White Pine news weekly mining review. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1910-1920, 1914-05-24
OFF|CERCHARCED
WITH MURDER
OTHER CRIMES INCLUDING MAN
SLAUGHTER, ARSON AND LAR
CENY IN COURT MARTIAL
AGAINST MAJOR HAMMOCK.

Lieutenant r. w. Benedict and s.
J. Lamme. officers of the Colorado
National guards, are the chief wit
ness at the trial of Maj. Patrick J..
Hammock before the general court
martial at the state rife range near
Golden. Major Hammock is being
tried on charges of murder, man
slaughter. arson and larceny growing
cut of the battle between strikers
and state troops at Ludlow on April
20 and the subsequent fire that de-
stroyed the strikers tent colony.
The two officers who acted under
orders of Major Hammock on the day
OF the battle swore that the battle
was started by strikers. who fired
upon the national guardsmen; that
three bombs were fired as a signal
for assistance only after a number of
bullets from strikers rifles had
struck near the military camp: that
Major Hammock was not In the i'm
mediate vicinity of the tent colony
when the fire started; that In their
estimation, the fire vas started b. an
explosion of an overturned lamp aud
not by the state troops; thar two
women and eleven children who lost
their lives In the colony. they be-
u%.feved. died of suffocation hours be-
J ore the Are broke out.
Representatives of the United
Mine Workers of America. invited to
produce witnesses at the hearing
made no announcement of their in
tention up to adjournment.
In his testimony Lieutenant S. J..
Lamme. who is physician of La Veta.
Colorado, and acted as an aid tic
Major Hammock during the battle.
testified that he CARRIED orders from
Major Hammock to Captain Edwin S.
Carson when that officer with forty
members OF troop A arrived from
Trinidad late In the afternoon.
The orders were" said the wilt
ness. ito advance down the tracks in
the direction of the TEN colony to
the ~pumphouse. where the strikers
we're e%ntrenched and the Colorado &
Southern bridge and smoke EN-
out
Did you understand that order 10
mean 10 set fire to the tents?" asked
Colonel Lingerfelter. a member OF
the court.
Not at ALL" replied Lamme. Il
construed II to mean that he should
advance with a heavy fire and dis
lodge the strikers"
He declared he heard Major Ham
rock issue orders to the machine gun
operators telling them TO direct their
fire at the pumphonse and the rife
pits at the rear of the tent colony.
No orders. he said. were given to fire
on the tents.
The arson article deals with the
burning of the strikers tent colony
and charges that the tents were fired
"wilfuIly and maliciously" by the de-
PENDANT or persons under his au-
thority. in violation OF the laws of
Colorado.
The murder article contains TWEEN
ty-seven specifications and charges
Hammock with responsibility for the
deaths of two women and eleven
children which resulted from the
burning of the strikers tents.
The manslaughter article, with
twenty specifications. charges -
possibility for the death OF
five strikers. one 12-year-old boy and
one noncombatant in the all-day bat
tie between strikers and militia. In
cluded in this list Is the name OF
Luis Tikas. leader of the Greek
strikers and who was in charge of
the tent colony. James Fyler and
Carlo Costa. union leaders at Lud-
low and Aguiliar.
Three sDecihcatiops under the lar