The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1921-07-17
SENATORS GRILL
Y, S|D' HATFIELD
y IN M|NG0 PROBE
Police Chief Denies He's a '0un
Man." and Says Detectives
Started Trouble.

Sses w. btV0Usos
r Inssraatssaal News service.
II amt no sunman," Sid Hat
field, ex-chief Of police Of Mate
wan. w. Va, and central figure
Of Che Matewan murder cases yes
terday afternoon told the Senate
comlc'.tee Investigating the Mingo
county coal field disorders.
Hatfield cody related to the
committee the tale Of the Matewan
shooting, declaring that it all came
about when he and the mayor at
tempted to serve warrants on, Felts
detectives: Hatfield declared that
one Of the Felts men shot the
mayor and "then the shooting be-
came sort Of .promiscuous."
Hatfield, youthful looking with his
reddish hair carefully brushed. looked
moro like country store clerk than
. police official accused Of being q
"GunmAn. He was attired In q care.
fully pressed grey suit. A masonic
charm danEled from his watch chain.
Hatfield described the Matewan
shootings.
Hatfield said, went up to Albert
Felts, the head Of the detectives. and
for evicting people at Matewan, and
they told us they hadn't none ana
didn't need none. So the mayor gave
me warrants to serve on them, and
! went up to Felts and tried to serve
one on him, and he said he had
warrant to serve on mo, too, and the
mayor told hi.n 1t wasn't legal; that
1t was bogus, and then he shot the
mayor, and then the shooting became
sort Of promiscious."
How many were killed." Senator
About ten" Hatfield answered.
How many shots did Albert Felts
fire when he shot the mAyor?" he was
asked.
II didn't have time to count EN-"
Hatfield replied. "They came too fast.
Haven't you heard 1t said and
charged that you were the man who
shot the mayor?" Avis pursued.
< Refutes Gunman Tales.
IT heard the man the operators got
70 turn states evidence against the
rest Of US say did," Hatfield an
swered.
Don't you know at least two wit
nesses who testified at the grand jury
Investigation of the Matewan shoot.
ings have sence been assassfnated?'
II know they've been killed, one
Of EN- by the operators" Hatfield shot
back. You're making up stuff like
you always make up"
Haven't you sold several hundred
rifles from your store since the trou-
Bile started7"
Counsel for the miners objected.
Weren't ten cases Of rifles and
ammunition shipped to you on one
occasion from st. Louis?"
That isn't true"
Aren't you now running the same
store the mayor you say Albert Felts
shots used to rum So s.s
s. IT am and / am paying for It
"And wasn't it testified before the
grand jury that you shot the mayor"
'.Yes, by one you had turn States
evidence"
Posed For Newspapermen.
Didn't you pose As q 'sunman'
for the newspaper" Captain Avis.
representing the operators. asked.
1T amt no .gunman. Hatfield re.
sponded. 81 guess those are my pic
lures are right, but those news
paper photographer came to my
store and they got me to pose with
the guns in my hands. They said
they wanted some local color and
u said L didn't care"
Have you ever been involved in
shooting?" Senator Mcclellan D.) OF
Tennessee asked.
Hatfield hesitated.
II don't want you to incriminate
yourself" Mckellar said.
IT once had q shooting scrap with
fellow named WILSON" Hatfield said.
Thugs, gunner, and ex-convicts"
are employed as volunteer police
men" by the operators at Williamson.
C. F. keeney, president OF District
Seventeen, United Mine Workers. told
the committee.
Captain Avis handed Keeney a list
Of 200 names he said were those of
members of the Williamson ''volun-
teer" force.
Keeney said.
''Win you say any of them are
thugs, gunner and ex-convicts?" IN
quirsd Senator Sterling GsJ of South
Dakota.
II don't know any Of these men,"
Keeney repeated as he examined the
list, but do know men who are on
the volunteer force at Williamson
who are thugs and gunner"
Senate to Go to Mingo.
Avis said the list included men who
are merchants, preachers, bank Off.
cials. lawyers and physicians at Will
hanson.
Conflict of testimony between
spokesmen for the operators and
miners will compel the committee to
visit the Mingo fields to establish for
itself the truth Of the charges regard.
ing actual conditions there" Senator
Kenyon CR) OF Iowa, the COMMITTEES
chairman, stated.
II don't know how soon the COM
mittee will go to Mingo," Kenyon add.
ed. Probably after the Senate's sum.
mer session In over
Keeney insisted there are 800 tents
used as shelters in the Mingo field
for locked out miners and their fam
lies" Avis declared that Keeney's
statement that 1900 miners and their
families were driven from their homes
by the operators to be preposterous.
Have not the union men used
threats in an attempt to intimidat to
non-union men to join the union?"
asked Senator Sterling
No; that isn't true" Keeney an.
swered.
Keeney told Of an encounter he