Jasper County Democrat, Volume 2, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 September 1899 — SEVEN NEGROES SHOT [ARTICLE]

SEVEN NEGROES SHOT

MINERS MEET IN A DEADLY BATTLE. Blocks Flee for Tbeir Lives, bat Are Brought Down by Ballets of Whits Parsaers—Troops Sent to Prevent Farther Bloodshed. In a pitched battle between negro and white miners, fought in the main street of Carterville, 111., Sunday, seven of the colored men were killed and two others wounded. It was only Monday of the previous week that the State militia, which had been on duty there for several months, was withdrawn, it being considered that all danger of trouble was past. After the departure of the troops, however, it appears that the bitter feeling between the races took new life, Sunday’s outbreak proving the culmination. Both sides insist that the other was responsible for the deadly combat. Thirteen non-union colored miners left tbeir homes at Brush’s mines, north of the town, shortly before noon and came down to the Illinois Central station intending to take the Paducah express for Marion. It has been the custom of Brush’s non-union negro miners for several weeks, or a squad of twelve of fifteen of them, to go to Marion every Sunday, remain for the night services at the colored church and return home on the 11:10 p. m. train. These negroes had been at the Carterville station only a few minutes when twenty-five or thirty union miners, most of them armed with rifles, appeared on the scene. When they came up they found several of the negroes inside the waiting room, the remainder on the platform. The black men were immediately ordered by the white miners to leave there and to leave at once. The order was soon repeated to them, with another order to leave the town and that quickly. According to unprejudiced witnesses, the negroes commenced to obey the orders, going northwest on the railroad tracks. When they had proceeded about 100 yards to where the main street of the town crosses the railroad traeks one of the negroes turned, drew his revolver and fired back at the crowd, which was then advancing toward them. This was a signal for a general onslaught by the white miners. They opened a deadly fire on the negroes, who scattered like scared sheep. The white miners fired over 100 shots at the fleeing negroes, and it is said that many shots were tired at them from the windows of houses aftd from barns and outhouses. Every few minutes one of the fleeing men would stagger, throw up his hands and topple to the earth. The pursuers did not stop, but kept up their rain of lead until the few survivors had gotten beyond range. These dead negroes fell along the railroad track not more than 200 yards from the station. , The infuriated miners followed up their bloody work and those of the unfortunate negroes who were not killed when they first fell were afterward riddled with bullets at short range or clubbed to death with the butts of guns. Two of the wounded managed to get away from the scene of slaughter and walked to within a short distance of the mines, where their dead bodies were found later in the day. This clash is the outcome of differences between the operators and union continuing over several years. The strike has been more for a recognition of the union fhan because of wages. Rioting, beginiiug in .Tune last, resulted iu the calling jut of State troops, which were withdrawn from the town only a week before. Gov. Tanner, on receipt of the news of the riot, immediately ordered Lieut. Lowden of Company C of Carbondale to proceed with his command at once to Carterville, procuring a special train if necessary. Two companies of the Fourth regiment, under command of Col. Bennett, were also ordered to the scene of the trouble.