845
• d>
.0
60TH CONGRESS, | HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. (DOCUMENT
1st Session. f 1 No. 607
•vOVN*
j vivv-'>r*
,'-**tV
Toft Library
PAPERS RELATIVE TO LABOR TROUBLES AT
GOLDFIELD, NEV.
I) C^ ^eo^reta *" ^ oi SUrle
MESSAGE
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES,
TRANSMITTING
REPORT OF SPECIAL COMMISSION ON LABOR TROUBLES AT
GOLDFIELD, NEV., AND PAPERS RELATING THERETO.
FEBRUARY 3, 1908.— Read; referred to the Committee on Labor and ordered to he
printed.
The House of Represented
I transmit herewith a report by the Secretary of State with copies
of papers called for by the resolution of the House of Representatives
on January 22, 1908, reading as follows:
Resolved, That the President be requested to transmit to the House of Representa-
tives, if not incompatible with the interests of the public service, a copy of the report
made to him by the special commission, composed of Lawrence O. Murray, Herbert
Knox Smith, and Charles P. Neill, sent by him to Goldfield, Nevada, for the purpose
of investigating the labor troubles in that district and to make a report concerning the
same; and also such other papers relating thereto as in his judgment are material and
for the better information of the House.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
THE WHITE HOUSE,
February 3, 1908.
The PRESIDENT :
The undersigned, the Secretary of State, to whom was referred the
resolution of the House of Representatives of January 22, 1908,
requesting the President
to transmit to the House of Representatives, if not incompatible with the interests of
the public service, a copy of the report made to him by the special commission, com-
posed of Lawrence O. Murray, Herbert Knox Smith, and Charles P. Neill. sent by
him to Goldfield, Nev., for the purpose of investigating the labor troubles in that
45
.(*
.Ill
2 ROUBLES \i OOLDPIBLD, NKY.
1 1 1 1 » • : a 1 1 . 1 also such other papers relating
wad for the better information of tne House.
has tlu« honor to hiv Mow tlir IVoi.imt copies of the papers re-
quest
;'nll\ submitted.
ELIHU ROOT.
!>i I-\I:IM; \ i Ol STATE,
, J a nun r \j 31, 1908.
Lint of papers.
Sriuit<>r Nixon to the President. December 4, 1907.
;n>r Sj>;irk> t<> the President. I >eceinl>er 3-4, 1907.
Tin- IVe-idem to Governor Sparks, December 4, 1907.
rnor Sparks to the President. Decembers, 1907.
Mr. Jones to Mr. Loch, December 5, I'.'OT.
The I'i'Mdent to Governor Sparks, December 5, 1907.
Seiuitor Newhmds to the IV- .-idem. December 10, 1907.
The IV.-sid. nt to the Secretary of State, December 13, 1907.
The Secretary of State to Governor Sparks, December 14, 1907.
Governor Sparks to the President, December 15, 1907.
The President to Governor Sparks, December 17, 1907.
Messrs. Murray, Neill, and Smith to the President, December 17, 1907.
The same to the same, December 20, 1907.
The President to Governor Sparks, December 20, 1907.
Governor Sparks to the President, December 22, 1907.
The President to Governor Sparks, December 23, 1907.
Governor Sparks to the President, December 26, 1907.
The Secretary of State to Senator Newlands, December 27, 1907.
The Secretary of State to Mr. Loeb, December 28, 1907.
Mr. Loeb to the Secretary of State, December 28, 1907.
The President to Governor Sparks, December 28, 1907.
Governor Sparks to the President, December 29, 1907.
The Secretary of State to Senator Newlands, December 30, 1907.
Governor Sparks to the President, December 30, 1907.
Proclamation by Governor Sparks, December 30, 1907.
The President to Governor Sparks, January 4, 1908.
Report by Messrs. Murray, Neill, and Smith, December 30, 1907.
Governor Sparks to the President, January 17, 1908.
The President to Governor Sparks, January 17, 1908.
Governor Sparks to the President, January 30, 1908.
Senator Nixon to the President.
[Telegram.]
NEW YORK, December 4, 1907.
The PRESIDENT,
Washington, D. C.
I am informed Governor Sparks of Nevada has sent you impor-
tant telegram relation to critical situation in Nevada which needs
im mediate action. Hope it will be possible for you to grant his
request. Senator Newlands and Congressman Bartlett can give
further particulars and I will return to Washington this afternoon
if you desire personal interview. Address Waldorf.
GEO. T. NIXON.
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFTELD, NEV. 3
Governor Sparks to the President.
[Telegram.]
CARSON CITY, NEV., December 3-4, 1907.
Hon. THEODORE ROOSEVELT,
President oj the United States.
Mr. PRESIDENT: It now seems apparent that in the near future
Nevada may expect serious labor troubles in the district of Gold-
field and adjoining camps, which may result in violence and great
destruction of both life and property. The State has no enrolled
militia and if it had I doubt very much whether it would be effective
in maintaining law and order. I am this day in communication
with our Congressional representatives urging them to consult with
you concerning conditions above stated, and as we now see them,
it appears to me as governor of Nevada that it is my duty to ask if
you can consistently give us assurance that we may depend upon
immediate relief from the Presidio Barracks. I assure you Mr.
President I am aware of the fact and consider it an extraordinary
request to be made by any governor of the United States, but the
existence of the case seems to require it at this time. I am informed
that desperate men are now securing dynamite and arms to destroy
property and human life. The sheriff of the county seems to be
absolutely unable to cope with the situation. A committee of mine
owners, mine operators and mill operators from the Goldfield district
is now in consultation with me and I assure you, Mr. President, that
they are well satisfied that we need relief. We have no military gar-
rison in the State of Nevada and a small detachment of Federal
troops stationed at Goldfield would certainly relieve the situation.
Very respectfully,
JOHN SPARKS, Governor oj Nevada.
. R. C. STODDARD, Attorney General.
The President to Governor S paries.
[Telegram.]
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, December 4, 1907.
Hon. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor, Carson City, Nev.
Telegram received 3.05 o'clock this afternoon. The Federal
Government is prepared to send detachment of troops at any moment
subject of course to your making call under conditions prescribed
by the United States Constitution and Statutes as set forth in sec-
tions 52, 97, and 5299 of the Revised Statutes, these two sections
carrying out section 4 of Article IV of the Constitution. The call
of the governor must itself recite such a condition of affairs in accord-
ance with the terms of the laws above referred to will warrant the
President in acting. I have ordered not to exceed two companies to
be ready to move immediately if you make such request, as two
4 , K«M BUDE \ i OOLDFIELD, NK\ .
companie- \\onld. 1 suppose, amount to the smnll detachment of
which you speak.
TIIKODOUE ROOSEVELT.
mOf >>//•/•* to tin
[Telegriiin.]
CARSON, NEV., December 5, 1907.
1 lis Kxccllrix \ Tiii.(iitoi;i: KMOSKVF.I T, ,
J'n *'••/, nt of tin I'intnl St<it<x, Washington, D. CJjjj^
At (ioldtield, Ksmendda County, State of Nevada, there does now
ist domestic violence and unlawful combinations and conspiracies
which do MOW so obstruct and continue to so obstruct and hinder
the execution of the laws of the State of Nevada and now deprive
and continue to deprive the people of said section of the State of
the rights, privileges, immunities, and protection named in the Con-
stitution of the United States and of the State of Nevada and which
are secured by the laws for the protection of such rights, privileges
and immunities; and the constituted authorities of the State of
Nevada are now and continue to be unable to protect the people in
such rights, and the reason of such inability and the particulars
thereof are the following, to wit, unlawful dynamiting of property,
commission of felonies, threats against the lives and property of law-
abiding citizens, the unlawful possession of arms and ammunition
and the confiscation of dynamite with threats of the unlawful use of
the same by preconcerted action.
The lawfully constituted authorities of this State are unable to
apprehend and punish the perpetrators of said crimes and to pre-
vent the commission of other threatened crimes, and unless the relief
hereinafter requested is granted this State and the lives and property
of large number of its people will be irreparably affected and dam-
aged, contrary to the peace and dignity of the United States and of
the State of Nevada.
