The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1908-01-10
PLOT ALLEGED
BY ROOSEVELT
Thinks Nevada Governor Scheemed
to Get Troops to Goldfield.
RULEDBYMIN OWNERS
Soldiers win Be Withdrawn When Legis-
lature Assemblies Declares President.
Acts on Report Of Investigators.


Goldfield, Nevada, shortly after the
legislature begins it's special session.
This intention was made known at
the white house Sunday when the re-
port of the special investigating COM
mission was made pubic. together with
a letter from the president to Governor
Sparks, dated January A. The pres
ident says he shall be governed by the
recommendations in the case unless
the governor can show that the state
ments of the report are not in accord
ance with their facts. The report says:
The conditions did not support the
general allegations in the governors
request for troops, nor were his spe-
cifc statements established to any such
extent as to justify his use of these
statements for the purpose Of getting
federal troops
It concludes with this recommends
ton:
But we also must firmly believe that
upon the assembling of the legislature,
or within few days thereafter, the
troops should be removed, regardless
of any request for their retention that
may be made either by the legislature
or the governor of Nevada, it being
essential that the state of Nevada
shall understand this situation COM
pletely, shall recognize the fact that
the state government the responsible
ity of keeping order, and that recog-
nizing this possibility, it may take such
action as is the duty of the state and
as will be sufficient in the premises.
), In his letter to Governor Sparks, az
ter reviewing the steps so far taken in
the Goldfeld mining trouble, the pres
ident continues:
II have just received the report OF
these three gentlemen Murray, Smith
and NeilD which sets forth in the most
emphatic language their belief after a
careful investigation on the ground,
that there was no warrant whatever for
calling upon the president for troops,
and that the troops should not be kept
indefinitely at Goldfeld. The report
further states that there was no In
surrection against the power Of the
state at the time the troops were call
ed for, that nobody supposed that there
was such an insurrection."
"The signers Of the report express
their conviction that the troops should
remain in Nevada until the assembling
Of the Legislature, so as to preserve the
status quo in ordsR=that the legisla-
ture may deal with the situation as 1t
exists; but that shortly thereafter the
troops should be removed.
Il agree with the recommendations
Of this report of which l enclose a
copy. and shall act accordingly. I'm
less it can be shown that the state
ments of the report are not in accord
ance with the facts, it will be incum-
bent upon the legislature of Nevada,
when it conVenes, itself to provide for
enforcing the laws of the state. The
state Of Nevada must itself make a
resolute effort in good faith to per-
form the police duties incident to the
existence of a state"
"The report further says:
There is absolutely no question
that if the state of Nevada and the
county of Esmeralda exercised the
powers at their disposal they can main
tain satisfactory order in Goldfeld;
that, so far, these authorities have
done nothing but rely on federal aid,
and their attitude now is expressly that
OF refusing to do anything and desir-
ing to throw their own burdens upon
the federal government for the main
tenance of those elementary conditions
or order for which they, and they only,
are responsible
Reviewing the conditions leading up
to the present strike and since the
strike began, November 9th last, the
report draws this conclusion:
''The action of the mine operators
warrants the belief that they had de-
termined upon a reduction in wages
and the refusal of employment to mem
bers of the Western Federation of
Miners, but that they feared to take
this course of action unless they had
the protection of federal troops, and