The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-12-13
Colorado Commission
Recognizes Strike
Continued from Page Ome)

NCOnt1nueG from rage Onet
and superintendent at the Columbine,
leave the gates open and allow the
strikers to hold their meetings in the
Columbine, Miss Roche saying, as it
is reported, that she would "sell her
stock for 30 Cents if blood were shed
on the property"
Rockefeller Wanted Control.
The News has printed the state
ment that the Rockefeller Colorado
fuel & iron Co. is DESTROYS of getting
control OF the Rocky Mountain Fuel
Co. The G.. r. & |. is the hardboiled,
laborhating, strikebreaking and dom
inant influence in the Colorado coal
industry, but it has no mines in the
northern field, where the Columbine
lies.
Knowing the situation, J. F. We'll
born, president of the company,
would have gone straight to george
Peart who naturally resented the new
regime and who belonged 70 the old
c. +. & |. school. of labor-s smashing
tactics. George Peart would have
gone to his son, Ted, and the COM
pany end of the frame-up would have
been taken care of.
How Plot Formed.
Mr.. Welborn or Mr. Peart could
then have gone to "Pat" Hammock and
reached Louis Scherf, the chief of the
state police, who was for years a cap
tain in the Rangers under Hammock
and learned his strikebreaking from
him, and also Sam Lee, second in
command, who is even worse than
Scherf.
In the state government are Adult
ant General Newton of the National
Guard who wanted trouble to prove
The militia ought to be called; Tom
Annear, chairman of the Industrial
Commission, who was frantlcally
eager to get the men back in the
mines at any cost.
Ready to Murder.
Despite the orders that the gate be
left open and the strikers allowed to
hold their meetings on the road in
the mine, on the morning of the mas
sacre Ted Peart had chained and pad
locked the gate shut! And Peart was
on hand to take part in the proceed
ings. Four days later he resigned
Machine guns were at the Column
Dine and the strikers insist they were
used. Certain it is, they were set up
before, during or Immediately after
the killings.
1t is definitely established that
Louis Scherf reports to "Pat" Ham
rock at the state house as often as
he reports to the governor and some
times, apparently in emergencies, be-
fore he sees the governor.
J Just Before the Slaughter.
An hour after midnight Just before
the massacre, Scherf sent to Denver
for the steel helmets of his troopers!
Tom Annear and Colonel Newton
were also on hand at the Columbine
that morning to see what happened
Annear went Immediately to the gov
ernor with glowing praise of Scherf
and his men, saying, "Scherf ought to
have a gold medal. For the moment
it seemed that Annears industrial
commission had been saved.
Publicity Prepared.
The Saturday before the Monday
Of the massacre, the strikers had gone
to the Columbine. There was no evil
dence of trouble to come. Yet Scherf
had left the south where there seem
ed some probability of trouble to go
to the Colun1bine that Monday. An
near and Newton were there. And
they had a newspaper reporter there
from the Denver Post, the coal oper-
ator organ Everyone was prepared
for the massacre but the strikers.
Authorities Fear Investigation.
The strikers hope an investigation
by such a body as the Federal Council
will get all the facts, clear back to
Rockefeller. The state police fear
The same thing and plan to have them
selves tried for murder before the
facts come out SO they can be freed
and never tried again.