OCR Text |
Show THREE KILLED III GUN BATTLE FIGHT FOLLOWS ATTEMPT OF AGENTS TO OBTAIN WORKERS FROM PLANTATIONS Conflicting Reports Result In Charge That Planters Sought to Drive Agents From Negro Quarters VIelcshirrg. Three men were killed and three wounded in a gun and pistol battle between labor agents and plan'.-ers plan'.-ers at Duckport, La., on the Missis-sippl Missis-sippl river near here Saturday. T"'o men, WestcHi and Dangerfield came to Vickshurg in a gasoline boat and went to the police station where they reported the battle. Reports of the circumstances leading lead-ing to the trouble were conflicting. Weston told authorities tl'it Jake Stevens, negro labor agent, and himself, him-self, were engaged by R. L. Kirtley. representing the Black river Land company, near Vicksburg, to go to Duckport to get four of five negro families who were to work on the land company's plantation. Accompanied by Stevens and sev. oral others, he ran his boat to a point near Dvkport. Fifteen or twenty white men and negroes were cn the river bank. They hailed the boat and he made for the landing when the men on shore opened fire with automatic guns and pistols, Weston said. Stevens had a revolver and returned the fire, nceord'ng to th-e story. A second fulsillade of shots from the men on store brought Stevens and two others on the barge own. Weston Wes-ton said he cut the boat loose from the barge yinrt drifted down with Dangerfield. He said the men on shore continued to re at his boat until it was out of ronge. Sheriff Andrew Sevier and District Attorney Jeff B. Snvder of Madison par'sh. made an investigation of the shooting and the latter declared he will prosecute the men who engaged Weston and Stevens for going to Louisiana to get labor, trespassing nnd for shooting. The district attorney said the man arrived at a place between Delta point and Duckport at midn'ght. They went to the negro quarters of a plantation and attempted to persuade the negroes to leave and raised a disturbance. dis-turbance. The home negroes sent word to the planters, and in a short time several planters had come upon the scene and rsked what the men wanted. They answered by firing at the planters, an according to the district attorney, the plantres returned re-turned the fire. |