Therefore, pursuant to Article IV, section 4, of the Constitution of
the United States, and to sections 5397 and 5298 of the Revised
Statutes thereof, I, John Sparks, governor, do hereby respectfully
request that Your Excellency Theodore Roosevelt, President, do
immediately send to Goldfield, Esmeralda County, Nev., two com-
panies of the troops of the Army of the United States to suppress
unlawful disorder and violence, to protect life and property, to restore
peace, and to insure protection of law to the people of the State of
Nevada.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the
great seal of the State to be affixed at the capitol, Carson City, Nev.,
on this 5th day of December, A. D. 1907.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
Attest:
\V. G. DOUGLASS,
Secretary of State.
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 5
Mr. Jones to Mr. Loeb.
UNITED STATES SENATE,
Washington, D. C., December 5, 1907.
.DEAR MR. SECRETARY: I inclose herewith the copies of telegrams
passing between the President and the governor of Nevada which
you allowed me to have last evening.
Again thanking you for this courtesy, I am,
Yours, very truly, D. V. JONES.
Hon. WM. LOEB, Jr.,
Secretary to the President, Washington, D. C.
The President to Governor Sparks.
[Telegram.]
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, December 5, 1907.
Hon. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor, Carson, Nev.
I have received your request for troops made in accordance with
the Constitution and laws of the United States and will accordingly
immediately direct that a sufficient number of troops be sent to
Nevada. The number must be determined by the military authori-
ties.
THEODORE EOOSEVELT.
Senator Newlands to the President.
UNITED STATES SENATE,
Washington, D. C., December 10, 1907.
MY DEAR MR. PRESIDENT: I join with Senator Nixon and Repre-
sentative Bartlett, of Nevada, in the request that you select some
representative to go to Nevada and make a careful examination
into existing conditions with a view to the maintenance of peace
and good order, and that you retain the troops at Goldfield until
after you have received the report of such representative.
Very respectfully, yours, •
FRANCIS G. NEWLANDS.
The PRESIDENT,
The White House, Washington, D. C.
The President to the Secretary of State.
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, December 13, 1907.
The SECRETARY OF STATE :
I transmit herewith copies of correspondence between myself and
the governor of Nevada and the Senators and Member of the Lower
House from Nevada and the War Department. In accordance witq
the request of Governor Sparks, and for the reasons set forth therein'
i. \ : . M 1:1.1 - \ r t;oi,i>RKLi>, NKV.
,|>l>orted l>\ the request of the two Senators and
Meml-er of i In- Lower llou>e from Nevada, I have ordered troops to
bestMit ; ••that they will be available in the event that the
situation o.ntemplated 1>\ the Constitution aixl the laws and appre-
hended h\ the ;M»\enior of Nevada shall arise.
Will von pie ire from the \Var Department all papers bear-
uhjeei ( Plea>e c« >mmnnicate with the governor of
beps on the part of the government of that State
\\huh will he a neee^arv precedent to further action on the part of
the Federal ( !o\ eminent .
TII KODORE ROOSEVELT.
Tin Secretary of State to. Governor Sparks.
[Telegrata.]
DECEMBER 14, 1907.
Hon. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor, Carson City, Nev.
The President has transmitted to the Department of State the
correspondence between the governor of Nevada and the President
of the Tinted States relating to the use of national troops in relation
to certain disturbances existing or anticipated at Goldfield, in the
be of Nevada. The President has instructed me to advise you
oilieially that he has caused several companies of the Regular Army
to proceed to the locality in which such disturbances' exist or are
anticipated, to the end that they may be available in case the occa-
sion contemplated by the Constitution and the laws of the United
States for their interposition shall arise.
The calls upon the President on the part of the government of
Nevada for the interposition of troops do not at present satisfy the
requirements of the Constitution and the laws so as to justify orders
that the military force now at Goldfield shall take any affirmative
action. If such action should be desired under the Constitution
and section 5297 of the Revised Statutes to suppress an insurrection
a call must be made by the legislature of trie State unless circum-
stances are such that the legislature can not be convened, and no
statement or intimation has been made that the legislature of Ne-
vada can not be convened. Action under section 5298 of the Revised
Statutes relates only to the enforcement of the laws of the United
States. Action under section 5299 of the Revised Statutes is to be
taken not upon the call of the government of a State, but upon the
judgment or the President of the United States that some portion
or class of the people of a State are denied the equal protection of
the laws to which they are entitled under the Constitution of the
United States. Action under this section requires the production
of evidence of specific facts sufficient to sustain a judgment by the
President that the condition described in the statute exists.
A mere statement of domestic disturbance would not seem to be
sufficient.
The facts thus far stated in the telegraphic communications from
the governor of Nevada, high and unimpeachable as is the source, do
not seem sufficient to sustain a judgment that the condition described
in section 5299 exists.
LABOR TROUBLES AT C4OLDFIELD, NEV. 7
It therefore appears that the communications thus far received
from the government of Nevada do not constitute or furnish the basis
for authority on the part of the President to direct the use of the
armed forces of the United States in the maintenance of public order
at Goldfield.
I respectfully suggest that if in your judgment such interposition is
needed you furnish further evidence of facts justifying action by the
President under section 5298 or 5299, or cause the legislature of
Nevada to be convened and to make the necessary call in accordance
with the Constitution and section 5297 of the Revised Statutes.
ELIHU ROOT.
Governor Sparks to the President.
[Telegram.]
GOLDFIELD, NEV., December 15, 1907.
(Received December 16 — 9.20 a. m.)
The PRESIDENT, Washington, D. C.
Fourteenth from Secretary of State. Submit that conditions in
Goldfield necessitates presence but does not warrant active interven-
tion of United States troops. However, am prepared to submit
affidavits of more than one hundred representative citizens that they
have been deprived of their rights as citizens of the United S ^ ates ami
of State of Nevada. Arrival of troops in Goldfield undoubtedly pre-
vented rioting and other disorder, as is shown by statements of same
people, including sheriff. Although active intervention of United
States troops not now necessary, withdrawal at present would unques-
tionably precipitate disorder which local and State authorities would
be unable to control. In the event of rioting and other disorder
justifying military intervention will make requisition in accordance
with statutes.
Desire to express appreciation of your prompt action in sending
United States-troops here which relieved a most critical condition ancl
hope that you can retain troops here until present troubles are ad-
justed Expect to remain as long as necessary.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
The President to Governor S paries.
[Telegram.]
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, December 17, 1907.
Hon. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor of Nevada, Goldfield, Nev.
I sent the troops at- your request because from the tenor of your
telegrams and from the representations made me by the two Sena-
tors from Nevada and the Member of the Lower House of Congress
from Nevada it appeared that an insurrection was imminent against
which the State authorities would be powerless. The troops have
now been in Goldfield ten days and no insurrection has occurred, and
seemingly no circumstances exist to justify your now calling on me
for action by the troops under the provision of the Constitution.
The troops were sent to Goldfield to be ready to meet a grave em or-
8 LABOB TBO1 BLBS \ r BOLDFIELD, NKV.
j \\lii.-li seemed liUelx at <mce to ari-e and to provide a substi-
» for the exercise l>y the State of its police function. I do not
at liU-it\ to leave tliriii indefinitely under such circumstances
that i hex \\ ill in ell'ect he performing on the part of the United States
tho-e ordinary duties of inaint aining public order in the State of
uhich K-t upon the State government. As the legislature
Nevada h;i- not hrcn convened, 1 am hound to assume that the
po\\. d\ ve-teil in the peace officers of the State are adequate,
and that if they choose to do 90 they can maintain order themselves.
I'ndcr these » 'iivum-taiices, unless there be forthwith further cause
MI to jiMif\ keeping the troops at (Joldfield, I sliall direct that
they return to their former -tation.
THEODORE KOOSEVELT.
.I//.V.NTN. Murray, AY/7/, and Smith, to the President.
[Telegram.]
GOLDFIELD, NEV., December 17, 1907.
The PKKSIDKNT or IIIK UNITED STATES,
Washington, D. 0.
Have con 'erred with Funston and governor has shown us all tele-
grams from Washington, including that of to-day.
< Miditions here complex and probably critical. Suggest that no
action for withdrawal of troops be taken for forty-eight hours. Will
then make a report by telegraph.
MURRAY, NEILL, and SMITH.
Murray, Neill. and Smith to the President.
[Te'egram.]
GOLDFIELD, NEV., December 20, 1907.
The PRESIDENT, Washington, D. C.
