of
Ex-Governor Peabody Of Colorado was
attempted many times, and once his
entire family was poisoned by arsenic
IN their milk. A bomb was planted for
Judge Goddard Of the Colorado Supreme
Court, who escaped it only by accident.
A plot against ID. H. Mohatt was fr,is-
trated only by his leaving the country for
Europe. At Independence nineteen non
union miners were killed by the explosion
Of dynamite under the railroad station.
Orchard has confessed that he set the
bombs and exploded them, and he asserts
that his acc was insiigatcd by the officers
OF the Western Federation OF Miners.
The confession made by Orchard was