Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1916-01-11
100000 FIRE LOSS,
| DEAD, 100 WOUNDED,
AFTER DRUNKEN RIOT
Strikers Fire on Workers, Loot
Saloons for Whisky, Burn
Entire Business Section, Pill
Iage All Night
(By Associated Press. }

Speaks has received an appeal from cit
| liens of Struthers to send help at once
to that village for protecting from riot
| ing there The message stated that a
mob had formed and is engaged in
| general fight in the streets, men shoot
| ing and beating up each other General
| Speaks sent two companies of militia to
Struthers in automobiles.
| Later reports said that the situation
/ at Struthers was under control Dut
troops will be kept on duty there. to
prevent further trouble. Struthers lies
across the Mahoning river from East
| Youngstown.
| With three regiments of the Ohio ma
| tional guard, under command of Briga-
der General John c. Speaks, patrolling
| the smeldering ruins of the village OF
| East Youngstown, or encamped in steel
mills nearby, the authorities today ex-
| pressed the belief that for the present,
/ AT least, an end had been put to the
wild scenes of rioting and footing which
marked last night, and left the thriving
little city heap of embers.
one life is known to have been lost'
fully ten blocks of the town, including
the entire business section, were burned
and several thousands of people were
driven from their homes. The loss was
placed at 100000.
| Physicians who were called to look
after the wounded place the number at
| 100 Although the majority were shot,
| there are many wounds from Knives
| bearing out the statement that When
the rioters were finally driven from
Wilson avenue, the main street, they
began fighting among themselves.
| The trouble began late yesterday when
the day shift at the plant OF the
| Youngstown Sheet and Tube company
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 a high
bridge spanning the railroad yards
which has been carefully guarded py
private watchmen since the laborers at
the plant several days ago Joined the
laborers of the Republic Iron and Steel
company and other mills for an ad-
| vance of 20 cents a day.
| A crowd of men and women estimated
at 200 gathered at the East youngstown
| end of the bridge and jeered the work
men as they crossed. Suddenly shot
| was fired and the guards, taking TINS
as a signal, fired over the heads OF the
crowd. The mob replied and another
| solley came. A number of persons, in
| Guiding two women, fell to the street
md the mob broke and ran up the hill
i side. A block away they reformed and
Utmost Immediately set fire to the build
ng occupied by the tube company's en-
ployment bureau. A little later they
ired a small warehouse, and then turned
.heir attention to private property.
A saloon stood on the corner, and a
rush was made for the door. In min
ute a shouting crowd filled the little
room and helped themselves to what
they saw. When the looting was COM
pIete the match was applied, and the
i mob went wild. clothing store nearby
was next entered and the stock passed
out to the constantly growing crowd in
the street by those inside. Clerks fed
for their lives, and when the footing
was finished, the place was fired.
i BY this time the mob was in frenzy
! Men danced and sang and women Joined
1 them. Liquor was passed around as
| freely as water, and those who had no
cups dipped it up in the hollows of their
| hands, for within half an hour other sa-
looms had been looted and the fire was
spreading rapidly.
The main street parallels the railroad
tracks at the foot of the hill and streets
| lead out of it up the hill to the resi-
| dence district. For fully an hour or
more the mob was content with the
| small shops and saloons on the side
| to the more pretentious stores. The
mob had lost all semblance of leader
ship, and splitting up into bands the
looters went madly about the work of
| destruction. Saloon after saloon was
broken into, looted, and fired, the flames
| spreading to the other business blocks
on the street. Famed by a strong wind
the fire tore it's way up the hill and
| many residences, some occupied by the
rioters, were burned.
. Mayor Cunningham and his ten police
men realized the situation was beyond
| them and gathered at the police station
| Sheriff Umstead had been blinded tenn
porarily by red pepper thrown In his
ewes by a rioter Later the mayor and
sheriff conferred and a call was sent
for state troops.
Meantime the rioting had been in
| progress for several hours, and it was
seen that the business section could not
be saved Every minute the crowd
! seemed to grow until there were hun
dreds of drink-crazed men and women
roaming the streets. The fire depart
ment had been called out at the first
alarm but the hose was quickly cut 70
pieces and the department called on the
Youngstown fire department. Chief
| Joseph Wallace had men and equipment
ready to send from the city, but found
IT was useless to risk lives and property
as long as the mob had the town.
Scenes of the widest disorder were
everywhere enacted, and the fires
mounted higher and higher. until to-
ward 10 o'clock Wilson avenue the en-
tire length of the village was infiames
No attempt was being made to extin-
guish the flames or save the thousands
of dollars in property being carried
| away or destroyed.
Early In the evening the mob attack
| ed the postoffice. 1t was a small build
ing. and the dozen or more men who
| entered II made short work of it. The
strong box was robbed and the torch
! put to the building
One Of the handsomest buildings IT
the village was the banking house OF
| G.. V. Hamory. The mob paid no at
tention to it until after 10 O'Clock
Then it was recalled that saloon stood
in that section and theer was rush tc
the place. The saloon was looted and
fired, and the flames. spreading to the
bank, soon doomed the structure.
dry goods store near Seventh street
and Wilson avenue shared building
with saloon. The party which select
ed it for their prey made the mistake
of attacking the dry goods store first. AS
they approached the door man appear
wAwnrr aIsf n =