New Britain herald., 1924-07-30
Rock Salt In Shotguns, Clubs, Sticks And Stones As We'll Az Bare Fists Yielded In Struggle.
Two Autos Demolished in
 Trying to Run Gauntlet
 of Opposition = Several e Libratators Are Hurt.

ester. Mass, July so.-Klans-
 men beleagued since midnight were
 rescued from the field at Lancastsr st
 "a. m. without light. They depart ed under police escort.
 Several Hundred Involved.
 After a night of disorders and clashes in which scores were injured. a crowd of men who had engaged in a night of hostllities with members and spectators at a KuKlur Klas meeting in field near here were dis.
 pereed with the arrival of additional state patrolmen today.s Between 500 and 500 men had been engaged in the fighting during the night. | Five Severely Hurt.
 The list of injured today. follows ing the nights fighting. included hvs men whose injuries were 50 serious as to require treatment at hospitals. One was a policeman who was struck | on the head by stone. 1 One of the injured was in hos pital suffering from a broken back and three others were suffering from wounds, believed to have been caused | by a shotgun loaded with rock salt. Many others are known to have been hurt by clubs, flying stones and other missils. Two automobiles were partly demolished by showers of stones aid missils.
 The Casualty List. The list of known injured follow:
 Roy Grover of Clinton, A spectas tor at the Klan meeting. who is at . hospital in Clinton with broken back, but 1t was found his condition was less serious and he va : later sent home.
 Paul Kittredgs of Clinton, said te be halfback on the Holy Cross foot ball team, suffering from 70 wounds. believed to have been caused by rock salt discharged from | gun. He b expected to recover.
 William O'Toole of Clinton. sirnil- arly wounded about the head. Con- dition not serious.
 Edward Beard, Leonminster, in hos pital in Leonminster suffering from supposed rock salt wounds in arms and chest, condition reported not ser- ious.
 Peter Sonia, Clinton police officer. treated for an injnry to the head when he was struck by stone.
 Two Other Meetings.
 The hostilities which broke out early last evening, when 300 Klans- men, friends and spectators, assem- bed in field near here which they had rented, only to be beleaguered by a crowd of between 300 and 800 men, came as a continuation of bitter feel- ings which have existed for a consid- erable period.
 While the fighting was beginning here a somewhat similar outbreak occurred in Spencer, several miles away when 8 crowd showered with stones cars carrying persons away from Ku Klux Klan meeting there. State police, on guard against such an occurrence at that place, dispersed the crowd and arrested five men: Charles McGrail, Leo Gagnon. John naeust, Julius Jurumsky and John Demetre, all of Spencer. At Vest minister, near here, a third meeting was held, but without disorders.
 Police Are Outnumbered.
 The small local police force was unable to cope with the situation when shortly after eight o'clock trouble began between the crowd within the field and those in the road outside. A few guards had been posted along the low stone wall that ran between the field and road. When the crowd outside attempted to enter the field, help was summoned rom the state police at Holden, Ox- ord, Brookfeld and Lunenburg. But he dozen officers were unable to handle the situation when, at 10 o'clock the first real clash occurred It the entyance to the field. rocks were thrown and the crowd outside withdrew.
 Serious Clash Occurs.
 The second most serious clash oc~ ,urred at about 12:3o a. m. when . econd rush for the opening into the ield brought general fighting h which stones and clubs figured. . hotgun apparently loaded with roo9 alt was fired into the crowd. Roy irover, spectator, received injuries vhen an automobile within the en- losure attempted to run the gauntlet f the crowd outside.
 Officer Peter Sonia, who was rid- ng on the running board of the ann- ulance which had been summoned nd which was carrying Grover from he field, was struck on the head by
 piece of rock.
 As the night wore on. the police by their lack of num- CTS, the scattered position of the ombatants and the darkness, were ble only to keep the road clear.
 When dawn broke. 15o men still emained in the road outside the field nd similar number of men were within the field. But with the com ng of morning. the number in the oadway outside. consisting principal ' of young men between the ages of 6 and 26, gradually broke up.
 Endorsements. increasing the orces of the police to 20, enabled