The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1922-08-26
STRIKE
TROUBLE IN
COLUMBIA
S o ecial Policemen
Armed With Pump
G. u n s Placed on
Guard at Southern
Shops
(The State, August 22).

(The State, August 22).
Columbia. Aug. %. = Under
heavy police protection. u railway
shop employees were carried to the
Southern shops on Blanding street
Yesterday about noon and were tax
zen inside the gates. The men were
] conducted at once to q coach which
! has been fitted up for sleeping
purposes and rested throughout
/ practically the entire afternoon.
They Will begin work today. ac-
/ cord:ng to officials of the shop.
/ William Fair Of New York, one
of the men who was taken to the
police station Sunday afternoon for
safekeeping after the disturbance
near the shops. was among the
men taken into the shops yester-
/ day. Late yesterday afternoon he
j was visited in the shops by a ply
sician and. under the. Instructions
of the physician. was removed from
/ for treatment. Fair suffered a
cash on the head in the disturb
ance Sunday and the wound needed
further treatment. All Of the other
men remained in. the yards during
the evening.
The arrival Of the 12 strillehreak-
erS was witnessed by crowd OF
about 200 people. though many of
them were mere spectators and sap-
parently were out to see what was
up.
About 90 minutes before the po-
I, lice. patrel arrived with the strike
breakers, Lieutenant .s.eaRingen
/! of the police force. with II officers.
ten Of whom carried repeating shot
/ guns, arrived at the Blanding
street. gate of. the shops. A group
of strikers was near the entrance
and. Others were in the vicinity.
! The sun was shining brightly
and the CLINT of the polished gun
(; barrels could be seen far up Bland.
ing. street and it was not long until
numerous automobiles and vehicles
Of various kinds had gathered
around the yards. Lieut.. Swear
ingen assembled his force near the
main entrance to the yards and in
a short time the police patrol ar
rived with the strikebreakers. they
having been assembled at the union
station. where they had been kept
after the Sunday afternoon dis
turbance.
Chief Strickland. six plain clothes
men and 12 officers, some OF whom
! carried pump guns. arrived with
the patrol wagon. The police at
once formed double line from the
police patrol to the gates OF the
shops and the strikebreakers walk
ed between the lines. Hardly a
word was uttered when the police
patrol arrived: the strikers assem-
bled on both sides Of the gate and
looked on; some one cried "Hur-
rah for Columbia" and another IN
ouired: where's Coleman but
for the most part the crowd was
tensely silent. Automobiles We're
parked along the roadway and nu-
| merous pedestrians were on both
sides of the street and porches and
windows in the vicinity had their
Quota of observers. but there was
mo move to rush the strikebreak-
ers. The police officers did their
work quickly. the men being con-
Quoted into the yards without any
DELAY or disturbance and the police
patrol leaving soon after. Ch1et
Strickland left the scene when he
felt that there was no danger OF
disturbance and went to headauar-
tars where he kept closely IN
touch with the situation. Lieuten-
ant Swearingen and his officers re-
NAMED on duty: most of the OIL
GERS remaining carried pump guns,
and were distributed around the
yards.
After the strikebreakers had
gone inside the yard, the men on
strike assembled in groups about
the entrance and some went to the
rear side of the yards on Gregg
street. At the corner Of Laurel
and Gregg considerable crowd
gathered as train No. 81. which was
running late, was heard coming.
There had been rumors that more
strik ebrea kers were on this train.
land when the passenger slowed
down at the street crossing the
crowd watched it closely. Some one
cried. They've got one down at
Rlanding street crossing and be-
gan running through Gregg street
70 Blanding. The crowd rushed to
the corner only to find two police
officers and a few spectators. TINS
crowd was made up partly OF boys
who were out TO see what was hap
penins.
Later in the afternoon two boys
apparently about II years old. one
OF whom carried n suit case. came
10 the gates of the yard. They
were soon surrounded by strikers
but would givel istle heed to ques-
itions and went 10 the police officers
who were ut the gate. Strikers be-
gan talking TO the Two boys. they
being told that if they went TO
work in the shops at the present
time they would be thrown out OF
work when the strike was over.
and that if they went away. efforts