We do find no warrant for statement that there has been or is a
complete collapse of civil authority here. All the machinery of civil
government has been in operation, but has been ineffective in dealing
with certain forms of crime because local sentiment has nullified its
action. On question of deportation, the evidence only sustains
at the very maximum probably 25 cases in the last two years.
Last March a very acute labor dispute existed, lasting some weeks, in
which the city was practically an armed camp. Since then the best
evidence we have indicates the number with arms ordinarily is no
larger than commonly found in mining camps. Representatives of
trades in American Federation Labor here all agree that practically
no members of their crafts have felt any occasion to carry arms since
acute condition of last March'. Our investigation so far completely
has failed to sustain the general and sweeping allegations in the
governor calling for troops, and the impression as to conditions here
given in that call is misleading and without warrant. We do find no
evidence that any condition then existed not easily controlled by the
local authorities. Neither immediately preceding nor since the
arrival of troops has there been any particular disorder, but imme-
diately after arrival of troops mine owners announced reduction of
wages from $5 to $4, and positively refused employment to all men
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 9
who do not agree to renounce in writing the* local union, although a
law of Nevada prohibits such requirement. Large majority of our
witnesses assert very earnestly that if troops should be withdrawn
now and owners insist upon above requirements there will result
serious violence directed against life and property. Rifles in con-
siderable numbers brought in by both sides sometime ago are still
believed to be in their possession. Many say they will leave as soon
as possible if troops should be withdrawn, and we believe that many
of them are sincere in these assertions. The sheriff, two out of three
of the county commissioners, two members of the legislature, and the
district attorney, representing nearly all civil authority of the county,
have been before us to-night in long conference.
So far as can be learned no county officer was consulted by gov-
ernor previous to calling for troops. All still resent his action and
consider it was unnecessary. They do not believe there has been
any need for troops here up to date, but they all further agree and
have given us signed statement to the effect that the new element
brought into situation since arrival of troops create a dangerous con-
dition, and they recommend troops be left here until present difficul-
ties are adjusted. Although desiring the continuance of troops here,
and notwithstanding they have given us a signed statement to that
effect, they evade the assumption of any responsibility and specific-
ally refuse to say that local authorities would be unable to maintain
law and order if should be withdrawn. These men are trying to
secure the benefit of Federal assistance to more easily maintain the
public order for which they are responsible and at the same time
place the responsibility on the President. The governor states to us
in writing that he will not convene the legislature to consider call for
troops nor will he take the necessary steps to form a State military,
as is legally provided for, and that if the (troops) should be with-
drawn he will do substantially nothing. In other words, the State
authorities propose to do nothing, but wholly rely on the Federal
authorities. There has been substantial agreement by everybody
who appeared before us that the number of violent or (criminal) men
in the organization here is certainly less than 200. With a popula-
tion of about 14,000 people there would seem to be no good reason
why the civil authorities here can not take care of their own city.
(If) should be withdrawn we strongly recommend that at least ten
days' notice be given of such decision in order to give the sheriff
time to prepare fully. We expect our work will be completed Decem-
ber 21 and we will leave here that day.
MURRAY, NEILL, SMITH.
The President to Governor Sparks.
[Telegram.]
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, December 20, 1907.
Hon. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor of Nevada, Goldfield, Nev.:
I have received no answer from you to my telegram of December
17, in which I said that unless there was forthwith further cause
shown to justify keeping the troops at Goldfield I should direct their
ID LABOB TK<>! IU.KS AT GOLDFIELD, NKV.
return to their former stations. I am informed by the three repre-
sentatives of the Department of Commerce and Labor who are in
Goldiield hy my order that you have stated to them in writing that
von \vill not eon vein- the legislature to consider call for troops nor
take the neeessarv Btepa t<> form a State military force. Their report
fnrtlier Mktisfiefi me that there is no disturbance threatened which the
govern ment of Nevada ought not to be able to control if it starts to
\\ ork \\ ith a serious purpose to do so, but that no effort is being made
by the government of Nevada to take the steps necessary in the
matter. 1 stand ready to see that the National Government does
its full constitutional duty in the matter of preserving order, but
this readme— on the part of the National Government does not excuse
the State government for failure to perform its full duty in the
first place. Federal aid should not be sought for by the State as a
method of relieving itself from the performance of this duty, and the
State should not be permitted to substitute the Government of the
United States for the government of the State in the ordinary duties
of maintaining order within the State. For the reasons given in this
and my former telegram I have accordingly directed the troops to
return to their former stations on Monday, December 30, next.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
Governor Sparks to the President.
[Telegram.
RENO, NEV., December 22, 1907.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT,
President oj the United States, Washington, D. C.:
I am preparing a letter to give you more information about the
situation at Goldneld. The presence of the troops have prevented
destruction of life and property. If you suggest I would like to con-
sult with you in person at Washington, as I believe I could be of more
service to our State by explaining the situation in person than by
writing. We are thankful to you for the presence of the troops let
their stay be long or short.
J. SPARKS. Governor.
The President to Governor Sparks.
[Telegram.] ;
THE WHITE HOUSE,
December 23, 1907.
Hon. J. SPARKS,
Governor of Nevada, Reno, Nev.:
I will await your letter and wire you after its receipt whether in my
judgment it would serve a useful purpose for you to come to Washing-
ton.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 11
Governor Sparks to the President.
[Telegram.]
CARSON, NEV., December 26, 1907.
The PRESIDENT, Washington:
As chief magistrate of the State of Nevada, I have been of the opin-
ion for the past year that a condition bordering on domestic violence
and insurrection has existed in the Goldfield mining district. There
has been an almost constant state of war between the miners' union
and the mine owners, who employ the members of the union. During
the year 1907 practically one-fourth of the time was occupied in actual
strikes, and several months in agitations about other strikes. With-
out considering the merit of any of the controversies, it is only neces-
sary to state that the entire district became divided into two hostile
camps — on the one hand the miners with their adherents and sym-
pathizers, and on the other hand the mine owners with their adherents
and sympathizers. The union alone claimed a membership of 3,000,
and fully one-half of the membership were constantly armed. Arms
and ammunition were purchased and kept by the union as a body.
On the other hand the mine owners had in their employ a large num-
ber of watchmen and guards who were constantly armed and on duty.
In addition to these forces were an unusually large number of the crimi-
nal element attracted to the new and booming mining camp. Under
such conditions the civil authorities were practically powerless.
They could attend to the ordinary petty offenders from day to day.
but at the first conflict between the real armies of labor and capital
they would have been swept away.
The repeated strikes and continued threats of other strikes irritated
the mine owners more and more. It was clear to me therefore that
when the last strike was called in the midst of the financial crisis
spreading over the country, and with a long winter facing the 20,000
people situated upon the desert, hundreds of miles from any centers
of population, that it was time to recognize the actual condition of
affairs and to act accordingly. A state of domestic violence and
insurrection arises, in my judgment, when armed bodies are in
existence with sufficient power to overcome the civil authorities,
and continual threats were made of the destruction of life and
property. This condition has existed in the Goldfield mining districts
the past year and exists there now. It calls for the presence of the
troops to keep the peace. As this condition has been of slow growth
it will take time to remove it. In my judgment, it is necessary that
troops be kept at Goldfield an indefinite period of time. They should
remain there until both sides are shown that the district is not to
remain an armed camp and a scene of continual warefare. The
communist and anarchist must seek new fields; the laboring
man be convinced that arbitration and peaceful methods are more
certain and lasting methods of improving his condition than by
dynamite and the shotgun. This can only come about with time,
and for the present and sometime in the future the strong arm of
the military must be in evidence to convince all that no other method
will be tolerated. It is known as a matter of legislative history
that I recommended a measure at the last session having for its
object the establishment of a State constabulary along the lines of
the Texas Rangers, which was rejected by that body, the members
12 LABOB PKO! BLB8 AT GOLDFIELD, NEV.
thereof Mill being in olliee. The assembly of that session, with the
\oie of all l»ut one, passed a resolution denouncing the injustice
.lone Mo\er. Ha\ \\ood, and IVttibone, l>y the denial of a speedy
trial. The resolution, however, was tabled by the senate. It is a
matter of only a lew \\ecks since I called for the opinions of different
repn-ent a ti\ev and individual citi/ens of the State generally as to
the ad\ i>al>ility of con veiling a special session to act upon a then
incy, \\hieh, however, did not relate to the present
situation. The expressions received at that time indicated that
!'*> per cent of the people wrere opposed to such an extra session,
raphical reasons and on account of the customary ten days'
notice to memheis it \\ould he imj)ossible to convene and organize
a special session of the legislature in less than three weeks, presuming
on the most expeditious action on the part of the members. For
the-e reasons I deem it impossible to convene the legislature in
i "ii to meet the present emergency and still think it
highly inadvisable.
