Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1910-07-29

or eviction by the ala or the CIVIL courts.
Lafayette, the county seat ~ Walker
county was nearer than Chattanooga
Sheriff Germany was at Lafayette, and
had been there during the entire three
or four days of wrangling at the mines,
and just why Mitchell should have rush
ed off for the military, instead of for
the sheriff and the Judge has not been
made satisfactorily to appear.
Not one gun had been fired, not one
person assaulted or injured, not one dol
lar of property destroyed, and while
Mitchell seems to have been very much
frightened by the "gibbering'" of these
out-landish foreigners, and doubtless i'm
agined them to be (every man of them
"black-handers and cut-throats. An
| impartial review of the facts irresist-
| IDLY lead unbiased Investigators to the
! conclusion, that this man Mitchell lack
| ed both sense and courage and was
wholly unit to deal with such a situa-
| ton.
When the troops arrived, according to
the report of Captain Meckleham, the
| Italians were submissive and quite and
| orderly-offered no trouble or resistance
whatever
The number of weapons (guns. still
ettoes, etc. found In their shanties, as
detailed by this officer would probably
have been duplicated in the homes Of
working. camps of that number of native
| workmen.- The company officials, too
! evidently were unduly apprehensive con-
corning these Italians, and they. too
were perhaps more. frightened by the
/ ferocious appearance of gang of Ital-
| ian immigrants (who might in truth, be
| very harmless and docile) with all the
terror they inspire from reading lurid
accounts of Malta and other italian
secret societies of cut-throtsf than, pos
| sibly, by. any overt acts of these Ital-
| ians themselves. 9a- akr vHEr- - 80
That there was, no neal, need OF the
military is, amply proven sin the light OF
| the above stated facts, and by the sworn
| evidence of Sheriff Garmany. This on
| cial swore: 81 was at home in LaFay-
| cite, Ca, on May %, "a and %. 1 never
! got any word from Governor Brown in
regard to the riot at the Lookout Coal
and Coke company's place on Lookout
! Mountain, or elsewhere. After arriving
at the mines found that there was no
| trouble that II required the militia to
settle. 1 think I could have taken an
other man and arrested the Italians by
! having warrants for them. / heard at
| ter l got to the mines that there had
| been nothing said except by two or three
Of the Italians / did not see any re-
sistance from any. of the Italians.
state IuTIneTIlOTe, l. went on the nr8I
train after receiving the, information
from Mr.. Jackson Of any trouble at the
! mines" L. .. 81, ...-...s. ...t p.
Your committee, therefore, concludes
and so reports, first, that the coal com
| pany had every opportunity to appeal
| to the civil instead of the military arm
of the state; second, that the facts
above related show that the contentious
arising under said Ave years contract
were questions, when in dispute, which
! should have been settled by appeal to
the courts; third, that the civil power
was ample to- have preserved the peace
and protect the legal rights Of the re-
| spective and contending parties end
| fourth, there was. therefore, no neces-
sity for calling upon the governor for
troops. ... ..
WAS THE GOVERNOR AUTHORIZED
r TO SEND TROOPS?
8. Your committee, upon the legal
question arising upon the act of the
! governor III sending troops, of course,
| had to consult counsel learned In the
law" whose legal opinion is substantial
| ly embodied herein. ~
The facts, as reported by the govern
or, were that about $3.50 p. m. on the
night Of May 18th he was phoned by
Col. James w. English, Jr, from Chat
tanooga, Tenn, ste ting that Acting
| Deputy Sheriff John Mitchell was there,
being too hoarse to talk over the phone,
he. Colonel English, spoke for him,
and then proceedd to inform the gov
ernor that there was grave danger at
the mines; that the Italians were riot
ing, threatening to use dynamite. ETC.,
ETC., and that Deputy Sheriff Mitchell
| desired the governor to send a .compa-
| ny Of militia to the mines, at once. etc.,
etc.
John Mitchell was a paid employee of
| the coal company-a superintendent of
! the mines. At the request of the mine
/ officials he had been made special
| deputy sheriff by Sheriff Germany. 1t
/ has been customary for mines. railroads
! and other corporations. to have their
! own employees made special policemen,
detectives deputy sheriffs, eta GUS
| tom by the way, which should be either
wholly discontinued, or attended with
greater care In the selection OF such Of
! ncials.
These persons feel that their first duty
| is to their employers. and not to the
! employees, or to the state or general pub
| lie. And Mitchll furnishes an apt illus
/ tration Of the evil of this custom. Sher-
| If Germany, who made this man a spe-
| cial deputy, at the request of the coal
| company, himself has publicly stated
! that Mitchell was drunk half the time.
! and utterly Incompetent, blame hereto.
also. attaching to Germany for appoint
! ing such man.
! But, inasmuch as Mitchell was. in fact.
] a legally appointed acting deputy sheriff
the legal question arises, was the gov
ernor empowered by law to send military
to quell riots, etc, upon the request of
, an acting deputy sheriff? .>-
We are advised by counsel that, mani
testify he was not The governor, in
! his report to the house of representa-
tives az showing his legal authority for
sending the troops, quotes certain sec
tons Of the state constitution which
makes the governor Commander in
/ chief Of the army. etc. "a conservator
of the peace throughout the state
I which has no direct bearing upon the
precise legal question at issue, and he
! then quotes section IA Of the military
code, as enacted by the general assembly,
in the acts of 1905.
Section IA Is as follows:
Section IA. The governor shall have
power. in case OF instruction, invasion,
tumult, riot or breach of the peace ,or
imminent danger thereof to order into
the active service of the state any part