The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1907-05-14
TRIAL OF HAYWOOD BEGINS
At BOISE CITY, IDAHO
Labor Leader Charged With Com
pIicity in Steunenberg Murder.
CAUSES LITTLE EXCITEMENT
Fun History of the Case-RecitaI of
All the Facts That Preceded AS
sassination of the Former Gov
ernor.

Boise, Idaho - William D. Hay-
wood, first OF the alleged participants
in the avenging conspiracy by which
1t is charged the assassination of
Frank Steunenberg was plotted and
executed, was placed on trial for his
lie here before Judge Wood. Coun-
! seisfor the State and prisoner began
examining prospective jurors at once.
The opening of the trial was earnest
and busines9like. It's striking feat
ure was the absence of crowds or
demonstrations. At no time was the
courtroom more than half filled, and
the streets forming the Court House
square contained not a single loiterers
Never have the issues between cap
1tal and labor been brought into such
sharp conflict as in the discussion
over the trials at Boise of Charles H.
Meyer and William D. Haywood, re-
spectively president and secretary of
the Western Federation of Miners.
and George A. Pettibone. former
member of the Executive Board of
the organization, for alleged compile
1ty in the assassination of the late
Governor Frank Steunenberg.
Steunenberg was blown to pieces
by a bomb as he was entering the
gate of his home at Caldwell on the
evening of December 80, 1905. A
string had been attached to the gate,
and as Mr.. Steunenberg opened the
gate it set off the bomb. AS soon as
the news of the murder reached
Boise that evening Governor Gooding
went to Caldwell by special train and
superintendent the efforts to capture
the assassin.
The town was patrolled, and no
one was permitted to enter or leave
without giving full and satisfactory
account of himself. In the round I'D
several suspicious characters were
gathered in. Among them was Harry
Orchard, whose story of his move
ments in Caldwell and his reason for
being there at all were so suspicious
that he was held on the charge of
being implicated in the murder. Or
Nchard was member of the Western
Federation of Miners. Steve Adams,
another member of the. organization,
was also arrested. Simpkins, third
member, was implicated, but got
away, and has never been arrested.
In behalf of the State Governor
Goodlng offered reward of $4,000
for the arrest and conviction of the
murderers. The Steunenberg family
added $4,000, and Canyon County in
creased the amount Pinkerton de-
tectives, attracted by the rewards,
took up the case, and James MOZART
land famous as the man who ran
h10 ~
sylvania thirty years ago, took charge
of the work for them. Mcfarland
finally got from Harry Orchard a
confession, in which Meyer, Haywood
and Pettibone were implicated in the
assassination of the Ex-Governor.
What confederation of the story
the prosecution has it has kept very
close, but. it is asserted that there is
a great deal of it. Steve Adams also
confessed, but subsequently recanted
Meyer, Haywood and Pettibone
were all in Denver when this Orchard
story was told. The Idaho authori-
ties submitted the evidence then in
their possession to Governor McDon-
aid, OF Colorado, who granted a war
rant of extradition at Governor Good
ing's request. The men were ar
rested on Saturday night, and be-
fore any legal steps could be taken in
their behalf to thwart their extradi-
ton they were brought into Idaho on
a special train.
From that day to this their friends
among the labor men have never
ceased to charge that they were kid
naped, although the Supreme Court
of the United States sustained the
procedure. The Western Federation
of Miners at once took up the cause
of it's leaders and organized labor
generally throughout the country has
taken similar action
Money in very large sums has been
subscribed to meet the expenses of
their defense, and in every way labor
formally has made its own the cause
of Meyer, Haywood and Pettibone
Thus it has come about that the
struggle is really test of strength
between the force of law and order
in Idaho on one side and organized
labor on the other