The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-04-16
Armed With Torches, RevOlvers
and Winchester Rifles
ssNight Raiders" Are Destroying
Tobacco Crop in Kentucky.
FIGHT ON THE TRUST
Is Followed by Organized System
of Retaliation.
Growers Are Warned Not to
Sell to Trust Buyers.

Lexington, KY, April 16.-Armed
with flaming torches, revolvers and
Winchester rifles and wearing masks
on their faces, men are riding through
several western Kentucky counties
waging the most peculiar warfare
Kentucky has yet experienced.
Several months ago the trouble was
started by the burning of some tobac-
CO scenarios at Princeton. Caldwell
county The scenarios belonged 10
what the people styled the tobacco
trust Following this a number OF To-
hacco barns belonging to ralsers VINO
had refused to join an association Or
ganized for the purpose OF combating
the trust were burned
The situation became alarming ana
Governor Beckham dispatched Fire
Marshal Mott Ayers to the scene wifi
instructions to assist the county OH
GERS in bringing to justice the persoiAs
committing the arson
found that some of the Stemar1es anu
tobacco barns had been purneu pS
masked men who rode through tne
country on horseback TheX were
called might raiders"
War on Tobacco Raisers-
Since the sufferers were tobacco
raisers who did not belong 10 the ~
bacco association. it was concluoe.o
that war was DGluS Nd@ o0 OAA ~
association tobacco men, 49,, -,
M Ayers could find out little, pc
cause the people, while deplorlng VIC
lent acts, would not tell VINO pelohSeu
TO the might raiders" Tnrousn IVY
a. vas learned that a number of prornl-
nent persons had assembled anu No ;,
taken what was termed a ploou 20 % ~ ~ =
agreeing that they would hsnt III 'a,o
oSsociation even at the cost OF human
life. Found and
Many indictments were Iouna an
for a time there was cessatlon III IL
work of the raiders. lev bo,s I
of tobacco belonging to lnoepenusn'
growers were taken out OF wa wa
house and rolled into the Cunnoerlalo
river. 80 +broueh
christian county and with garden noes
scraped the tobacco beos Oh Auj
of growers not members OF I1fE peo-
ME commenced to retaliate ana many
Kant beds and barns of tobacco own
ed bv association growers were de-
stroyed.
c.o1.arnor Reckham has offered a re-
ord of $500 for the conviction OF any
person who engages in the destruction
IF tobacco or tobacco plant beds
No one in Kentucky can 1oresee d
.oI,tion TO the might raider" trou-
HES The Tobacco Growers assocla-
ton of the dark Burley olslrIcC IA. He
come to be a powerful orSanlzatlIU1li
and it's officers and members geneLdllS
5acrI- deeds of violence such as nave
been committed by the night raiders
There are those, however, VINO eX-
cuse the outrages. In tWo-coluInI
card in a state paper last We en- d ~
Thoroughly converSant with the sllud
ton said that the raiders were not
without sympathy and that their OF
lenses should be overlooked, mas
much as thew were being oppressed by |
hat a
11non the product of their farms
He said that the price dictated by
The tobacco trust was not a nvlng one /
The growers believe that by FORM
i,.- an association they can buy up and |
MANIPULATE the sale of the tobacco for |
the benefit of it's members, the manu-
facturer being compelled to pay pet
ter prices for the tobacco Many
of the association, though for the last |
two years they had been reaping its
Dement'S because they could always !
sell their tobacco at the same price at |
which the association people were |
Warned Not to Sell to Trust
Growers were warned not to sell to |
tobacco trust buyers. 1t soon became |
dangerous for trust buyers to go into |
the rural districts, and later the trust
stemaries at several points were burned
down
plant beds are objects of the greatest |
solicitude to the grower, for upon the
quality and quantity of his tobacco
plants much of his years work depends. |
The black tobacco district takes in all |
of western and southern Kentucky but |
so far only a few counties have been
involved in the trouble, and it may be |
that the retaliat ion of the Independent |
people in destroying the property of |
those who they believe are inf1icting |
similar damage upon them will have |
the effect of putting a stop to the law |
1essness.