The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-08-20
Secretary and q Others
Held for Military Rea-
sons, Says Officer.
| WON'T STOP TIEUP
OF HARVEST-ROWAN
From Cell Reds Director
Says WalkOut Will Occur
Today As Planned.

Spokane. Aug. la-The government
here this afternoon took action in tho
w. W. situation when q company
of Idaho national guardsmen now IN
federal service. arrested % members
Of the organization. including James
Rowan, district secretary in their
local headquarters on the eve Of i
threatened strike in four states. which.
under Rowans signature. was called
to begin tomorrow
The strike call included all members
OF the organization in construction and
agricultural work in Montana, Wash
ington, oregon and Idaho Rowan.
after his arrest. said that the arrests
today would intensity the strike and
cause it To spread further. Lumber
workers in the four states ALREADY are
on strike.
Authorities Prepared.
Reports from all over the states
named in the strike orders today were
To the effect that federal, state, county
ana city authorities were prepared for
amy eventualities
National guardsmen also figured in
the arrest of L. w. W. members today
in Long Beach, Cal
In Port Angeles. Wush guardsmcn
| wrecked l, W. w. Headquarters there
and dumped furniture and papers Of
the organization into the bay. A cor
poral was arrested. Apparently fhe
| raid was unauthorized
| NO further arrests had been made
here at Il late hour tonight and no dis
order had developed. Guardsmen pa
! trollea the vicinity where I ". "
speakers usually hold their meetings
and prevented all such gatherings,
| Arrested at Hall.
Rowan and William Moran, secre-
| tary of the local /. w. w. oreaniza
tion, were placed under arrest at the
| local !, w. w. hail by Major Clement
| wilkins, in command of Il battalion of
gnhrdsmen on patrol duty here While
| MAYOR Wilkins, accompa MED by
| Rowan, went to executive headouar
lers, three blocks distant, to unlock.
the door, 40 members of the company
| under command of Captain r. A. Jeter.
| rounded up % other men. who were in
tn" hall and took them, with Moran
to the county Jail.
| a squad of guardsmen was left at
the executive headaua rters and an
other was stationed at the |. w. ".
hall and the latter arrested three
other men who Went to the hall later
and took them to the jail. Orders
then were issued that no one should
ne permitted to enter the hail. but
that no more arrests of persons seek
ing to enter should be made.
military Prisoners."
You men are military prisoners and
IatJtnal .,t,. ,
Major wilkins told the men after the,
had been lined up in the corridor of
the Jail and We're waiting to bn
searched and booked. AN inyesti.a
tion of your cases will be begun to-
morrow, and If it Is found that any OF
you are wrongfnlly held you will be
relea sed."
Later Major Wilkins said the entire
proceeding was under military orders
and that no charges had been placed
against the men. A deputy United
States marshal. who accompanied the
soldiers. did SO only to identify the
men arrested. he said,
| None of the men arrested Offered
any resistance, and the matter caused
iittlo excitement. The % prisoners
were lined up, in double column be :
tween files of guardsmen with fixed
bhyoncts and marched half a mile Ia
the jail. Here they were searched
ana their names We're taken, and they
, were placed in cells on an upper floo,
of the building.
Orders forbidding street speaking b,
the Industrial Workers of the World
were issued by Major Wilkins, VIII,
detailed soldiers to the streets wher,
|. w. w. meetings usually are held, I.
, see that they We're obeyed
, r.. +. Blaine, chairman of the stat,
. public service commission, is in tn,
city to report to Governor Lister. h,
said on conditions here. He declare,
, the arrest of the strike leaders an,
=, others this afternoon was, so far as h,
:, knew. purely a military move and no
j, ordered by the governor.
At the jail Rowan dictated a state
:, ment of the purposes of the strike
which he later read and signed. II,
, said.
- Not Unpatriotic, Says Leader.
IS "The principal object OF the strik
's of the lumber workers is the eight
IS hour day. and sanitary conditions i
d the camps. We do not know of an
IL reason why we should be arrested an
's tdetained or why our hall should
sc closed, as we are not breaking ar
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