The Omaha morning bee. [volume] (Omaha [Neb.]) 1922-1927, 1922-06-27
No Arrests
Yet NJ ad e
in Massacre
State and Federal Agents In.
vestigate Mine Killings as
County Authorities
Inactive.
Sheriff Took No Action

Herrin, ILL.,, June 2o,-(By A. P)-
Investigators seeking to Tx the re-
sponsibility for the rio,ing which
cost at leas, u lives at the Lester
strip mine here las, week learned to-
day from Sheriff Melvin Thaxton
that neither he nor his deputies TOOK
any steps to prevent the massacre.
Williamson county buried the dead
in her latest mine war yesterday, con-
Quoted an inquest to determine the
cause OF their death. and today faced
the responsibility OF bringing the
guilty to justice.
With not single arrest made since
the massacre OF last Thursday, when
at least l9 men were killed after
strike sympathizers stormcd the Les
ter mine. and with county officials
making no visible effort to place the
blame, the investigating is being done
by state and federal agents.
Representatives of the Department
OF Justice, Department of Labor,
states attorney general office and the
adjutant general are quietly dipping
into the cloak OF secrecy which so
far has surrounded the identity OF
5000 men who marched from Herrin
in broad daylight, took more than 50
unarmed men prisoners, marched
them back down the road into a
wood, and there killed l9 and wound
cd nearly as many more.
Follow All Clues.
The state and federal investigators
worked far into the night following
clues which have reached them. AT
! o'clock this morning they visited
the Herrin hospital to question Al.
len P. Findlay, 6304 South Halsted
street. Chicago. timekeeper for the
detective agency which supplied the
26 mine guards. Findlay was in the
front rank when the mob marched its
victims into the death woods and fell
at the first volley, with 46 shotgun
pellets in his side. AS he lay on the
ground a miner with a revolver fired
shot point blank through his foot.
Findlay told the investigators and
Col. Samuel N. Hunter, Illinois ma
tionsl guard, that he could recognize
the leader of the execution squad
and gave = partial description of an
elderly gray haired man who took
Superintendent Mcdowell from the
ranks before the wood was reached
and killed him.
Snipers' Attack.
Findlay testified at the coroner's
inquest that Mcdowell shot at two
men on Wednesday, during the first
attack on the mine, and that he saw
one crumple up and the other throw
up his arms and fall. The coroner's
jury decided from his description
that one OF the two was miner
named Henderson and SO found Nc
Dowell responsible for his death.
The timekeeper told the investi-
gators that snipers attacked the mine
about noon on Wednesday and kept
up a more or less continuous fire
until about o'clock, when Mellow
ell, seeing the two men on hillside
a quarter of mile away, shot them
with high-powered rifle.
No Threats.
Carbondale, Ill.,, June 26.-(By A.
P)-Sheriff Gibson of Jackson
county today announced he had ad-
vised coal operators associations in
Illinois that he had not been ad-
vised of any threatened outbreaks
in this county. His telegram was
in reply to one from the operators
saying they had learned the lives
OF their employees, protecting the
idle mines. had been threatened.