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Show "MOLLIE MAGUIRISM" IN THE WEST. fc. The press of tho country, and especially es-pecially of the west, are fully aroused .. over the charges implicating the West- em Federation of Miners in a series of assassinations and murderous plots that tho Now York Globe thinks bor-w bor-w ders on nihilism, and which the Hartford Hart-ford Courant likens to tho "reign of terror established in the Pennsylvania coal regions by the Mollio Magulres, more than thirty years ago." The present crisis In tho affairs of this labor la-bor union, which many newspapers have without reservation held largely responsible for tho disorders and crimes in Colorado In the strike of fc 1904, Is duo to tho confession of Harry . Orchard, who acknowledges murdering J ox-Governor Steunenberg, of Idaho, on l December 30, 1905, and dynamiting fourteen non-union miners at a railway rail-way station at Independence, Colo., on & Juno 6, 1904. Steunenberg, It will be remembered, had been active in attempting at-tempting to restrain vlolenco and sustain sus-tain the law In tho Coeur d'Aleno mining min-ing riots in 1889. Of this confession Governor Gooding, of Idaho, says that "when it is made public in detail, It will shock civilization." In what is published of this confession con-fession Orchard charges that he was hired to kill tho ex-Governor by the "Inner circle" of tho Western Federation Federa-tion of Miners. Ho claims to havo attempted at-tempted to dynamite Justices Gabbert and Goddard of tho Colorado Supremo Court, former Governor Peabody, or Colorado, and many others, Including militia officers, and charges the leaders lead-ers of tho Federation with a long list of crimes. "Tho confession Is a recital re-cital of as hideous a story as tho annals an-nals of crlmo havo ever produced," says the Louisville Courier-Journal, which regards tho confession as tho truth, since many of tho details have been verified by the police, oven to tho finding of bombs in tho places described. de-scribed. As a result of this confession confes-sion William D. Haywood, secretary-treasurer secretary-treasurer of the Federation of Miners, Charles H. Moyer, president, and George A. Pettibono, of tho same union, un-ion, havo been arrested in Denver and taken to Boise City, Idaho, to stand trial. Tho union is reported to be determined de-termined to fight the case to tho end. Many of the papers are reserved in their discussion of these arrests, fearing fear-ing to prejudge the case, yet they are loud In tho denunciation of such arts of violence. "A very few such occurrences," occur-rences," says tho New York Globe, "would cause a popular uprising and sweep the country clean of unionism for many years to come," and the Portland Port-land Oregoniin remarks that "it is now a fight between every American citizen who believes In right, justice, and freedom and tho fiends who, with bomb, stiletto, and pistol, seek to make '' it impossible for any American citizen citi-zen to enjoy these blessings." If conviction con-viction should follow, tho Spokane n (Wash.) Spokesman-Review declares, tho Western Federation would bo regarded re-garded by citizens "as an outlaw organization," or-ganization," and tho Louisville Courier-Journal calls upon the authorities to "search out every member of the band and prosecuto him mercilessly." Colorado has probably suffered more than any other Stato from tho alleged al-leged crimes of tho Western Federa ls , tion of Miners, and in looking over the newspapers of that Stato we find that 5 most of them are not prejudging the 1 case, but anxiously awaiting tho out- ( come of tho trial. "What the peoplo desire more than anything else is that tho truth relating to the horrible ,0- crimes In Colorado and In Idaho shall bo made known," says tho Pueblo Chieftain. So, too, thinks tho Colorado Springs Gazette. But in Denver we find threo of tho dailies trying to settle set-tle the case among themselves. The Republican accuses Thc;Tews and The Tlnies with trying ' old the ac- cusod Federation officials. This Tho News and Tho Times deny emphatically. emphatical-ly. Tho Times denounces tho action of Governor MacDonald In permitting tho accused men to bo taken from tho Stato "without due process of law," and Tho Republican says that Tho Times Is furious because the prisoners did not havo the opportunity to find some technical Haw In the procoduro "which would furnish a pretext for discharging dis-charging thorn on habeas corpus and thus effectually prevent a trial on Its merits." Tho News nrints tho atorv that Orchard was not a union man, but tho tool of the "Mine Owners' Association," Associa-tion," tho bitter opponents of tho miners, min-ers, and It adds that It will refrain from any editorial opinion until all tho facts aro known. Tho Republican, which seems at this early hour to have tried and condemned the leaders or the Miners' Federation, holds them responsible re-sponsible for a good many of tho crimes In Colorado, and declares that they attempted to "establish tho will of tho association as tho law of every mining camp in tho Rocky Mountains.1' To quote: "Tho last act in tho terrible tragedy of Colorado's attempt to maintain Its authority against tho conspiracy of tho Western Federation of Miners to rulo in Cripple Creek, Tellurlde, and other mining districts has begun. Tho conspiracy of murder, by which somo members of tho Federation hoped to reestablish their power and to wreak vengeance upon judges and other officials offi-cials who maintained the law, has been exposed, and It now remains to determine deter-mine what punishment shall bo assessed as-sessed against the conspirators. "Tho Western Federation of Miners Is a conspiracy against tho freedom of every man to work when ho sees proper to do so and an attempt to establish es-tablish tho will of tho association ns tho law of every mining camp In tho Rocky Mountains. Tho Cripple-Creek strike was called for the purpose of forcing recognition of tho authority of tho Western Federation and in no senso to improve tho condition of tho men who were at that time working in tho mines of the district. Because it failed in this particular, murder was resorted to as a means of intimidating working men and their employers who maintained tho dignity of the Stato and enforced tho law. "Tho Federation having been overthrown over-thrown completely in Colorado, its members retained no hope of regaining regain-ing their footing except by establishing establish-ing a reign of terror through the use of explosives. This was the conspiracy, conspira-cy, and It extended over the entire Rocky Mountain region "It was a conspiracy ngalnst tho freedom of every citizen, and especially especial-ly against the right of every man to work without waiting for the consent or approval of any organization. Colorado Colo-rado gaiued a great victory for civil liberty vhen it suppressed the dls-orderl dls-orderl element in Cripplo Crook and Tellurlde and demonstrated that the law was stronger than any criminal organization or-ganization or conspiracy. But tho fruits of that victory would be lost were tho conspirators to bo permitted to revenge re-venge themselves upon tho ofilclals by whose courage and devotion to duty this campaign for law and order was restored." Literary Digest. |