The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1928-02-24
SENATOR
VISITS Mines
WHEELER SEES RED MENACE
I'M CONDITIONS AT PENN.
STRIKE SCENE

Jun el6Srdpu, ltIopui ShJ
Conditions of inc~onceivable mis-
cry in the mining towns of the
Pittsburgh district. constituting "a
crying indictment of the authori-
ties here and at Washington"
will be laid before the Interstate
Commerce Committee of the Unit
ed States senate at a meeting in
Washington by Senator Bur-
ton K. Wheeler, democrat, of
Montana, who spent about II
hours yesterday (February 81 on
a personal investigation of mining
81 expect to make a motion at
this meeting to have the commit
tee make this investigation of the
coal strike its first order of bust
ness" Senator Wheeler declared
last night, before leaving
"The committee has been ex-
tremely busy with railroad, radio
and other legislation, but these
are matters of property rights as
distinguished from human rights.
I feel quite sure that when this
situation is presented to the com
mittee that it will report the reso-
luton out Immediately and that
the United States senate will
promptly order an investigation of
the whole situation"
amazed and shocked" at condi-
lions he found in the mining
camps, Senator Wheeler declared,
'the hillsides of Pennsylvania 7
the most fertile breeding grounds
of anarchy and Bolshevism I have
ever seen, comparable to condi-
tions l saw in the cities of China
last year"
Surprised at Apathy
He expressed surprise that the
people of Pittsburgh are not more
aroused by the conditions of mis-
cry on the fringe of this city of
wealth.
eff we had a Roosevelt or a
Wilson in the White House, in my
judgment, this condition would not
have been permitted to prevail as
it has prevailed for the last II
months" Senator Wheeler declar-
ed.
Delving into the shooting into
union mines houses at Bruceton
Thursday, Senator Wheeler said
he had been given testimony in
eliminating coal and iron police.
He said: "a Mrs. Fishman, who
a store there, told me that a
number of coal and iron police not
only stood by and watched these
Negro strike-breakers shooting,
but that she and her daughters
had seen the police join in the
shooting"
Senator Wheeler said he asked
coal and iron police why they had
not prevented the shooting and
they replied that only one or two
were there and could not have pre-
vented it, might possibly have
been shot themselves.
81 am convinced that a number
there and stood idly by" he
An account of the senator's in
terview with the police was that
one said a brick was thrown in
stead of shots being fired and that
Senator Wheeler flared up and
said, after examining the houses,
Don't you think I know the diff
ference between a brick and buck
shot and rifleshot?"
Senator Wheeler, when inter
viewed last night on his return
the strike zone, said that he
made the trip to Pittsburgh for a
one-day personal tour of the min
ing towns.
GAS a member of the Interstate
Commerce committee, to which
he resolution of Senator Johnson
Tor an investigation was referred,
wanted to get some first-hand
information" he said. 81 felt that
here had been a good deal of ex-
aggeration of conditions, but my
visit here has more than cnofirm-
I'd the reports. 1t has been most
profitable and enlightening."