This telegram was in course of preparation on the 7th instant,
in reply to your telegram of that date, but I was taken ill and have
only just returned to my office. I am now sending it in lieu of a
letter which I wired you was in course of preparation. The delay
was not intentional on my part and no discourtesy meant thereby.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
The Secretary of State to Senator Newlands.
DECEMBER 27, 1907.
DEAR SENATOR NEWLANDS: I inclose a copy of Governor Sparks'
telegram of yesterday to the President regarding the conditions
existing in the Goldfield mining district and the situation in Nevada
generally.
Faithfully, yours, . ELIHU ROOT.
Hon. FRANCIS G. NEWLANDS,
United States Senate.
(Inclosure as above.)
The Secretary of State to Mr. Lqeb.
DECEMBER 27, 1907.
DEAR MR. LOEB: I inclose a draft of a telegram4 which has been
agreed upon in conference this morning between Secretary Taft,
General Oliver, vourself, and myself as a suitable answer for the
President to make to the telegram of December 26 from the gov-
ernor of Nevada.
Yours, very truly, ELIHU ROOT.
WILLIAM LOEB, Jr.,
Secretary to the President, The White House.
(Inclosure asjabove.)
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD,- NEV. 13
Mr. Loeb to the Secretary of State.
DECEMBER 28, 1907.
MY DEAR MR. SECRETARY: I send you herewith two copies of
the President's telegram of to-day to Governor Sparks which con-
tains certain modifications of the draft approved by Secretary Taft
and you.
The President has wired me to notify Messrs. Murray, Smith, and
Neill to meet him at the White House at 9 o'clock Monday evening,
and he requests me to ask you if you can come to the White House
at the same time. Will you let me know as to this?
Very truly, yours,
WM. LOEB, Jr.,
Secretary to the President.
Hon. ELIHU ROOT,
Secretary of State.
(Inclosures.)
The President to Governor Sparks.
[Telegram.]
THE WHITE HOUSE, December 28, 1907.
Hon. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor, Carson City, Nev.
Your telegram December 26 is received. It in effect, declares that
you have failed to call the legislature together because, in your judg-
ment, the legislature would not call upon the Government of the
United States for the use of troops, although in your opinion it ought
to do so. The Constitution of the United States imposes, not upon
you, but upon the legislature, if it can be convened, the duty of calling
upon the Government of the United States to protect the State of
Nevada against domestic violence. You now request me to use
the armed forces of the United States in violation of the Constitu-
tion because in your judgment the legislature would fail to perform
its duty under the Constitution. The State government certainly
does not appear to have made any serious effort to do its duty by
the effective enforcement of its police functions. I repeat again
what I have already said to you several times, that under the circum-
stances now existing in the State of Nevada as made known to me,
an application from the legislature of the State is an essential condi-
tion to the indefinite continuance of the troops at Goldfield. Cir-
cumstances may change, and if they do I will take whatever action the
needs of the situation require so far as my constitutional powers
permit. But the first need is that the State authorities should do
their duty, and the first step toward this is the assembling of the
legislature. It is apparent from your telegram that the legislature
of Nevada can readily be convened. You have fixed the period of
three weeks as the time necessary to convene and organize a special
session. If within five days from the receipt of this telegram you
shall have issued the necessary notice to convene the legislature of
Nevada, I shall continue the station of the troops at Goldfield during
such period of three weeks. If within the term of five days such
notice has not been issued, the troops will be immediately returned
to their former stations.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
14 LABOR TBOUBUE8 AT uoLDFIELD, NKV.
Governor Sparks to the President.
(Telegram.]
RENO, NEV., December 29, 1907.
Hon. Tin <>IM>I;I: KoosEVELT,
President of ih e Un lt«l St<itt 0 .
I am no\\ pivpnrini: proclamation for extra session of Nevada
loirislatmv. \Vill forward same to you when complete. Many
thanks for your messi
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
The Secretary of State to Senator Newlands.
DEPARTMENT or STATE,
Washington, December 30, 1907.
MY DEAR SENATOR: I sent you a copy of the President's dis-
patch to the governor of Nevada of this date, and also a copy of my
dispatch of November 14.
Faithfully, yours,
ELIHU ROOT.
Hon. F. G. NEWLANDS,
United States Senate.
(Inclosures as above.)
Governor Sparks to the President.
[Telegram.]
CARSON, NEV., December 30, 1907.
The PRESIDENT, Washington.
Copy of proclamation calling special session of the legislature|to
convene January 14 mailed you to-day. Will rush matters to ad-
justment as rapidly as possible.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
Proclamation by Governor of Nevada.
STATE OF NEVADA — PROCLAMATION BY THE GOVERNOR.
To the honorable the members of the Twenty-third Session of the Legisla-
ture of the State of Nevada.
GENTLEMEN: The constitution of this State, Article V, Section
IX, provides that "the Governor may, on extraordinary occasions,
convene the legislature by proclamation, and shall state to both
houses, when organized, the purpose for which they have been con-
vened, and the legislature shall transact no legislative business ex-
cept that for which they were specially convened, or such other
legislative business as the governor may call to the attention of the
legislature while in session. "
Believing that an extraordinary occasion now exists and one which
the legislature, being a coordinate branch of the State government, is
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 15
best prepared to solve, it becomes my duty, by proclamation, to
convene the legislature at Carson City, Nev., on the 14th day of
January, A. D. 1908.
This request has been made by many citizens, the object being
to adjust by legislation, if possible, the controversy existing between
the miners and mine owners at Goldfield, this State. Such legislation
should be general in character and impartially applicable for the
restoration and preservation of law and order.
Under the constitution, as above cited, the governor shall state to
both houses, when organized, the purpose for which they have been
convened. When that time arrives, I will endeavor to outline to
you the necessary legislation required, and will give hearty coopera-
tion in the attempt to secure to every citizen of Nevada their just
rights freely to be exercised under the law.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the
great seal of State to be affixed. Done at Carson City, State of Nevada,
this 30th day of December, A. D. 1907.
[SEAL.] JOHN W. SPARKS, Governor.
Attest :
W. G. DOUGLASS, Secretary of State.
TJie President to Governor Sparks.
WASHINGTON, January 4: 1908.
SIR: I have received the copy of your proclamation, dated Decem-
ber 30, 1907, summoning the legislature. As I have notified you, the
troops will stay for three weeks from the date of this call, so that the
legislature can meet and opportunity be given the State authorities to
take efficient action for the preservation of the public peace in the ex-
ercise of the police powers of the State. I call your special attention
to the telegram sent to you on December 14 by the Secretary of State.
This sets* out what must be shown as a matter of actual fact to exist in
order to warrant the President in acting on the request of the State
authorities. The action must be either to suppress an insurrection
which the State authorities are unable to suppress, or to secure to some
portion or class of the people of the State the equal protection of the
laws to which they are entitled under the Constitution of the United
States, and which is denied them. Action under this or any other
section requires the production of evidence sufficient to sustain a judg-
ment by the President that the condition described in the statute exists.
