The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1919-10-25
STATE TROOPERS
TOOLS OF STEEL
Cossacks Break Into Homes,
Interfere with Church Wor- !
ship and Assault Women,
Continued from Page ID

steel towns people have been ar
rested wholesale because they have
committed the crime OF striking.
structing traffic. unlawful assembly,
etc, which make it impossible to
run striker in without his having
committed any real offense.
Suppression and oppression have
been the father and mother Of this
strike and terror it's godfather. But,
when the company used terror, they
forgot the old saying that the blood
of the martyrs is the seed of the
church.
There hasn't been a home searched
or an illegal arrest made that hasn't
helped the strike. There hasn't
been GLIB that has come down on
a defenseless mill worker that hasn't
sent men hurrying to get out their
union cards.
Take the case of Clarion for in
stance-this was the town where the
union had got no foodhold-the
watchful authorities had kept the
"agitators" out. ("Agitator' is the
company's name for all members Of
the a. +. Of l.. who try to get their
fellow workers to Join union.)
There We're no halls in Clarion
that could be rented. All permits
were denied and street meetings
were broken up. That is to say, the
fundamental rights Of Americans
we're sweepingly denied. There is
no right of free speech and free as
scmbly in the steel towns. When
+ the people in Farrell want to go to
a meeting they have to go over the
Ohio state line into America-and
the other evening 1000 of them
walked over to hear Foster speak,
Their; are plenty of steel towns not
i'm America and Clarion is one of
them.
After a time the organizer hired
vacant lot from one of the mill
workers. But man in Clarion
! ran't ask a few friends to A lawn
| party OF his own property-thc Cos
| sacks rode down the strikers and
: broke up the peeting. The mill
; workers didn't know that it was un-
; american to strike and they had put
. up an American f1ag-this the Co.'S
: sacks tore down and the flag was
trampled under the horses hoofs.
: This started trouble, for there were
| some e1-serviCe men there as there
are in all workingmens crowds. The
affidavits sent to the senate abound
! in statements like:
1.-The state troopers rushed on the
lot and the people started to run
away but when said state troopers
rushed to the platform and tore down
j our flag. the men became incensed
! and some ex-soldiers, seeing our flag
; being insulted and defiled, rushed at
; said troopers in defense of our flag
and started the excitement and al
F; NEST caused riot AMI loyal citizens
,; were greatly incensed. There was
| no proVocation for said interference
! and riding over women and chill
dren." (Signed) Mihon Terzich.
Before this happened the organiza-
ton made no Roadway in Clarion
| but the constabulary had made an
Irresistible argument men rushed
! away from the riot to get their union
cards.
The state constabulary are a splen-
did-loOking body of men in their
| smart dark green uniforms and he'll
NETS but with their riot clubs three
feet long they are terror incarnate
to the workers-they are in the
cause the town authorities asked
them but at the request of the COM
pany. So brutal have they been that
one can explain their acts only on
! the theory that they We're acting
! Under orders Ito throw scare into
!; the workers. from the first, or else
=: that they were deliberately trying to
. lncite riot. How else can one ac-
count for the tearing down of the
flag Of the incident at Braddock ?
! There was a mission in Braddock in
the Slovak church and the men we're
coming out from instruction. at about
nlne-the COssacks rode them down
! not only that but they rode their
horses up the narrow church steps
The men controlled themselves-they
didn't attack the Cossacks, and they
did nothing in anger or reprisal when
the Cossacks rode down crowd of
babies of the first grade who were
going home from church.
| No assembling in crowds is al
! lowed in >Braddock
| There is a narrow street in Brad
dock along which runs the Balti-
! more and Ohio railway. A tall fence
separates the street from the tracks
and children play here, for nothing
on wheels is allowed here by the city
ordinance. Since the strike one of
the mill owners, drove his car down
this street, scattering the children in
front of him. Behind him for his
protection rode two of the steel
gray troopers, but they weren't
needed any more than they have been
any time. The men are out to win
the strike by peacable means in spite
of thugs. gun men and state con-
stabulary.
The worst of the terror Is over
now. The people have been "paci-
fed They realize that they have
no freedom---no right of free speech
Or assembly. There are commune
ties where for a steel worker to be-
long to the A. F. of L. is to la,
himself open to arrest and imprison-
| ment.
The search for concealed weapons
| still affords a preteXt for the con-