The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-06-24
OFFICIAL OF UNION BLAMES OPERATORS FOR HEREIN RIO I s.
Colonel Hunter Declares County Officers Refused to Call For State Troops
 After Fight Started
By Associated Press

Herrin, H., June 23.-Attempts to sift the truth of a maze of rumors, reports, contradictions and facts of the mine war to obtain an uncolored account of the events leading up to 1t tonight after everything was quiet brought two authentic reviews of the affair, one from a union official and another from a state military of ficial.
 Hugh Willis, district board mem Der of the miners, union in the first statement from union officials con cernlng the massacre, said the blame lay squarely on the coal operators who imported strike breakers. He declared the first shots were fired by the strike breakers and that these shots were without provoeatlon and that one chief cause was the high handed manner in which the inn ported workers held up private cit izens and refused to let them tra- verse the public highway by the mine.' He made no attempt to deny that the affair really was massa- ere, but insisted 1t was not started by miners.
 Col. Samuel Hunter of the state adjutant generals office. reviewed his official investigation of the dis aster. the following being the salient points of his report:
 That Colonel Hunter on half n
 dozen occasions asked Sheriff
 Thaxton mud other local county
 officials if they wanted troops
 sent here, but was told ench .time-eyen after the fighting
 started--that the local nuthori-
 ties could handle the matter.
 That he urged the milne Offi-
 ciaIs fo close it down to avert
 disturbance, hut the request was
 refused.
 Tint m indignation meeting of
 600 miners was held Just outside
 Herrln ou the day before the
 fighting started.
 That he persuaded the be-
 sieRed workers to run up white
 f1ag and obtain consent from
 miner officials for truce. hut
 that this truce was broken, by
 whom, he did not know.
 Both reports termed the armed g1ards at the mine ''gunmen."
 Mir. Willis version follows in t.. f-,-,s5 sH5=sis "The southern I1iInoiseoal com pnny has been running this mine about a year. When work was sus- pended. April 1, it was agreed by the mine union board members and the operators that stripping of dirt should be allowed but that no coal was to be loaded for industrial pur- poses.
 Refused Agreement
 After six weeks of stripping the company informed me by letter that they no longer would recognize the agreement and that they wanted to load and ship coal for industrial pur- poses I told them l could not give permission for this.
 "Ten days later MT. Lester, own CT of the mine asked me to set aside the agreement. 1 told him l could not repudlate It. He said that un- less I repudiated he would open the mine, even if he had to repudlate his agreement.
 Lester said his company was in bad financial straights and that he could not overlook a chance like this to mako a financial clean-up. He said he did not regard his contract with us as meaning anything when he could make a lot of money by breaking it. This statement was made to me when he knew the gov ernment had officially said there should be no profiteering in coal be- cause of the strike.
 "On June Is, I was informed that Lester had discharged all union workers in the mine--dirt shippers, that s--and had imported workers including armed guards from Chica- go, to work the mine. l visited the mine and was met by men with guns. They said Lester was not there when I asked for him and told me that the soone- I left the better satisfied they'd be. Naturally, I left.
 Told to Lenve
 Later other miner officials called at the mine in the hopes of reaching an amiciable agreement, the mine actually began production of coal with non-union strike break CTS. A group of miners went to the mine for a conference and to urge the strike breakers to leave, but the miners were greeted with machine gun fire. Two miners were killed. All tue miners in this community resented this and the feeling was so intense that they arose en-masse marched on the mine and demanded that operations cease immediately. This request was refused and they were ordered away. During the night and the next morning, miners, in- censed over the two dead comrades, rushed the mine. captured 1t and the men and marched them down the road with the result that 20 to 25 were killed.
 Previous to these disorders the armed guards at this mine acted in a high handed manner. They stopped people on the public highway and searched them. They refused to let anyone near the place. They in- suited women. As result the far mers of the community became in- censed No man here was willing to stand for such action by these strike breakers"
 Mir. Willis insisted that John l.. Lewis telegram that the imported men should be treated as common strike breakers did not incite the trouble. He refused to discuss the Lewis telegram. saying that those received here came from Frank Far rington. It was understood that he made this statement because of an- tipathy to Lewis. whom he does not mention when discussing mine unions.
 GUARDS Ar MINES QUIT,