A mere statement of domestic disturbance, still less a mere statement
of apprehension of domestic disturbance, is not sufficient, even thpugh
it comes from as high and unimpeachable a source as the governor of
a State. Such communication from the governor or from the legisla-
ture warrants the President in taking immediate steps to put himself in
readiness to act, in- view of the probability of conditions arising which
will require his action. I accordingly sent the troops to Nevada on your
request, and I have now directed that they be kept there pending the
assembling of the legislature. Meanwhile, I sent out Assistant Secre-
tary of Commerce and Labor Lawrence O. Murray, Commissioner of
Corporations Herbert Knox Smith, and Commissioner of Labor
Charles P. Neill to investigate and report to me the actual condition of
It*. I.AKoR TR<>: BLK8 AT (iOLDFIELD, NKV.
alV:mx in (mldliold. 1 have just received n report from these three
klemen, which Beta forth in the most emphatic hmgtuigc their be-
lief, after a careful investigation on the ground, that there was no
\\airant \\hatevei- for railing up°n the President for troops, and that
the trnopx ,h.>'.ild n.»i he kept indefinitely at (ioldfiold. The report
further Mates that there WB& no insurrection against the power of the
i h» time (lie troops were called for, that nobody supposed that
thei 'ch an in^ irrection, and that none of the conditions de-
• «M| in section .YJ^T-.Y-MM) of the Revised Statutes as warranting
interference by the 1'Vderal (Jovernment (fisted, and that the effort
:nid is plainlv an effort by the State of Nevada to secure the pe -
formanve by the Tinted States of the ordinary police duties which
id. as a matter of course, be performed by Nevada herself. The
report further sa;
Tlu-iv is absolutely no question that if the State of Nevada and the county of Esme-
ralda exeivised the powers ni their disposal they can maintain satisfactory order in
(lold field: that so far those authorities have done nothing, but are relying upon Fed-
eral aid, and their attitude now is expressly that of refusing to do anything and desir-
ing to throw their own burdens upon the Federal Government for the maintenance of
those elementary conditions of order for which they, and they only, are responsible.
'The signers of the report express their conviction that the troops
should remain in Nevada until the assembling of the legislature, so as
to preserve the status quo in order that the legislature may deal with
the situation as it exists; but that shortly thereafter the troops
should be removed.
I agree with the recommendations of this report, of which I inclose
a copy, and shall act accordingly. Unless it can be shown that the
statements of the report are not in accordance with the facts, it will
be incumbent upon the legislature of Nevada, when it convenes,
itself to provide for enforcing the laws of the State. The State of
Nevada must itself make a resolute effort in good faith to perform
the police duties incident to the existence of a State.
Sincerely, yours,
THEODORE ROOSEVELT,
Hon. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor of Nevada, Carson City, Nev.
Report of Messrs. Murray, Neill, and Smith to the President.
DECEMBER 30, 1907.
SIR: On December 11, 1907, you issued to us the following instruc-
tions:
You are hereby directed to proceed immediately to Goldfield, Nev., and make an
investigation at that place into the conditions existing there at this time, and you will,
on your return to \Vashington, submit a report to me personally.
All Federal officials, both civil and military, are hereby directed to render you any
assistance that you may need and to give you access to any information, papers, or
documents that they may have bearing on the situation.
In accordance therewith we left Washington on the afternoon of
December 11, arriving at Goldfield, Nev., in the evening of the 15th,
and proceeded at once to make the investigation directed. We gave
our entire time to this object, continuing hearings and interviews every
day and usually until midnight, with the help of one, and later two,
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 17
stenographers, until the morning of December 21, when we left Gold-
field and returned to Washington.
Immediately upon our arrival in Goldfield we conferred with Gen-
eral Funston, who had been investigating the situation there for
several days previous to .our arrival, and who remained for some days
and assisted us in every way in our work. We next discussed the
situation fully with the governor of the State, who was at Goldfield,
and then met a committee from the miners' union and the executive
committee of the Goldfield Mine Operators' Association. We thus
obtained at the outset a comprehensive preliminary survey of the
general situation.
The Mine Operators' Association, through their counsel, then pre-
sented to us a general statement of their side of the case, and, as they
were the persons primarily desiring the coming and the retention of
the troops, we informed them that we would regard this written
statement as analogous to the plaintiff's complaint in a court action,
and that we would at once call upon them to make out their case, and
lay upon them the responsibility of producing as rapidly as possible
the evidence therein, reserving to ourselves, of course, the right to
hear thereafter evidence on the other side. They agreed to this pro-
cedure, which seemed to be the most practical way of handling the
matter, and for several days brought before us numerous witnesses,
documents, and other evidence intended to substantiate the allega-
tions of their co-called complaint and demonstrate the need for
Federal troops. Their counsel was informed that our primary
object was to secure information bearing on the question as to what
justification existed for the call for Federal troops and for their con-
tinuance at Goldfield, and, after several days of hearings, on Decem-
ber 20 he assured us that he had produced substantially the best
evidence on his side of the case, that anything more he might bring
would be simply cumulative, and, in substance, that he rested his
case on what he had presented.
Inasmuch as we were by this time satisfied that the mine operators
had not in any particular established a case justifying either the
bringing or the retention of the troops, w.e did not deem it necessary
to take any extensive evidence on the other side, and the hearing was
substantially closed with a brief formal interview with the said
committee from the miners' union.
THE QUESTION BEFORE THE COMMISSION.
The Federal troops had been sent to Goldfield on the request of the
governor of Nevada, da£ed December 5, 1907, and we made it there-
fore the primary object of our work to ascertain, first, whether the
state of facts existing in Goldfield prior to1 and at the arrival of the
troops corresponded with the allegations of said request of the gov-
ernor of Nevada, and gave sufficient ground for the sending of the
troops, and, second, whether the conditions existing at Goldfield
upon the arrival of the troops and up to and during the time of pur
stay there afforded a sufficient basis for their retention at that point,
and, .if so, for what period they should be retained.
Incidentally, we necessarily informed ourselves briefly as to the
merits of the industrial controversy there existing, but only so far as
H. Doc. 607, 60-1 2
18 LAltni: FBOUBLB8 AT (H)LDFIELD, NEV.
(he same had >omr hearing on (lie question of law and order and the
juvsriuv of the Federal troops. Any complete or satisfactory exami-
nation int" the general merits of the industrial dispute would have
covered ma - and would have been impossible for us to make,
having a> \\ e did no nouer to administer oaths or compel the attend-
ance of \\itnesses or the production of evidence.
Inasmuch as the troops are still in Goldlield and the question of
their retention there is an important issue, we deem it proper to sub-
mit to you herewith a report bearing on this question, and we there-
fore direct our findings in this report to a consideration of those facts
which are relevant to this question in view of the requirements of
section -l of Article IV of the Constitution, sections 5297, 5298, and
5299 of (he Revised Statutes, .and the act of June 18, 1878, and to a
consideration of the question as to what facts existed at Goldfield
before and since the arrival of the troops to constitute the grounds of
action described by the said article of the Constitution and the said
statutory sections.
[Section 5298, Revised btatutes.]
INSURRECTION AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
Whenever, by reason of unlawful obstructions, combinations, or assemblages of per-
sons, or rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States, it shall
become impracticable, in the judgment of the President, to enforce, by the ordinary
course of judicial proceedings, the laws of the United States within any State or Terri-
tory, it shall be lawful for the President to call forth the militia of any or all the States,
and to employ such parts of the land and naval forces of the United States as he may
deem necessary to enforce the faithful execution of the laws of the United States, or
to suppress such rebellion, in whatever State or Territory thereof the laws of the United
Suites may be forcibly opposed, or the execution thereof forcibly obstructed.
[Section 5299, Revised Statutes.]
POWER TO SUPPRESS INSURRECTION IN VIOLATION OF CIVIL RIGHTS.
Whenever insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combinations, or conspiracies
in any State so obstructs or hinders the execution of the laws thereof, and of the United
States, as to deprive any portion or class of the people of such State of any of the rights,
privileges, or immunities, or protection, named in the Constitution and secured by
the laws for the protection of such rights, privileges, or immunities, and the constituted
authorities of such State are unable to protect, or, from any cause, fail in or refuse pro-
tection of the people in such rights, such facts shall be deemed a denial by such State
of the equal protection of the laws to which they are entitled under the Constitution
of the United States; and in all such cases, or whenever any such insurrection, vio-
lence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy, opposes or obstructs the laws of the United
States, or the due execution thereof, or impedes or obstructs the due course of justice
under the same, it shall be lawful for the President, and it shall be his duty, to take
such measures, by the employment of the militia or the land and naval forces of the
United States, or of either, or by other means, as he may deem necessary, for the sup-
pression of such insurrection, domestic violence, or combinations.
Revised Statute 5298 deals only with insurrections against the
Government of the United States; Revised Statute 5299 deals only
with violation of rights, privileges, immunities, or protection secured
by the Constitution of the United States. These two sections may
be therefore dismissed from consideration with the simple statement
that there is absolutely no evidence showing the existence of any in-
surrection against the Government of the United States or the viola-
tion of any Federal rights.
