Denver labor bulletin., 1915-03-06
Rockefeller Held Responsible
For Deaths in Colorado Strike
Congressional Committee Make Report Upon Investigations
Scoring State Government and Militia for Coercue Measures
to Subject Miners Obey Mandates of the Operators

Chairman Martin D. Foster of the
congressional committee which came to
Colorado shortly before the Ludlow
massacre" last year and made an ex-
haustive investigation Of the coal strike,
submitted report to congress on Tues
day OF this week. The committee makes
no specific recommendations, as the
strike has terminated. John d. Rookie
feller is held responsible for the deaths
and misery which resulted from the
strike by his refusing to arbitrate the
trouble with the miners. Referring to
young Rockefeller's disclaimer of respon.
sibility this report says:
absentee owners or directors by
their absence from the scene of such
disturbances cannot escape their moral
responsibility for conditions in and about
properties in which they are interested" !"
Says Laws Are Not Enforced.
Literal extracts from the 1000 pages
of testimony taken by the committee are
embodied in the report, with this COM
ment.
Considerable testimony on both sidea
of the controversy we believe unreliable,
and no confidence should be placed in
it. Colorado has good mining laws and
such that ought to afford protection to
the miner if they are enforced, yet in
this state the percentage of fatalities Is
larger than in any other, showing there
il Undoubtedly something wrong in ref
erenee to the management of its coal
mines. 1t is contended by the minerl
as one of their grievances that the op-
orators do not obey the law, and, how
ever good the laws may be, if not OBJ
served they are of no protection.
1T seemed the militia was on the
side of the operators in this contro-
versy," says the report after reciting the
action of the governor in calling out the
state troops, -and the evidence seems
conclnsively to prove such to have been
the case The sooner men armed in
the service of the state learn that the
men with whom they may deal may be
poor and ignorant and even violators OF
the law. but still human, the better il
will be for all concerned.
Enlistment of Mine Guards.
The recruiting OF mine guards as
members of the state militia. in our
| judgment, was a mistake, since intense
animosity had existed for some time be.
tween mine guards and miners and IL
wss difficult or even impossible for the
miners to feel that these men were neu.
tral conservators of the peace. Some
of the militiamen seized the opportunity
while clothed with the authority of the
state to engage in various lawless acts
In other instances the acts were. oi
an immoral kind and of such a nature
as to be unfit for publication in this
report There were acts of brutality ties
I! tilted to before the committee which
might be enumerated.. men on slight
psovocation were thrown into Jail ans
] keuf there without fhe onnovfrrnffv NJ
proving their innocence.
There were many good men in tn.
militia. both officers and privates, and
the strikers testifying said that certain
companies were composed of kind mer
and If their houses were to be searched
they asked that members of these com
panies might be sent; but if others were
sent 70 do the searching. they would b
subjected to indignities and would prob
ably be robbed of whatever they nigh,
have that the militia wanted"
% Denounce General Chase.
The committee denounced John Chase