Watson's weekly Jeffersonian. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1907, May 02, 1907, Page 14, Image 14

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14 IDAHO’S GREAT TRIAL AROUT TO REGIN P! < wm b|M W Bg \4Sgf I l?\. f v\ V ' i ■7!y ; CHARLES H. MOYER. President of the Western Fed eration of Miners, indicted for the alleged murder of ex-Governor Steunenberg of Idaho. ;i ” ! (The New York Times.) No one living in the Rocky Moun tain regions can have an unprejudiced opinion regarding the coming Steun enberg murder trial. This is the most important event that has occurred in Western America in recent years, and when William D. Haywood, Secretary of the Western Federation of Miners, is arraigned in Boise, Idaho, May 9, charged with the murder of Idaho's Governor, he will have half the popu lation of the entire Western country with him and half against him. This is the culmination of a long line of bloodshed in the mining camps, be ginning in the Coeur d’Alenes mines fifteen years ago, and culminating in the bloody mining riots in Colorado. The prosecution will attempt to show that all the crimes in the mining camps which appeared at the time to have their motive in the existing bad feeling between the mine ewners and the Western Federation of Min ers were planned by the “Inner Cir cle” of the Federation. Os this the three officials indicted for the murder of Gov. Steunenberg were members, and the crimes committed were sup posed to be carried out under their di rections. The defense is confident of its ability to disprove these allega tions, as well as the charges made in Orchard’s confession, described fur- & ■’w l JWi Biw ®L i We Commenced Selling Good Clothing Sixteen Years Ago We improve our Manufacturing facilities with every season’s advent. We can’t possibly see where there’s any room for improving our Clothing. We know there’s no room to improve prices. But they have always been very reasonable. New Spring Suits for Mens7.so, $lO, $12.50, sls, S2O, $25. Boys’ and Children’s Suitssl.so, $2, $3, $4, $5, $6.50. Men’s Pantssl.so, $2, $2.50, $3, $4, $5, $6.50, $7.50. Everything that’s right in Hats and Furnishings. Mail Orders:—'Samples of Suits or Pants will be sent to any address. But always give size and price goods wanted. THE GLOBE CLOTHING COMPANY 89-91 WHITEHALL ST., ATLANTA, GA. WATSON’S WEEKLY JEFFERSONIAN. Chiefs of the Western Federation of Miners, Accused of the Mdtder of Former Governor Steunenberg, Soon to Face a Jury. ther on in this article. At the time of the Wardner riots in the Coeur d’Alenes, Governor Steun enberg, in the absence of the Idaho militia in the Philippines asked for Federal aid, and Gen. Merriam estab lished such stringent military rule that Gov. Steunenberg gained the en mity of the entire Western Federation of Miners. Two years later Steunen berg retired from office and returned to his home in Caldwell. Four years later, returning home from his office at six o’clock on the night of Decem ber 30, 1905, he swung open his gar den gate, and a mine that had been set for him exploded and tore his body to pieces. His head was found a block away. Two Confessions Made. Investigation implicated Harry Or chard and Stephen Adams in the mur der, and both confessed. In their con fessions they stated that they were the tools of the “Inner Circle” of the Western Federation of Miners, and implicated the officials of the Federa tion in a long list of murders and at tempted murders. Charles H. Moyer, President; William D. Haywood, Sec retary, and George A. Pettibone, Com mitteeman, all members of the “Inner Circle,” were “kidnapped” in Colorado on hurried extradition proceedings and rushed to Idaho on a special train. Though indictments were brought against them a year ago, their trials have not yet taken place. Or chard has since become greatly weak ened mentally and Adams has retract ed his confession, saying that it was obtained from him by coercion and undue influence. All Idaho is torn between the prose cution and defense in this trial. Al though broken by great ranges of mountains and divided into separate sections by lack of through railroad connections, Idaho is a unit and its progressive citizens are well acquaint ed in all parts of the State. The pop ulation is small, but enlightened. Rich mines and irrigated farms have pro duced a great deal of wealth, and the resultant culture has not weakened the moral fibre of its citizens. The people of Idaho are a very high class of Americans. Among this class of people Gov. Steunenberg was well known and liked. His action in call ing for aid to end the Wardner riots was approved by them. This is one-half the population of Idaho. The other half is composed of miners. These are largely Slavs, Finns, and Scandinavians. Among them is a scattering of American-born miners, but only a scattering. They are in thorough sympathy with the Independent Workers of the World, a semi-anarchistic organization, which recently called unfavorable attention to itself in Goldfield, Nev., when at one of its meetings the American flag was jeered. There is at the present time a dissension in the Western Fed eration of Miners rgarding their af filiation with the Independent Work ers of the world. The inclination to break away has been growing steadily In the event of the conviction of Moy er, Haywood, and Pettibone, there will probably be an entire change of spirit in the Western Federation of Miners. The prosecution of Moyer, Haywood and Pettibone has been made a labor issue throughout the United States. For a year and more meetings have been held, ending with a sensational series in all the large cities a few Weeks ago, in which the prosecution was declared a persecution, and the question was asked, “Shall our broth ers be murdered?” The purpose of these meetings was to obtain money with which to conduct the defense and over a quarter of a million dollars has been raised. There is tremendous interest in the coming trial all through the West, even in portions where there are no mines or miners. It is most talked of in labor circles. There the spirit re garding the trial is good. All the labor unions ask is a fair and speedy trial. The general tendency of the labor unions to defend any action in the name of unionism is checked on this occasion by the enormity of the crimes with which the defendants are charged. They have reserved their judgment and are willing to stand by the judgment of any twelve good men. The Western Federation of Miners is hardly so conservative, but in the city of San Francisco, where union la bor is in control, the leaders, while taking part in the exciting meetings held for the purpose of raising money for the defense, counsel sanity. Still, at the last mass meeting held on be half of these prisoners in San Francisco the American flag was torn down and trampled upon. The trial will cost the State of Idaho over $200,000. The defense expects to spend even more. It has a million dol lars blonging to the Western Federa tion of Miners, besides the quarter of a million raised in public meetings. James H. Hawley, formerly a well known California lawyer, now of JFr’' / raffß WILLIAM D. HAYWOOD. Secretary-treasurer of the West ern Federation of Miners, charged with the assassination of ex-Gov ernor Steunenberg of Idaho. Boise, Idaho, and Senator W. E. Borah of Idaho, are leading counsel for the prosecution. Clarence Darrow of Chi cago will head the defense. His prin cipal assistants are Ex-Gov. John T. Morrison and John F. Nugent of Idaho, the firm of Richardson, Patterson & Hawkins of Denver, and lawyers from every town in the West in which the Western Federation of Miners has had trouble. " - .. . The trial will be long and hard fought. In the first place, it will be difficult to secure a jury in a State where every one takes a vital interest in the trial. The prosecution will ex ert every possible effort to secure the conviction of Haywood, as the hope of fastening the long line of Colorado murders on the officials of the West ern Federation of Miners depends on the validity of the confession of Harry Orchard and its power to convict. The defense then petitioned for change of venue frim Caldwell to Boise. This was granted by Judge Wood, the defense agreeing not to bring up the question of change of venue again. Judge Wood then set the trial of Haywood for May 9 in Boise. About this trial centres the greatest interest, as the fate of Haywood will decide the fate of the others, since all three of the indicted men were equally implicated by Orchard’s confession. **« «SjpP