Section 4, Article IV, of the Constitution provides as follows:
_ The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a republican form of
Government, shall protect each of them against invasion; and on application of the
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 19
legislature, or of the executive (when the legislature can not be convened) against
domestic violence.
Section 5297, Revised Statutes, based on the above constitutional
provision, is as follows:
In case of an insurrection in any State against the government thereof, it shall be
lawful for the President, on application of tlje legislature of such State, or of the execu-
tive, when the legislature can not be convened, to call forth such number of the militia
of any other State or States, which may be applied for, as he deems sufficient to sup-
press such insurrection; or, on like application, to employ, for the same purposes, such
part of the land or naval forces of the United States as he deems necessary.
Act June 18, 1878, chapter 262, section 15:
From and after the passage of this act it shall not be lawful to employ any part of
the Army of the United States, as a posse comitatus, or otherwise, for the purpose of
executing the laws", except in such cases and under such circumstances as such em-
ployment of said force may be expressly authorized by the Constitution or by act of
Congress; and no money appropriated by this act shall be used to pay any of the ex-
penses incurred in the employment of any troops in violation of this section; and any
person willfully violating the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a
misdemeanor and on conviction thereof shall be punished by fine not exceeding ten
thousand dollars or imprisonment not exceeding two years or by both such fine and
imprisonment.
The said constitutional section and the said statute based thereon,
together with said act of June 18, 1878, being clearly the only pro-
visions of law possibly applicable in the premises, we took them as a
guide for our investigation into the facts existing at Goldfield. It is
true that the call of the governor of Nevada of December 5 was appar-
ently based upon and followed largely the wording of section 5299,
probably under a misapprehension of the force of that section. The
attorney-general of the State informed us that he had been consulted
in the preparation of the call and that it had been based upon section
5299. The governor stated in that call, however, that certain facts
existed, which facts, if sufficiently verified, and if broad enough in
their scope and important enough in their bearings, might conceivably
furnish sufficient grounds for Federal action under section 5297,
Revised Statutes, and although, as above set forth, it was obvious that
the governor in framing the said request had before him especially
section 5299, which was wholly inapplicable, nevertheless it was of
course necessary to look rather at the substance than at the form of
the request and to ascertain whether the facts so stated formed a basis
of action under section 5297, Revised Statutes. The request of the
governor was as follows :
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
State of Nevada, ss.
To His Excellency Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States, from Hon. John
Sparks, Governor of the State of Nevada:
At Goldfield, Esmeralda County, State of Nevada, there does now exist domestic
violence and unlawful combination and conspiracies, which do now so obstruct, and
continue to obstruct and hinder, the execution of the laws of the State of Nevada, and
now deprive, and continue to deprive, the poeple of said section of the State of the
rights, privileges, immunities, and protection named in the Constitution of the United
States, and of the State of Nevada, and which are secured by the laws for the protection
of such rights, privileges, and immunities; and the constituted authorities of the State
of Nevada are now, and continue to be, unable to protect the people in such rights; and
the reason of such inability and the particulars thereof are the following, to wit:
Unlawful dynamiting of property; commission of felonies; threats against the lives
and property of law-abiding citizens; the unlawful possession of arms and ammunition
and the confiscation of dynamite, with threats of the unlawful use of the same by pre-
concerted action.
20 LACOK TKorm.Ks \1 <;<>U>HKLD, NEV.
The la\\ fully «»,iist it u( r.lautlutritiiaof this State are unable to apprehend and punish
ti,,. ; i.l < Times, and to prevent the commission of other threatened
dim. s. ami unless the relief hereinafter requested is granted, this State, and the lives
and prop. MY »i' lar-je miinher of its people, \yill be irreparably affected and damaged,
rontrarv to the p. aee and diirnity of the United States and of the State of Nevada;
Theivfotv. pursuant to article -i. section 4, of the Constitution of the United States,
:u,d ; >297 and .'>-'.»!' of the Revised Statutes thereof, I, John Sparks, governor,
d.> herel.y i. sp.'d fully reqn. st that Your Excellency Theodore Roosevelt, President,
do Immediately Bend to <!oldiirld, Ksmeralda County, Nevada, two companies of the
troops oi' the Army of tin- I'nitc-d States, to suppress unlawful disorder and violence, to
protect life ami prop. -rty, to restore peace, and to insure protection of law to the people
ni tin- staii- of Nevada.
In \vitiu ss \vlu r.-of, 1 have hereiintoset my hand and caused the great seal of the State
to 1.. -ailtxed. at the Capitol, Carson City, Nevada, on this fifth day of December, A. D.,
1907.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
(Great Seal of State.)
Wliile the first part contains a number of allegations, they are gen-
eral and formal in nature. The specific statements of fact con-
tains! in the call appear in the second paragraph.
FACTS AS TO SITUATION IN GOLDFIELD.
Witli these legal considerations in view, our findings are as follows:
There has existed at Goldfield, w^hich is exclusively a mining town
of an estimated population of between 15,000 and 20,000 in South
Nevada, for over a year past, and especially since the spring of 1907,
a disturbed industrial situation, due to frequently recurring labor diffi-
culties between the mine operators on the one hand and the miners
on the other. The two sides were represented almost completely by
the Gojdfield Mine Operators' Association, including almost air the
owners, operators, or lessees of mines on the one hand, and by the
local union of the Western Federation of Miners on the other, a union
comprising substantially all the miners in Goldfield. This union,
known as Goldfield Miners' Union No. 220, is a branch of the general
organization known as the Western Federation of Miners. It has
carried on its rolls a membership estimated at above three thousand
men, which number, however, included members of crafts in Goldfield
others than workers in and about mines. Figures furnished us by the
mine operators showed that about 1,900 mine workers went on strike
on November 27, 1907. Although a number of strikes and minor
difficulties had occurred during 1907, the only acute situation arising
prior to the call for troops existed in the spring of 1907. This con-
troversy involved not only a dispute between the mine owners and
the miners at Goldfield but also between members of the miners7
union and the members of other crafts in Goldfield affiliated with the
American Federation of Labor. The Goldfield miners' union was
also affiliated with the organization known as The Industrial Workers
of the World, and an effort was made to force members of other crafts
not affiliated with this organization to join its ranks. Not only the
Mine Owners' Association and members of the miners' union went
armed, but members of crafts not affiliated with The Industrial
Workers of the World felt it necessary to carry arms to protect them-
selves while at their work. The condition of Goldfield at that time
was that of an armed camp, and for a time a serious clash seemed
imminent. The controversy resulted in a murder of a restaurant
keeper and aroused such opposition against The Industrial Workers
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 21
of the World that a ban was practically put upon them and the organi-
zation under that name was forced to abandon Goldfield. This acute
situation disappeared before the end of the spring of 1907.
A succession of miners' strikes, however, had taken place through-
out 1907, some of them with apparently little justification, and al-
though the operators had yielded to nearly all the demands of the
union, it seemed impossible to secure any settled industrial condi-
tions. The mine operators insist that the socialistic doctrine adopted
and preached by the Western Federation of Miners practically justified
the stealing of ore by^ the miner. Some of the mines at Goldfield
are among the richest in the world. They maintain, and of this there
is little doubt, that this phenomenally rich ore is daily stolen to the
amount of many hundreds of dollars by some of the miners, and that
the representatives of the union have resisted and attempted to nul-
lify reasonable attempts on the part of the mine owners to protect
themselves against* these thefts by "change rooms," or otherwise.
The industrial situation was further aggravated by the fact that
the Goldfield union would not enter into any contract governing
working conditions for any specified length of time, and the mine
operators, therefore, could have no assurance at any time that any
settlement of a dispute was more than a temporary makeshift, nor
could they secure any assurance of stable industrial conditions for
any fixed length of time.
Moreover, the Goldfield Miners' Union embraces in one single union
not only the various crafts working in and about the mines, but also
clerks, waiters, bartenders, and other miscellaneous crafts and avo-
cations in Goldfield.
On November 27, 1907, a strike of the miners was inaugurated and
is still in effect. This strike grew out of a refusal on the part of the
miners to accept cashiers' checks in payment of their wages. The
miners insisted upon some form of guarantee by the mine operators
of whatever paper was accepted in lieu of cash. Various propositions
were made, but no basis of agreement was reached.
