Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 242, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 October 1919 — INDIANA SECTOR WORST EVER [ARTICLE]

INDIANA SECTOR WORST EVER

HUNDREDS OF TROOPS PATROL 1 THE STREETSOFTHREE INDIANA CITIES. I— Chicago, Oct. 6.—Major General Leonard Wood, commander of the central department of the United States army, took charge of the Indiana steel cities of Gary, Indiana Harbor and East Chicago with one thousand overseas veterans of the fourth division, armed with cannon, machine guns and rifles, and declared martial law in Gary, while Adjutant Smith, with a thousand sta‘te troops declared martial law in the other two steel centers.

No soldiers’ uniforms may be worn in Gary by civilians under the general’s orders. Action Follows Parade. No disorder preceded the action of the military today, but the troop movegfent brought about by .a parade without permit of 2,p00 strikers from the steel mills in Gary, led by a large number of former soldiers in uniform, and a mass meeting in a Gary park, where speakers demanded the release of strikers arrested after a riot on Saturday and the withdrawal of troops sent by Governor Goodrich of Indiana, at the request of city officers.

j Rapid Military Movement. This is the first action by federal troops since the ‘steel strike started on/ September 22. It came unexpectedly as there had ‘been comparatively little disorder in any of the cities, but the movement was rapid. No sooner had Mayor €lodges, of Gary, asked Governor Goodrich for troops after the mass meeting had been held in violation of his orders and in defiance of the 300 state troops on duty in Gary than the governor repeated the request to General Wood at Chicago. Shoridanhadbeen loaded in triickaand transported fifty miles to Gary. They had barely unlimbered themselves from the long ride before General Wood issued his order for martial law. Bar Public Meetings. The order provided that no public meetings or assemblies might be held “in any street, park or other portion of the city.” However, it specifically exempted from this provision churches, theatre, motion picture houses and lecture rooms. The order set forth that all men in the uniform of the United States army in the city would be brought to military headquarters immediately. , If investigation developed that a particular man was “a part of the armed forces of the nation,” the order added, “he would be placed under the command of the military authorities in the city for duty. If, however, the man was out of the service,” the order stated, “he would be held pending further investigation.” — —■: This latter provision was taken to mean that di scharged . soldiers wearying their. be held in custodyAsk Citizens’ Assistance. The order was made effective immediately. It'" set forth that strict enforcement of law would prevail, and called upon all citizens to lend their assistance to the military authorities. The functions of the city government, it added, would be carried on through the city authorities “as much as possible.” All parades and processions were prohibited by the order. It provided further that no firearms might be carried by anyone other than the police, military authorities, troops and members ‘of the city government. ' The order will continue in effect “until further notice.” , Steel plants throughout the district continued to operate today with varying forces of men at work. As on previous days, plant officials claimed that many additional men had reported for work, but strike leaders asserted that only a few unskilled workers had gone back. Firearms Reach Negroes.

After an investigation following the arrest of a negro on a charge of carrying a weapon, C. E. Huber, assistant postmaster at Gary, declared today that many firearms were reaching negroes at Gary through the mails. He expressed the belief that postoffice authorities could not refuse delivery of the firearms after they had once been placed in the mail.