The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1920-05-05
N. P. EDITOR
PLAYED PART IN
BUTTE STRIKE
Arrival of United States Troops
Assists in Quelling Trou-
bic Among ''Soviets''
DUNCAN CHIEF AGITATOR
Left to Edit One of A. G.. Town
ley's Organs in North
Dakota

Butte. Mont, May 5.---The arrival
here of United States troops, sent
on April %, 1920, to preserve peace
following strike called by Metal
Mine Workers Union ,No. 8, Industrial
Workers of the World, constituted
the fourth military invasion of this,
the greatest mining city in the world
Butte's, first session labor trouble
developed in 1914.
1t was the boast of the old Butte
Miners Union No. l., Western Fed
GRAFTON of Labor, that it never had
had strike during 33 years of it's
existence. Wages were comparatively
high and living comparatively cheap.
A large percent OF the miners owned
their own homes and they were con.
servative. "a
Rev. Duncan Controls
The period of disaffectOn began
about 1910, when radical elements in
the camp began to coalesce under
the leadership Of the Rev. Lewis ].
Duncan, socialist. Duncan left the
pulpit for the radical lecture plat
form in 1911, ran for mayor and was
elected overwhelmingly. Duncan was
reelected mayor in 1913, by a large
vote, and, it is said, Immediately We.
gan his battle for control of the Butte
Miners union and through it of the
Western Federation of Miners, which
embraced almost all of the metal min
ers in the land.
The conservatives in the union,
backed by Charles H. Meyer, presi-
dent of the federation, resisted. On
June 13, 1914, the annual parade of
the miners union was broken up by
men said to be l. w. w. and Duncan
followers
Meyer came to Butte from Denver
to Investigate. On the night of June
26 he attended conference in the
Miners hall. A mob gathered out
side. Deputy sheriffs were sent to the
hall to protect Moyer, who was
threatened. Shots were fired. 1t be-
came a fusillade and two men in the
crowd were hit. One of them died.
The mob sterme,fsahe chaik Moye,
| fled to Helena, where he appealed
to Governor Sam v Stewart for pro
! lection.
Meanwhile, the hall was blown uE
| and reign of terror was created
A sort Of soviet was established with
Muckie' Mcdonald as dictator. Nc
Donald chose a cabinet Of 20 for
advisors.
Buildings were dynamited. The
radicals broke into factories and a
Finn leader tried to assassinate Mayor
Duncan but was killed by Duncan
The Finn faction then blew up Dun.
cans socialist printing house. Peo
pie began to leave Butte in droves
Then the governor sent the Second
Montana guard-in the great wal
afterwards, the 163rd U. S. Infantry
to Butte. The troops quickly dis
solved the "soviet' Mcdonald and
several others soon after were sent
to prison and the mayor was remov-
ed from office by legal proceedings
instituted by the governor for failure
to preserve the peace.
Edited North Dakota Paper
The election of 1915 was carried
by the conservatives. Duncan left
| Butte and allied himself with the
National 'Nonpartisan league, one OF
whose papers in North Dakota he
edited. He is now it is said, running
an employment office in Minneapolis.
Mcdonald was paroled by Governor
Stewart. Later he was reported to
have insulted the governor during
mass melting in Butte in 1916. He
went back to serve out his term, but
soon after gained his freedom.
Duncan and Mcdonald were sue
ceeded by W. F. Dunn, in his early
youth a prize fighter and later an
organizer for union of electrical
workers. Dunn came to Butte from
Canada and with r. B. Smith of Butte,
set up The Butte Bulletin, a weekly
radical newspaper. In 1917 trouble
again broke out and this time, fed
eral troops went into Butte because
the war demanded that copper pro-
duction go ahead without Interrupt
tiOn.
Soon after an editorial in the Bulle-
tin advised the public to ignore Or
ders of the state council of defense.
Dunn, as writer of this article, and
Smith, as editor of the paper, were
tried in Helena under the state sedi-
ton act, convicted and fined $4,000
each. Their case is pending before
the state supreme court.
In the fall of 1919 troops were
again obliged to spend some time in
Ln'I
began to advocate the soviet system
and later the One Big Union.
After the disruption of their union
in 1914 by the "McDonald Rebellion y
the conservative miners never reor-
ganized. The |. w. w. and the 0. B.
y. are said to control those Butte
miners who belong to union now.