The merits of this controversy are not of importance here, as we are
concerned solely with the question of whether or not conditions war-
ranted the calling for Federal troops. The mine operators insist that
the attitude of the miners in refusing to accept cashiers' checks in
payment of wages in the then acute currency condition of the country
was unjustifiable, and that this as a culmination to their past expe-
rience exhausted their patience and definitely determined them to
make a final break with the Western Federation of Miners and estab-
lish their permanent independence of that organization. The miners
contend that their demand for a guarantee of the scrip by the mine
operators was entirely proper and just, and that the mine operators
sought a strike as a means to secure Federal troops, and then reduce
wages and destroy the union in Goldfield.
The action of the mine operators warrants the belief that they had
determined upon a reduction in wages and the refusal of employment
to members of the Western Federation of Miners, but that they feared
to take this course of action unless they had the protection of Fed-.
eral troops, and that they accordingly laid a plan to secure such troops,
and then put their programme into effect.
A committee of the mine operators went to see the governor on
December 2, and urged upon him the necessity of calling for the Fed-
•Jl.' LABOB TK.'IKLES AT (JOLPFIKLD, NEV.
eral tnu.ps to mv.M'rve peace and order in Goldfield. An agreement
seems to have been reached that if conditions continued as they then
\vere that the governor would issue such call, and the committee
returned after having agreed \\ith the governor upon a code word
\\ liirh should l>e sent by telegraph to indicate the necessity for troops
still existed.
me days later the agreed-upon word was telegraphed to the gov-
ernor and lie thereupon issued his call upon the President for troops.
I hiring this time, when conditions at Goldfield were represented to be
in SIM h lawless state as to demand Federal troops, there was appar-
ently no discussion of the subject whatever carried on outside of the
M ine Operators' Association. No indication was permitted to become
public as to the real purpose of the call of the committee on the gov-
ernor.
The papers published the fact of the presence of the committee from
Goldfield at Reno, and stated the purpose of its visit to be the selec-
tion of a site for a smelter. After the agreement with the governor
and pending the sending of the telegraphic word agreed upon no pub-
lic intimation was given in Goldfield that troops had been asked for
or were expected. Neither the county commissioners, the sheriff, nor
the district attorney were consulted, nor had any one of them even a
suspicion of the action which had been taken. The first news that
the city had that it was in a condition of lawlessness and disorder,
requiring the intervention of the Federal Government, was when dis-
patches appeared in the papers that the troops had been called for
and were then on their way to Goldfield. When the fact was ascer-
tained positively that the troops were actually on their way to Gold-
field, a formal protest was telegraphed to the governor by most of the
county officers.
The troops arrived in Goldfield on December 6. On December 7
the Goldfield Mine Operators' Association issued a public statement,
in which, among other things, they said, uWe propose to adopt fair
and reasonable rules for the operation of our properties and employ
men irrespective of whether they belong to unions. " The rules and
regulations adopted, in pursuance of this statement, made a general
reduction in their wage scale amounting, in the case of miners, from
$5 to $4 per day, and also provided that the said association
would not employ any man belonging to Goldfield Miners' Union,
No. 220, of the Western Federation of Miners, or any other union in
Goldfield or elsewhere that is connected or affiliated with the Western
Federation of Miners, and, in pursuance of this provision, stated that-
Each employee of a member of this association shall, as a condition of employ-
ment, be required to sign the following agreement:
"In consideration of my being employed by the — — company for such
time as my services shall be satisfactory, and at the wages heretofore fixed by said
company, subject to the rules and regulations fixed by said company and by the Gold-
field Mine Operators' Association relating to the employment of men in and around
mines of Goldfield mining district, I hereby covenant and agree with said company
that I am not now and will not be during the time I am working for said company a
member of Goldfield Miners' Union, No. 220, of the Western Federation of Miners, or
of any other union in Goldfield or elsewhere that is directly or indirectly affiliated
with or has any connection of any kind, nature, or description with said, The Western
Federation of Miners.
"Witness my hand and seal at Goldfield, Esmeralda County, Nevada, this day
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NKV. 23
While this cut in wages and refusal to employ members of the
Western Federation of Miners was not announced until after the
arrival of troops, every indication confirms the belief that such action
was in contemplation before the arrival of troops, was part of the
general plan of the mine operators to establish their independence of
the union, and that the coming of the troops was expected and urged
by them to make such plan feasible.
We find that from the spring of 1907 to the date of the arrival of
the troops there were no conditions of especial violence or disorder in
Goldfield, or particular reasons why such disorder was likely to occur.
Apart from the question of the personnel of the miners' union — a
matter that will be discussed later — the situation was normal. The
town had been for at least six months previous fully as free from
disturbances as any mining town of similar situation and conditions.
There had been no organized opposition to law. The number of
homicides during the two years prior to the coming of the troops, as
stated by the county officials, did not exceed a half a dozen, and
several of these had no relation to any labor difficulties. There was
evidence that in the past two years a number of so-called deporta-
tions had taken place; that is, men had been driven out by union
sympathizers either by threats or by actual violence, but probably
the total number so forced out of town did not exceed 25 in two
years. There were made before us, it is true, several statements of
very much larger number, going as high as 700, but when all the wit-
nesses had been asked to give names and facts in specific cases the
number of such cases brought to our attention did not exceed 20.
Moreover, numbers of these deportations were not in furtherance of
any organized plan to drive out nonunion men. They represented
the paying off of old scores due to former troubles in Cripple Creek
and the Coeur d'Alenes.
There was no evidence of the unlawfulS§0^BD%£4hftjBgf^ith the
one exception that it was shown that one of the poles of the electric
power company's plant had been bored and dynamite cartridges
inserted and lighted (which, however, failed to explode), and that a
large number of other cartridges had been left at the base of the
pole. No actual damage was done. This occurred shortly before
the arrival of the troops. It was alleged by the miners' union that
this had been done by the mine operators themselves in order to
produce the appearance of violence, and while we express no opinion
as to who placed the dynamite there, it must be admitted that the
circumstances in the case and the clumsy way in which the work
was done at least raises a reasonable doubt as to the genuineness of
the attempt. We find that there were at the time of the troops'
arrival a considerable number of rifles in the possession of each party;
that a large number of men in the town were carrying pistols, but
probably not in much greater proportion than is true of most mining
towns of this character. In short, up to the time the troops arrived,
and for six months prior thereto, there had been no unusual condi-
tions of violence or disorder or any such conditions as would in any
way justify the presence of the Federal troops or their retention .
there. The conditions did not support the general allegations in the
governor's request for troops, nor were his specific statements estab-
lished to any such extent as to justify his use of these statements
for the purpose of getting Federal troops.
1>4 LABOR TROUBLES AT <;<HJ>ri KLI>, MKY.
; hulk of the testimony submitted by the mine operators set
I'.-rth Facts \\hicli tended to show, not the existence of actual serious
•>ler in the imst or in the present, but the possibilities of future
disorders should the troops be withdrawn. It was this potential
situation tlnit \NJIS oh\ ioii>ly in the minds of most of the men who
appeared hefore us on heha'lf of the retention of the troops. Many
men of almost all classes, whose assertions we believe to have been
perfectly sincere, stated earnestly that they believed that should the
ps l»e- \\itlidni\vii there would very shortly arise a condition of
serious disorder and violence, loss of life and damage to property,
takinir the shape of a direct conflict between the miners' union and
the mine operators. Inasmuch as the situation, as above stated,
had remained substantially unchanged for the six months prior to the
coining of the troops, during which time practically no one believed
in t lie probability of an insurrection or serious disorder, and inasmuch
n December 5, the so-called insurrection was unknown to the com-
munity, and the coming of the troops a complete surprise, it was
obvioiis that some new factors must have entered the situation very
recently in order to produce these honest opinions as to future
disorder.
We find that such .new factors did enter, but after the troops
arrived, and that they consisted of the announced determination
aforesaid on the part of the mine operators, on December 7, to reduce
wages and to refuse employment to members of the Western Feder-
ation; that this programme, if carried out, meant a struggle for its
existence on the part of the union, and that these witnesses naturally
felt that this struggle would, on the withdrawal of the troops, take
the form of serious disorder. This explains to our minds the acute-
ness of the new situation that arose, the fears of many of those who
appeared before us, and the desire expressed by so many that the
troops should be retained.
