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Show PAINT CREEK IS LAWLESS Mine Guard Tells of Being Shot Down and jLeft For Dead by Miners, Min-ers, Who Took His Coat and Cut It Up Into In-to Souvenirs. Washington, Sept 4. More lawlessness lawless-ness and disorder exists today alone Paint Creek, W Va.. than at any-other any-other period of Its history, according to today's testimony of Walter S Woods, general manager of thf Standard Stand-ard Splint Coal company, on that creek, before the senate Inrestigat ing committee The lawlessness, he said, when pressed by the committee, consisted of general disorder among the miners "The more radical ones," were stirring up trouble with those who remained at work, he declared. "The worst of it is there Is no one to stop It," said he "There is not a guard or special office of-fice or anyone else to represent the law on the lower end of the creek now, except one justice of the peace and he was one of Ihe leaders of the strike and is a Socialist." Senator Kenyon Inquired if the trouble trou-ble was due to drink. "Largely." replied Woods. "There are more radicals after the bottles are open " sucEesterl Seymour Stedman, attorney for the United Mine Workers. Battles between the Paint Creek strikers and ' guards" were described by W W. Phaup, In charge of the guards. The climax of his story was an account of being left for dead after af-ter an encounter on Juh 25, 101L' His coat, ho said, pierced with bullet holes, was cut up at a miners' meeting meet-ing and pieces were worn on coat lapels as souenirs He first told of 200 shots pouring down on his six men on May 29, 1912, as they were on their way to breakfast without arms He then decided that a mp chine gun was necessary If the guards were to be protected against men hid den In the mountain foliage He told of being shot off a handcar at Holly Grove and his companion being killed. I As he revived, he said, he heard one striker say. "Don't shoot any more; that's got j ' him." . . . Phaup dragged himself to a hoe pltal two miles away with his arm broken by a bullet, another bullet buried below his shoulder blade and a bullet wound on his chest "The doctor at the hospital was afraid of trouble and put out fhe report that I had dfed on the opernt Ing table," said Phaup. 08t niy coat on the way to the hospital and the next Sunday when Mother Jones made a speech to the miners, she exhibited it and said It was decora ted to suit her The minerB hung It on a fence and then cut It up into little pieces to wear on their coats as souvenirs " He testifier! he had not 6cen the demonstration himself |
