Daily Kennebec journal., 1921-09-03
Airplanes Active
Continued from Pane Qnel

the hands of General Bandholtz and
will be issued at the discretion of
Secretary Weeks.
The governments action in sending
! troops into West Virginia. Secretary
Weeks said today, evidently had the
approval of mine union officials as well
as the civil authorities Of West Vir-
| ginia who had asked for them. He
called attention to General Band
/ holtz' report earlier in the day that
Philip Murray. international'vice pres
ident of the United Mine Workers. had
| Joined in urging upon him the recon-
mendation for troops.
when railroads are closed up and
armed bands of men establish them
| selves in the country. marching to and
from overpowering resistance" the
secretary said, You may call it what
You please We call it insurrection. =
The 18th Infantry from Camp Sher-
man and Columbus, Ohio, and the 2Sfh
! from Camp Dix, y. j., which were the
first to move for the scene Of the dis
orders. are provided with machine
guns. howitzers, radio and headuuar-
ters machinery. one-pounders auto
matte rifles and revolvers. The enlist
ed strength of the two organizations
according TO latest reports is 200
exclusive of the personnel of the SSth
Light Bombing Squadron. estimated at
$50 men. The 18th Infantry was
brought to field strength by replace
ments from the 10th Infantry at
Camp sherman and Columbus. the 40th
Infantry al Camp Knox. Ky and two
companies from Fort Thomas Ky
officers of the war department ia
milar with martial law precedents and
the policy OF the administra ton said
the extent and duration of its exist
cnce in West Virginia, if declared
would depend largely upon the discre-
ton of General Bandholtz
The primary object, it was expla n-
ed. is the quelling of disturbance and
the reinstatement of proper and con-
stituted civil authority in the dis
turbed area.
Consequently il is expected that
military forces. will cooperate with
the state police and local police Off
GERS. that no military courts will be
set up for trial and punishment Of
captured disturhers of the peace
and that local business and industry
will be encouraged to continue Ex-
ception to this general policy it was
said, would only be occasioned by
prolonged and virulent disorders
which could be stamped out only by
military operations. If this should
happen, it might be necessary to re-
move even peaceable residents from
| territory where troop movements
and encounters with armed force
were probable.
Even should prisoners lie taken in
large numbers by the military force,
it was said, they probably would
only be detained until the civil
authorities were capable of taking
them over for punishment or fur
ther detention, under the civil law.
President Harding should summon
operators and miners in West Vir-
ginia TO conference as the best
means of restoring order. James
Lord, president of the mining de-
partment of the American Fedora
tion of Labor said today
II am convinced" he added. that
if President Harding would request
the mine owners and the miners to
confer, the parties so invited would
consider the summons equal 10 an
order and would come together.
Once a conference was opened, it
could not be closed without progress
toward agreement or without abate-
ment of some of the most grievous
evils that have driven men desperate
in Mingo.
The mine operators of Mingo to-
day are in the position of defying a
government order. They have re-
fused to apply the United States
Coal commission award of 1920 and
that refusal is the cause of the strike
out of which the present deplora BILE
situation grew
THE government had a duty to
perform in view of the. attitude of
the operators toward the federal
award.
IAN impartial investigation by the
government is timely. The situation
is one of common concern 10 the
whole country. The district can be
pacified on the surface but il can
never be brought into true co-opera-
tIon and good citizenship as a har-
monious part of the state and conn
try until Justice is done on the basis
of finding of fact
President Harding has an oppor-
tunlty to perform constructive
helpful and just service by bringing
together the opposing forces in
West Virginia. D