The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1909-02-17
EMPLOYMENT
OFFICE RIOT
!. RACES AGAIN.
Crowd Smashes Windows
and Parades the
Streets.

afternoon for the hearing of sew
eral men arrested last night in
the employment Office outbreak.
The accused are being defended by
the Industrial workers organiza-
ton and the courtroom is packed
with their adherents.
The inability of the police to
cope with the employment agent
and industrial workers trouble re-
suited in an incipient riot along
Stevens street and Main avenue
last night, and as a result the city
will probably have something of
bill to pay for broken windows.
The windows were smashed with
rocks thrown from an angry crowd
that probably numbered 1000 peo-
pie. The police accomplished moth
ing toward quieting the demonstra-
ton until the damage had been in
ficted.
Today the employment men as
sert that they will appeal to the
county or federal authorities for
protection that the city fails to
give, while officers of the Industrial
workers claim that they had moth
ing to do with the trouble.
Macho, who has been accused of
defrauding workingmen, but who
has managed to beat every charge
of the kind pressed against him, as
we'll as defy all efforts to have his
license revoked, was the first OBJ
ject of attack last night. The
crowd gathered around his place
and counselled everybody who ap-
piled for job against having any
thing to do with MachO. This de-
veloped into ieering and hooting
and the outbreak that might easily
have been attended by far more
serious consequences. This is the
second outbreak of the kind in
Spokane.
When Macho left his place, he
was guarded by uniformed officers
till he reached his car. A rock
was hurled through a window of
the street car after him and mar
rowly missed an elderly lady sit
ting within.
A peculiar part of the situation
is the fact that while Macho seems
to be the worst enemy, in the
nCt ft,,n Of ri
| over 10 cents worth of damage
| was done to his place. Likewise
the Carr and Hanson offices, which
are in building belonging to Mr..
Daniels, who rents the |. w. WIS
their hall, were not damaged in
| the least. Most of the damage
was suffered by other employment
| agencies.
After the riot, in which six men,
Ernest Kruger, said to be the lead
err; Wasil Conan. Peter Jones,
Otto Handee, Joe Parvich, E. w.
HASH and James Kenan, were ar
rested, between 1900 and 1000
men gathered in the middlet of
Stevens street, between Main and
Front avenues and sang "Hallelu-
jah."
The industrial leader, Walsh
addressed the crowd saying in bart
as follows:
Men, where did you all c0me
from? | know we have 2,00U In
dustrial Workers of the Wprld
here. but if you were all in we'd
have 5000 Now l want to tell
you, as | have told you belpre,
that though we're going to sput
every employment Office in 4his
town out of business, there's fifth
ing gained by this sort OF rionng.
Now all you |. w. WIS come down
to the hall and we'll talk this
thing over" The crowd followed
him and the tumult was over.
Chief Rice said this morning
that every able man convicted in
court of participation in the riot
last night would be put on a diet
of bread and water If he refused
to work the same as any other
prisoner.
A street preacher started to
harangue crowd of men near the
intersection of Main and Stevens
this forenoon, but was ordered
away, and the police have been
instructed by the chief to keep all
crowds moving from now on.
The cases of all the men arrest
ed were continued till tomorrow,
by Justice Mann of the police