Montana news. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-191?, 1908-01-09

he succeeded until the U. S. marshall
got hold of him.
Ninety per cent of the adult popu.
lation of Silver Bow county believes
Edwards TO be an innocent man and
that the judge was entirely in error
or biased when he sentenced him.
The majority of those who were
present in the court room during tine
trial and heard the testimony reached
the conclusion that the evidence was
all in Edwards favor. The trouble
with Edwards was, he was to accurate
He kept his notes too well.
1t is the common talk on the streets
of Butte and among the union men of
Helena that the basis for the sentence
that Edwards received was owing to
the fact that be has a damage suit in
the courts for 10000 against the Bell
Telepl7ne company and had he not
that suit against the company he
would not be in Jail today.
Perhaps Judge Hunt did not know
anything about this damage suit of
Edwards, wether he did OF whether he
did not, the union people of Montana
believe that the damage suit and the
sentence are related.
The entire trial has not increase I
the respect of the workers for courts
that issue injunctions in labor disputes
and union men have just reasons to
complain. The union men claim that
evidence they desired to introduce was
oyerruled by the judge but the scab
phone company could get in anything
they desired as evidence.
On the sixth day of October at 3
p. NJ. in the city of Butte General
Manager Murray of the scab phone
company put his hand on a copy of the
injunction granted by Judge Hunt and
laughlingly said, "This is the locu.
ment that will defeat the unions of
Montana.' And he has been very ar
rogant in his dealingsc with the unions
ever since, and on the first day that
the trial of Plunkett and Lenihan took
place, General Manager Murray boast.
ed in front Of the Butte hotel that all
would be convicted. This time he felt
so sure that the union men would be
convicted that he remained in Salt
Lake.
Judge Hunt in passing sentence on
Joe Shannon said that he would be
lenient with him as he had a wife and
seven children. Shannon did not steal
anything or committed a felony. Yet
this same judge sentenced a man for
illegally fencing fifty nine thousan
acres of public land to twenty four
hours in Jail and fined 800. II Shan.
non had only stolen some of the pub.
lie domain instead of interfering with
the business of scab corporation or
roughly handling a scab, it is safe to
say that he would be home with his
wife and babies long before this.
This government by injunction bust
ness is getting to be a farce AMI is
only bringing the courts into contempt
in the eyes of the people.
By what constitutional rights has
any judge to make laws for the people
Of n sovereign state.
Have we not a legislature elected
by the people TO make laws to gov.
ern us. Have we not a governor who
is executive of the state. What are
sheriffs and the police for. Yet here
comes judge not elected by the peo'
pie, not responsible to the people and
makes laws that take predominance
over the laws made by peoples leg
islature, and over the constitution of
the state that was adopted by the vote
Of the people. The worst of it is all
those Judge made injunction laws are