The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-03-08
SOUTH ILLINOIS
 LING OMFOR TABLE. FOR RPRO-GERMANS
Vigilance Committees Put Pat riOtiSm on Business
 Like Basis.

St. Louis, March S.-Enforced loy- 4lty has been placed on a business oaslS In Macoupin. Madison and Mont gomery counties in southern Illinois where the activities of pro-German pTopagandtstS recently became so pronounced that vigilance committees In numerous towns have forced hun , dredS of suspected persons to make public manifestations of their ale glance to the government In one town two alleged leaders of seditious movement were tarred and feathered.
 Brancehs of the American Defense society operating through vigilance committees in practically every town in the distroict have. taken the lead in stamping out disloyalty. The first move to oust the propagandists was made in Staunton where an alleged leader of the I. w. w. and a Chicago attorney were escorted to the city limits, coated with tar and feathers and started walking in different di- { rections The reason for this aggres- ; sion was said to be the activity of the men in causing dissension among sev- era1 thousand ocal miners near Staun- ton. On the same night more than 100 persons wue made to sign pledges of loyalty.
 News of the a1se-of such stern meas ures spread and within a week Wor- den, Ao~ert: Olive, Giflispie, William son, IIdlsboro and several other smaller towns made demonstrations. In e,of these towns scores of per sens were taken from their homes and requested to make public profession of their loyalty. Several men were taken from their beds and, kneeling on the sidewalk, were forced to kiss eevry star in the flag. Some were made to sing the national anthem while others were compelled to play patriotic airs on musical instruments. Protests against such actions were construed as evidences. of disloyalry. In several such instances arrests were made and federal charges preferred against the meE-
 The most serious result of the dern- onstratioR5 was in HiIlsboro where CIicord Donaldson, 21 years old, was shot when the vigilance committee caTled at his fathers home in search of I. w. W. members. Shots were ex- changed. Donaldson was killed and E. B. Emory, city marshal, and Er- nest F1ath were wounded. Later it was learned Donaldson had enlisted in the navy only a few days before his death and that his father was un- acquainted with any of the suspected persons.
 Members of the vigilance committee deny that they counsel evidence. They declare that their actions have the ict that the district embraced Nby Macou- pin, Madison and Montgomery coun- ties for some time has been the ob- jective of an active campaign by pro- German sympathizers.
 As evidence of their success they point to recent meeting of repre-. sentatives of more than 1900 members of a miners union in Staunton. Tn less than one week after two alleged seditton leaders had been tarred and feathered, the union voted a contribu- tion of $S10 per month for the Red Cross, purchased $1 900 worth of thrift stamps, reinstated all members who had lost standing because of army or navy enlistments, arranged for pay ment of their dues during the period ofthe'war, and ended a mass meeting in sue ha burst of patriotic fervor that the singing of the national an- them, was drowned in cheers for Pres fdent Wilson and~fhe government.
 Reports from other cities where demonstrations were staged indicate that the~same leaven of patriotism is at work and thataprospects are dbright for.a fulffHnpent of the wish of Hoy 1eadeds that the district be-made ''1O9 percent American