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Show SLEUTH TELLS HGI WORKERS IREJICTED Events Leading Up to Wholesale Whole-sale Slaughter in Mining Town Related WILLIAMS'" N. W. Va., Psb. 12.- A Baldwin-Felts detective and two telephone operators opened the testimony testi-mony In the Matewan shooting trials here today after more than two weeks had been taken up in obtaining a jury. John McDowell, the detective, testified tes-tified to tho eviction of miners from the houses of the Stone Mountain Coal company, and that Mayor C. C Testor-man Testor-man and Sid HatfflMd had protested to Albert Felts. He was unable to say. ho testified, who fired tho first shot, but ho saw Reeco Chambers, one of the defendants, defend-ants, bringing his gun into play. PHONE .IUI I IM S& Mny 7haffin. a telephone operator, nieco of Ueecc Chambers, testified that aha overheard a telephone conversation con-versation between Deputy Sheriff Tony Webb and Sid Hatfield in which Hat-fold Hat-fold asked when warrants could bo obtained for tho Btld win-Felts men and threatening to kill the detectives before they left Matewan. Tills testimony tes-timony was almost duplicated b Elsie Chambers, a daughter of Recce Chambers- Court then adjourned until 9 o'clock Monday morning. SLEUTH n .r u. WILLIAMSTOWN, W Va., Feb 12. John McDowell. a Baldwin-Felts employe, present at tho Matewan buttle but-tle last May, was the first witness called by the prosecution In the trial of nineteen men for murder, when court convened this morning Tho first shot of the battle that resulted In tho death of ten men came from the doorway of a hardware store near the. railroad station, according to McDowell's Mc-Dowell's testimony. He could not say who was the first man killed. He testified that Sid Hatfield, Matewan pollco chief. Albert C. Felts and Mayor C C Testorman. nil of whom were killed, were gathered about tho doorway. When ho was turned over to the defense de-fense for cross-cximlnatlon. Attorney J. J. Conlffe went back to what has been accepted as the cause of the battle, the ovlctlon of miners from houses owned by the Stone Mountain Coal company. McDowell was uncertain as to the number of families evicted by the Baldwin-Felts detectives that day, but said he believed there were flvo or six ' While a few of us were taking the furniture from a house." said the witness. wit-ness. "Mr. Felts, who was in charge, said 'two or three of you had better get your rifles for yonder comes the mayor, Sid Hatfield, and a gang of men.' We did as wo were told. Mr. Hatfield, Mayor Testorman and two or three others came up to where we were and protested against the evlc-Uon." |