The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-08-14
BIRMINGHAM
 IS QUIET Sheriff Higdon Pleased With Situation.
 - STATEMENT BY ". R. FARLEY
 .----s--~-- Agrees With Opinion Expressed By
 Lane. Asroeious Conduct of Firiag Into Train aad Dynamitias Unaualiaealy cca- semned--uaion Declared to Be Free From Blame.
 
STATEMENT BY ". R. FARLEY

Birmin ahanns Aug. 1Ss--SSpeoiatt- Sheriff Higdon, of Jefferson county. ah- nounced today that this had been the quiAtest day since the coal minera strike began. July 6. He said that thoi1xh quietness reigned supreme. he nad given fresh instructions to the deputies to be ever watchful and not to permit any violations of the tn- xtructions Issued two weeks ago. when he practically put martial law into CT feet.
 TWO car leads of non-union men, ac- companied by two car loaos or soas s tiiers, were placed at Mines Nos. and g a4 Wyia1n this morning. There were m teara on the part of the miners ou strike. or any other kind of demon- sfration. the new men being placed at fha mines with no trouble whatso- ever. Three car loads of provisions were sent out by the miners leaders tokax to vivian. and will be distributed tprlorrow 10 tho strikers. this being one ofS the largest distributing points Of the union.
 Al military headquarters there was nothing new to give out today. The arrfvallnf Colonel duAzont was awaited Al noon. and the opinion was expressed that when ha took charge there would te no changes made in the stan nor tn the location of the troops. Laeu- tenant Colonel Hubbard. who has oeen in charge since the second day or the skrfvai Of the 1sk Regiment. continues to make trips out into the mining section o1 the state.
 ". R Fairley, Alabama member of1 the United Mine Workers of Amertca, today gave out statement in which he said that he was glad to accept the suggestion set out by fudge Lane at the naonsteF mass meetings or ciLtzens A. t4 a&f tnt fact fiaf a committee be named to in" vestikate who is at fault in the dis- ordefs In sthis district.
 Fnsriey NHnlxe@ Statement.
 The statement Is :eonsidefed the .sfrossweek and most conservative fhst1 has eone from the mfFaers side since ffle strike began. # reads as follows;
 sixteen of the union miners were ar- rsstea charged with shooting Into that train and with assault and battery v6lth intent to Kill and murder; they all apneared bAkors the same Judge. Hon. [. H. Bennerss and were all dis- charged by-him, not even witness ap- bearing against them
 They certainly were not responsiDle gor the atrocious murder Of the union miner who was put in jail ct Brighton on A bare suspicion, taken from there at night and hung and his body rid- dled with bullets, Tn this jail the or fcers had no right to place this per son. He was carried there on a street ear which ran from Birmingham to Eaasenaer, and he should have been taken to one or the other of these places and not left at the Brighton caIlaboose,. Intended only for the pris- onerb of the town. and at which a number of guards and deputies of the Woodward Iron Company made their Headquarters at night.
 Certainly the miners are not respon- sible for the outrages perpetrated on Jonn Burros. a white man. who was dragged from his bed at night by dep- uties and guards. and in order to try to make him confess that he knew something of the dynamiting out there was hung by his neck until his tongue and eyes protruded, his nose made to bleed, and when he was let down was anoru dead than alive.
 Nor are they responsible for hand euffing white woman to man in Walker County and carrying her, hand cuffed to the man. to the railroad sta ton, on the trivial charge of trespass after warning.
 II, together with every officer of the United Mine Workers, unqualifedly condemn the atrocious and inhuman conduct of those who fired Into the train near Blocton. murdering and maiming some of the men on it; as also the dynamitlng at Acton, as we'll as any other violent or unlawful con duct committed during thts strike. Nearly all of those who are charged with any participation in this Blocton affatr. as shown by the correspond aiee in the daily papers, are Slavs and other foreigners. who were im- ported to that place by the Tennessee ! Company as strikebreakers during the strike thrse years ago. We have at all times. and do now. beg and im- plore all union miners to desist ana refrain from any violence or unlaw- ful conduct rhe peace and quiet of the community is more valuable to them and +he State than the success of this strike or of anything. Hu- manitv and good citizenship. as well as the good name aud success of the miners organization. demand that this course be pursued, and the officers of the mine workers intend at all haS- Ersd to pursue it.
 feel that 1t Is but just to the union miners that the public should te l informed at least to some extent about 1 the unfortunate situation now existing and to know that the miners are not l responsible for the murder and violence l x whieh nas occurred. They surely were | not responsible for the murder of one | man and the shooting of three others by guards and deputies at Republic on l the 18th day of July. That case has l been investigated by judicial officer l of high character. Hon. l. H. Benners, 1 one of the judges of the Inferior Court | of Jefferson County. who sat for over 1 q week and after hearing all the ev- 1 idence and argument of counsel. held | six of the guards and deputy sheriffs | to answer before the grand jury on trial of murder.
 Union Not Responsible.
 Union miners are not responsible for : the occurrence at Jengerson-paraded | in some of the daily papeas as the l Battle of Jefferson. The acting Mayor of Cardiff. who had purisdic- tion over the police, was at Jefferson at the time as a peace officer. He has | made an afIldavit that he was pres ent and that het miners did not fire a single shot.
 Many other occurrences nearly, if l not quite so bad as these mentioned. 1 could be named for which union miners can not be held responsible. But these for the present will sufice. ,