The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-01-08
RiOtOuS Mob
Burns Village
Continued from Page One.

| W4lO14 lH0 Ody SIlIlC at the pIdnL OIL Lilo
Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. quit
for the day. The plant is located on
the flats of the Mahoning river, sew
eral hundred feet from the hillside on
which is built East youngstown where
most of the workmen live. The mills
are reached from the town by high
! bridge, spanning the railroad yards
which have been carefully guarded by
private watchmen, since the labOrers
at the plant several days ago joined
the laborers of the Republic Iron &
steel Co and other mills in a strike
for an advance of % cents a day.
| A crowd of men and women esti-
mated at 200 had gathered at the East
| youngstown end of the bridge and
| jeered the worknen as they crossed.
a shot was fired and the guards, TAX
ing this as a signal, fred over the
heads of the crowd The mob replied
rand another vo1Iey' came. A number
of persons, including two women, fell
ITO the street and the mob broke and
ran up the hillside. A block away
they reformed and almost immedi-
I ately set fire to the building occupied
by the tube companys employment
bureau. A little later they fred a
small warehouse and then turned their
attention to private property.
A saloon stood on the corner and a
rush was made for the door. In
minute shouting crowd filled the lit
tie room and helped themselves to
tLHR4Ac1L CliSy SAW. WnGn the IOOC1nE was
| complete the match was applied and
the mob went wild.
| A clothing store nearby was next
entered and the contents passed out to
the constantly growing crowd in the
streets by those inside. Clerks fed for
their lives and when the 1ooting was
finished the place was fired.
By this time the MOI was in a fren-.
~ The men danced and sang and
women Joined in. For fully an hour
the mob was content with the small
shops and saloons on the side streets
but then it turned it's attention to the
/ avenue. =
Mayor W. H. Cunningham and ten
poEcemen of the village were unable
TO do anything. Sheriff Umstead ear
her IN the evening had been blinded
temporarily by red pepper thrown in,
his eyes by a rioter, and later con-
ferred with Mayor Cunningham. VIII o
4. admitted he was unable to stop the
r1ottng: This condiS>on the sheriff re-
ported to General Speaks. who had
been sent to look over the situation
It was then that the call was sent
for state troops,
The rioting had then been in, pro-
gresss for several hours. The crowd
seemed to grow until there were hun
dreds of drink-crazeu men and worn-
en- roaming the streets. The fire de-
hose was cut to pieces and, helpless,
the dremen called on the Youngstown
fire department. Chief Joseph Wal
lace had men and equipment ready to
send from the city, put found it use
! less to risk lives and property as long
as the mob held the town.
Il Scenes of the widest disorder were
everywhere enacted, ad the fires
mounted higher ad higher until to-
ward 10 o'clock Wilson avenue, the
entire length of the village, was in
flames. No attempt was being made
J to extipguish the flames or save the
thousands Of dollars in property be-
ing carried away. The mob gathered
about the post office. Tt was small
building and they made short work of
it. There was report that the safe
had been dragged into the street and
blown to pieces, but later 1t was stated
that the men had been content with
robbing the Strong box before apply
ing the torch.
One of the handsosnest buildings in
the village was the banking house of
G. v. Hamory. The mob paid no at
tention to it until after 10 o'clock.
TIL en- it was recalled that a saloon had
i stood in that section and there was
a rush to. the place. The saloon was
quickly looted and fred and Che flames
spread to the bank and soon doomed
the structure.
A dry goods store near Seventh
street and Wilson avenue shared a
building with a saloon. Rioters at
tackled the dry goods store first A
man appeared at a window above the
store and fired one shot. An uridenti-
:. fed rioter fell dead and the rest fed.
A number of clothing stores fell a
prey to the rioters and almost i'm
mediately men began exchanging their
old clothes for the loot they had seized.
This change of apparel was made in
the street lighted almost to MONDAY
brilliancy by the flames.
Once the rioters were frightened. A
passenger train steaming9 along the
: railroad tracks at the foot OF the hill.
l5slowed down as it approached the
burning buildings. a shout, "The militia
; is coming rang out and for a min
ute or two there was a pause. But
{ when it was seen the train did not
! I,stop, the orgie went on.
BY this time SO much property had
i been destroyed and the mob had be-
come so inflamed that the better citi-
bens of the town had fled. Many
families came to Youngstown and
others took the street cars to COM
, munities farther away, as the convic-
ton was growing that1if the disorder
spread to Youngstown. nothing could
save the city. Finally a dozen or more
!, citizens led by Oscar Disera, solicitor
+ of East Youngstown and former
member of the Ohio legislature gath
cred at the police station and plead
ed with the police and other city Of
ficia1s to attack the rioters. 1t was
almost midnight before a force of
: some 40 armed had gathered in Will
son avenue. Then with Disera to
II lead them moved down the street.
Only a block away the rioters were
footing the last building in the block
and the citizens fred over their heads.
They broke and ran but finding no
one had been killed they turned and
sent shot after shot toward the posse.
No one was hurt and the posse fired
again. This time half dozen or
more rioters went down and the mob
tore down the street. The panic gath