El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-05-31

t peace oLL-cerS- on wouldn't suppose
] that any one would object TO such a
I measure But the mine owners sent
paid lobby to Charleston TO oppose
3 H. The bill was beaten by six votes.
. Two democrats voting with the Re
] 8Soicans- Those six votes cost West
ElrElnla civil war and half a million
dollars.
/ on the other hand. in the earlier
3 strife OF 1903 the mine owners an
/ pealed 10 another branch of this gov
; ernment-the federal courts. The min
+ erS were making a stubborn fight 1t
( was evident they could not be driven
9ack 20 work as long as they had food
T Inc bosses decided that they should
De starved out Justice John Jackson,
then sitting in the United States dis
I-lct court in the northern part of the
safe, was induced 10 issue an injunc-
uon, enJOining their relief committee
. from feeding or clothing the strikers
Anolner Deauti1ul example OF govern
z1eur by injunction.
Seven Killed; 20 Wounded.
His, brother justice IN me southern
, district, judge 3. T. EeilaT. at the
same time eni0ined the miners from
marching or holding their meetings
within sight of the mines. The strik-
. ers violated the injunction. A deputy
marshal was sent up Stamford noun
tain in t2yerte county to arrest The
leaders. lie was driven down the
mountain. Then the attorney for The
men arranged 10 have his clients sur
render to the court. Tho iepucy. pos
siblv because he knew nothing Of the
treaty of peace, organized q posse OF
so men and swOOped down upon Stana-
ford City at 4 o'clock in the morning.
He found the miners in bed. asleep
In the ensuing melee, which history
persists in calling the Massacre OF
Stamford city seven miners We're
killed and 20 wounded.
The attorney general OF the state
the fact that all the bullets were ''in
one side of tree that one dead miner
wore his nighJSOWD. and that another
had been shot in the back while he
was pulling on his shoe Then he pre-
pared to make a test case of two of
the deputies ana prosecuted them for
murder. The federal court 1nterVened
through a writ of habeas corpus and
the deputies were saved.
And yet there are miners in West
Virginia who believe in the courts
Isn't our government founded on lib
The "War Zone.v
a couple Of ragged gulches in che
kanaWha mountains, an hours ride
from Charleston. constitute the war
zone One is known as Cabin Greek;
the other as Paint Creek They are
eight miles apart separated by a razor
back ridge. The mining towns con-
sist of creek beds, canon walls. coal
dumps railway tracks, and cabins. the
cabins often implanted and sometimes Z
falling to pieces. through neglect
The advantages which, until recently,
accrued from living on Paint rather
than Cabin Creek. depended upon
things other than scenery. Cabin has
been closed territory, and is generally I
known among the miners as Russia .
The companies own everything ln sight f
except the county road This hIt Of 4
negligence is offset by the fact that I
the county road is for the mos part I
located in the bottom Of the creek. !
Thus. any undesirable who wishes TO Z
penetrate Cabin Creek is placed in an /
n .#as I'd rFas M al
TO walk on company property a. the I
risk of being manhandled by the (
guards, such being the customary pro- .
eedure, or he may take OFF his shoes I
and stockings and wade
An Open Dump.
Paint Creek has been open" That ]
s. tho territory, although owned oy Z
he mining companies. was not guard /
Paint Creek had won its independence I
n the strike of 1902, and the free I
Miners who worked there We're mem
lers of the district organization of the
United Mine Workers of America.
Cabin Creek, on the other hand, has
lever succeeded in combating the rule
which prohibits uniOnism under pain
# dismissal and Punishment.
This difference in the relative situa-
ion of the mem on the two creeks
efOre the war was emphasized by
many other inequalities of Ike nature
on couldn't entertain president VII
on I'm your Cabin Creek home If the
oss objected. And the boss would be
erys likely to object. too President
wilson is entirely too radical for the
veraEe Cabin Creek mine owner
our house lease even specified who
night and who might not walk up TO
our front door But If you lived on
'aint Greek, your house was your
astle. even though IL was Only a
hanty that the first heavy wind might
low away. There YOU might give (
inner to Emma Goldman and no one
a8Iaster and Man.
How can YOU Justify such a situa-
ion in the United StatesE I asked NJ
=. Davis. president of the Cabin Creek
Consolidated Coal company, the largest
lmDaDy operating mines on that creek
Without batting an eyelash, he stated
Is case. IF your cook had some one
the kitchen YOU didn't want there, .
-ouldn't YOU put him out2" ne asked Z
nd there isn't doubt in the world I
hat he sincerely believed that he was
'ithin his rights as a master
The state law of West Virginia pro- Z
ides that the miner may have a check
-eighman on the coal tipple to see that \
e ism Z robbed But there IS joker 2
the law. He can have the weigher J
he asks for one. Now here is I
smarkable set of circumstances. Every
Mon mine in the state, where miners 7
re able 10 make their demand in a
9dy. has its check weighman- On !
abin Creek, where the miners have ]
o organization. there is no check 2
eighman. Cabin Creek operators say
lat their men have never asked for i
he. [
aFrom Every Mountainslde.s 3
But Cabin Creek feudalism has its I 2
lternal aspect. T. II. McClunE. man ! C
ger of the Houey * Stephenson com p
any, last winter decided that u would . [
2 better for the miners of the town Z
Esl1dale II a certain set Of public
ficials should be reelected. Probably I
2 was right But some of his men q
dn't agree with him and vo1cd con- Z
airy to orders. These men were dis I n
larged during the coolest weather Of
e year Their coal orders were can I a
led When they tried to buy coal to i
sep their families warm, the neigh I,
,ring mines refused TO sell to them f
Fhis is probably an extreme case A g.
lmber of miners have told me, how b
.er that they have been ordered to g.
ave Cabin Creek because they were n
alking Socialism Socialism is a 4
neral term to cover o multitude Of n
ls-Often used TO denote a Kicker" ii
lample- One who complains that his e.
al isn't properly weighed is a so d
3list" If the mine owners really q
ant to help the cause Of Socialism, 81
cir efforts are meeting with extra 2
binary success. At the last election :,
curing after the revolt the vote of p
G Socialist candidate for justice Of r
e peace in Cabin Creek district nearly rg
ualed the combined vote Of his Dem III
ratio and Republican opponents. Debs Ot
neivpd 1910 votes and Taft only 1883 -