The Minnesota fiery cross. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1924-19??, 1924-02-22
(By INVESTIGATOR

come from the broken hearts of
it's best citizens; men and women
whose home town has been raw
ished by rotten politicians, boot
leggers, gamblers, resort keep
ers and their supporters and pa
irons; men and women who have
seen their Main Street" corrupt
ed into an avenue of pitfalls for
sons and daughters; men and
women whose lives and works as
good citizens were sacrificed by
a small group of vicious, lawless
men, melted by the basest pas
sions and mad with greed for
money and political power.
As a matter Of fact, Bloody Will
hanson" county exists today only on
tho front pages of the yellow press,
except for that dark-stained side
walk in front of the Home Club,
whore Constable Caesar eagle, Klans-
man, died a martyr last week. He
was shot down by the gang that OPP
poses the re-establishment Of law and
order in the coal fields.
With S. Glenn Young, noted law en-
forcement officer, acting as chief Of
police by appointment Of John Ford,
chief; with Mayor c. E. Anderson,
Sheriff George Galligan, Chief Dep-
uty John Layman, Ora Davis, head
of the Flaming Circle" anti-klan or
| ganiZation, and a score OF their as
sistants deputies and henchmen I'M
der arrest on charges Of murder in
connection with the death Of Con-
stable eagle; with men of unques-
toned integrity, practically all Of
whom are said to be Klansmen,
sworn in as policemen to replace the
Anderson-Galligan piratical crew,
Herrin is experiencing the restora-
ton of law and order out Of chaos,
and enjoying the life Of a well-regu-
lated American town for the first
time in many long day.
The raids led by Mr.. Young, and
conducted by the best citizens Of
the county, sworn in as officers for
this special duty, have closed up the
saloons on the principal thorough
fares, the joints directly across the
street from the city hall, and the
half q hundred "bootlegging dens"
throughout the county. Dozens Of
whisky peddlers, gamblers, gun men,
and imported gangsters" are under
arrest 80 this little city is now as
quiet and orderly as Chicago's high
brow suburb, Evanston.
We're II not for the nine companies
of Illinois National Guardsmen called
here for some reason by Sheriff CALI
gan before there was a hint Of
trouble, and some hours before Con-
stable eagle was decoyed to death
by the murder gang, Of which the
sheriff, himself, is charged with be-
ing a member, Herrin with it's auto
cratic, but beneficent acting chief Of
police and his citizen aides, would be
going about its business in it's usual
way, with the exception, of course,
that all the "joints" are closed and
the gangsters that have given the
community a bad reputation these
many years are in Jail Somewhere in
illinois,"
Klansmen and other good citizens
do not resent the presence of the
soldiers. They just feel that their
presence is unnecessary; that the
state is put to a great expense and
the officers and men to needless in
convenience by the mobilization here.
Interviews with more than twenty
of the most highly connected business
and professional men did not disclose
single one who thought that the
soldiers should have been sent here
News stories asserting that thou
sands of miners in this district are
striking in order to fight the Khan
and the good citizens who stand with
that organization are untrue. i am
authorized to say that hundreds of
miners, the men who are known to
be steady, honest, hard-working, are
members of the Knights of the Ku
Klux Khan. The United Mine Work
ers of America, radical labor organi-
zation, to which all union miners
must belong, attempts, by constitu-
tional provision, to bar its members
from utilization with the Khan, but
hundreds of Williamson county coal
miners are 100 per cent American
first, and pawns of U. M. w. officials
last, if at all.
1t is true that some miners are bit
terly opposed to the Klan. The Ital-
ian colony and other foreign groups
in this district are large, and these
groups are VIGOROUSLY opposed to
Americanized standards of life, Cit
zenship, and law enforcement. 1t is
from this class that Sheriff Galligan,
Ora Davis, and other leaders of the
Corruption Ring" recruited their
confederates and selected their
"hootch" retailers. Some of these
men have "laid off" from work in
futile effort to keep in touch with
their imprisoned chiefs. They are
the so-called strikers.
1t is the concensus of opinion ex-
pressed to me by score of repre-
Sentative men, including non-Klans-
men as we'll as members of that pa
triotic organization, that eighty-fve
per cent of the total population of
| Williamson county is in entire sym
pathy and accord with Mr.. Young's
cleanup program and will support
movement to make that stalwart Of
ficer sheriff of the county as soon as
Calligan is convicted of murder or
removed from office.
With the best citizens organized
for the first time in the cause of
civic righteousness and law enforce
ment, determined to end the lawless-
naSo that hoe av;otal hare md.