Bisbee daily review. [volume] (Bisbee, Ariz.) 1901-1971, 1917-12-02
EMBREE ACQUITTED
BY SUPREME COURT
JURY OF RI0TING

TUCSON. Dec. IA. S. Embree,
alleged leader of the |. w. w. organ
ization among the strikers at Bisbee
last July, was acquitted of the charge
Of rioting this afternoon by a jury in
the superior court
in summing up. County Attorney
Ross CT Cochise county sought 10 es-
tablish constructive rioting when a
gang of strikers attacked a Mexican
workman in presence of defendant.
and when defendant led a party of
| pickets TO a laundry at Bisbee and
the pickets were alleged to have
threatened to blow up the building.
The summing up of A. A. Worsley
bore heavily upon the admitted in
structions by the defendant to the
| pickets to use peaceful methods. and
that the defendant had not taken a
personal part in the acts of violence
The jury was out about five min
utes when they returned with a YER
dict of not guilty. Embree was re-
| leased Immediately
The trial of Embree. alleged ring
leader of the l. W. w. organization
in Bisbee, on charge of rioting, end
ed Friday in the superior court.
During the trial the prosecution put
on as witnesses Deputy Sheriff Tom
Hargis, Frederick Orwig, James ALI
son and Mrs. Helen Grass. The de-
tense called ]. O'Donnell. W. y. S.
Neil, Frank w. Brown and A. d. Kim
! ball
Hargis testified to seeing Embree
on the picket line during the | w. w.
disturbances, and to hearing pickets
make threats of violence against
workmen who continued to work.
Quotes Embree's Speech
He did not hear + mbree make
threats, but he quoted from one of
his speeches as follows:
THE government is about TO set the
price of copper and we want to get
our Sc day fiat before they do. We've
six of the biggest logging camps shut
down and practically every copper
mining camp in the west, and we are
going to tie up every copper mining
camp in the United States. You make
your demands. We don't give a damn
what they are. Wen stay with you
if you stay with u.s.
Hargis said that Embree at this
time was speaking as a representa-
tive of the Industrial Workers of the
| World.
Would Dynamite Mines
Mrs. Grass testified to hearing a
striker declare that he was a machine
| gun operator and that if the strike
was not won he favored turning a
machine gun on the Copper Queen
dispensary, which was the headquar-
| ters of the deputy sheriffs, and then
blowing up the mines while the work
| mer were in the mines.
! Embree. who is slight wiry young
nan. took the stand and was exam
| med by A. 5. Gilmore of Tombstone.
He said he was a member of the
executive council of the Meal Miners
union. He had lived in Bisbee for
| eally year and had worked for the
! c. and A. during that time as a
Tgcker The committee was elected
| at a meeting of the organization of
! riners. in their hall, about 100 feet
rem the depot, where most of the
y ions in Bisbee meet The meeting
; was held to draw up the demands of
the union, which were adopted by the
meeting and the committee was elect
| ed to present the demands and give
power to call a strike if they were
refused. This meeting was held June
81. Subsequent to this the smelter-
mems union adopted the demands, he
said.
Had Charge of Strike
After the strike began the commit
tee was in entire charge of the strike.
Their policy of the strike was to avoid
violence, he said. They warned the
pickets repeatedly against threaten
ing men going to work. and instructed
the men that they might walk beside
the men going TO work and speak
briefly to them. They were not TO
call them "scabs" or hurt their feel
ings, believing they should be friend
ly and thus win. He said so per cent
of the men who quit had been gained
over that way. Usually the pickets
said, BE a man and join u.s. The
captains of the pickets held daily con-
ferences with the committee. he said.
He. himself, visited most of the picket
lines every day. He told of speaking
in the city park, with the permission
of the mayor always. and of holding
|