Probably the most disturbing of the new factors was the refusal by
the operators to employ members of the Western Federation, as
above set forth, and this particular requirement, in our own opinion,
was on its face contrary to the statute of Nevada, as follows :
CHAP. CXI. An Act making it unlawful for employers to enter into agreements with their employees
or persons about to enter their employment, not'to become pr continue as members of labor organi-
zations; and prescribing penalties for violation thereof. (Approved March 17, 1903.)
The People of the State of Nevada, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as
follows:
SECTION 1. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to make or enter
into any agreement, either oral or in writing, by the terms of which any employee of
such person, firm or corporation, or any person about to enter the employ of such
person, firm or corporation, as a condition for continuing or obtaining such employ-
ment, shall promise or agree not to become or continue a member of a labor organiza-
tion, or shall promise or agree to become or continue a member of a labor organization.
SEC. 2. Any person or persons, firm or firms, corporation or corporations, violating
the provisions of Section 1 of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and
upon conviction thereof shall be fined in a sum not less than fifty or more than three
hundred dollars, or be imprisoned in the county jail for a period of not less than twenty-
five days or more than five months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
SEC. 3. All Acts or parts of Acts in conflict with the above are hereby repealed.
The constitutionality of this statute, as well as its application, was
questioned by the mine operators, but of course, until it has been de-
clared unconstitutional by judical decision it must be regarded as
he law of that State.
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 25
The question as to possible future violence and disorder on the
withdrawal of the troops we find to depend largely on the personnel of
the miners' union and their leaders in particular. A number of these
leaders are represented to be men of radical socialistic beliefs and in
favor of forcibly asserting what they hold to be their rights. Gold-
field, being one of the newest and richest gold mining camps of the
West, attracted many of the most adventurous and radical characters
in the miners' union, and while many of these have recently left, it is
believed that there remain a considerable number of men whose
records in other mining camps presage ill for the future of law and
order in Goldfield, if Federal troops are withdrawn.
It was strongly urged that the experience of other mining camps
with the Western Federation of Miners gave good grounds for the
belief that should the mine operators insist on maintaining their posi-
tion, as above stated, serious disorder would be likely to ensue imme-
diately upon the withdrawal of the troops. All this, however, is
purely a matter of -future possibilities and not of actual present or
past disorders in Goldfield. From the almost unanimous consensus
of opinion of all witnesses we are satisfied that in the entire miners'
union of Goldfield there are not over a few hundred men of a danger-
ous type — men who would readily resort to violence to accomplish their
ends. The great majority, probably over three-fourths of the union,
while loyal to their organization, were conceded to be men of law-
abiding tendency who would not willingly initiate or support delib-
erate violence. But there is likewise little doubt but that this large
proportion of orderly men have in the past permitted themselves and
their organization to be dominated and controlled in its public
actions by vicious leaders, and have lacked either the coherence or
the courage to suppress this element and conduct the affairs of their
organization in a way to command public respect and confidence.
In the early part of the present year the miners' union of Goldfield
permitted a celebration to be held by the union and a procession
under its auspices to march through the streets of that city carrying
the red flag of anarchy as a sole emblem, and bearing aloft legends
and mottoes of an incendiary character. It is claimed that but a
small proportion of the miners' union took part in the procession,
but it had received the official sanction of the union, and, so far as is
publicly known, was never repudiated by that body. Their personal
good- character can not excuse members of the Goldfield union for
permitting their leaders to outrage decent sentiment, and can not
save the organization to which they belong from bearing the repu-
tation it has earned. By permitting their organization to be man-
aged and controlled by men of violent tendencies, the union as a
body has thus laid itself open to the reproach of being a vicious
organization, and has furnished a foundation for the fear existing
in Goldfield that it will support violence and disorder to win its
present strike.
In view of the foregoing facts, we believe there is considerable
danger that serious disorders will be attempted if the troops be
withdrawn and the mine operators insist on carrying out their pub-
licly announced policy. But if a handful of men have controlled the
Goldfield Miners' Union and committed the organization to inde-
fensible policies and practices-, it is no reason why the county of
Esmeralda and the State of Nevada should tamely submit to' the
1.V, I.AHi'R TKot'HI.KS AT <}(HJ)FIELD, NEV.
domination ul' this s:im<» group and should not assert their authority
mid power ?md rnfoirr respect for law and order without support of
Federal troops.
ATTITUDE OF THE CIVIL AUTHORITIES.
The foregoing are the essential facts as to the elements of order
and disorder existing in Goldfield. Taking up now the conditions
ivl.'iting to the civil authorities there:
Nevada ha> no State militia, its former force having been dis-
banded. The only force at the disposal of the governor consists of-
five State detectives, substantially all of whom are acting now as
mine guards in Goldfield and in the pay of the mine operators, a
force wholly inadequate to deal with any serious disorder. The
governor informed us in writing that he would not convene the legis-
lature and that he would not take any steps to organize a State
militia under the State statutes; that in case the troops should be
withdrawn- he did not know what he would do, but so far as he could
then see, he would do nothing. The exact form of this statement
was as follows:
Interview ivith Governor John Sparks, of Nevada, at Hotel Casey, Goldfield, Nev.9
December 17, 1907.
Present: Messrs. Smith, Murray, and Neill.
Mr. SMITH. We want to get in permanent and definite shape your decisions on
the questions we talked of this afternoon. First, whether you will or will not con-
vene the legislature. — A. I do not think that I can consistently do it.
Q. So you decline to do that? — A. For the present, yes, sir.
*###•* * *
Mr. SMITH. As to another matter, Governor, there was suggested the appointment
of a militia here? — A. Yes.
Q. What is your view on that? — A. Well, it would take considerable time to organ-
ize that. You mean a State militia?
Q. Yes, sir. — A. Well, I should oppose that. I have opposed it all the way along.
The very people I am trying to protect knew that the soldiers were here and backed
me up on that. I believe a State militia at this time would be disgraceful to the
State.
Q. What I refer to especially is an emergency militia, which was suggested this
afternoon right in this town. — A. An emergency militia? If we had the right kind
of an emergency militia it would operate all right; but I don't believe we could get
that kind-. That is one of the circumstances.
Q. So just what would be your action in case the troops are withdrawn? — A. Well,
Mr. Smith, I have got to consider your proposition. I ofon't want to dodge any ques-
tion you ask me, but at the present time I do not know what I would do. The
chances are I would not do anything until these people here fought it out on common
ground with one another. It seems they are prepared to do it. I don't want them
to do it; I want to preserve peace, law, and order and protect the people more than
property.
Mr. MURRAY. Governor, at the present time you do not feel justified, then, in hav-
ing the legislature in extraordinary session nor to organize a State militia? — A. No,
sir; I don't think it would be wise to do it. A State militia would not remedy
the situation, in my judgment.
***** * *
December 18, 1907.
This is a correct copy and statement.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
In brief, the attitude of the State was simply passive. The gov-
ernor had in conference with him at the time his aide, Captain Cox,
and the attorney-general, Mr. Stoddard, and after this interview,
December 18, he left Goldfield and did not return during our stay.
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 27
We had conferences with the sheriff of the county, two of the three
county commissioners, two of the assemblymen, and the district
attorney, constituting all the representatives of the civil authorities
of the county whose presence we could secure. Goldfield is not an
incorporated city. There is a constable, but it appears, so far as
we could ascertain, that since the removal of the county seat to
Goldfield his powers have been largely superseded by those of the
sheriff and that substantially tKe sheriff is the supreme and respon-
sible peace officer of the county and the town. Our interview with
these gentlemen was unsatisfactory in the extreme, lasting nearly
ten hours continuously and until 10 o'clock of the night of December
19. We endeavored to get from them a statement, and especially
from the sheriff, as to whether in their opinion the county officers
could or could not maintain order in Golcffleld should the troops be
withdrawn. They each evaded this question to the utmost limit
and in such a way that it was perfectly obvious that they did not
dare to answer it directly, until at the end of our interview, when
we finally secured from them all, as the most direct definite statement
they would make in answer to our single question on this point, the
following negation:
Sheriff Ingalls, are you willing to say that if the troops are removed from here you
can not maintain law and order in this town and protect life and property? Are you
willing to say that?
No; I can not say that.
The same question was put to all the said county officers and the
same answer was received. They all stated that they resented the call
of troops by the governor; that their coming was unnecessary, but
that now the troops were in Goldfield they wished that they might be
kept there. They insisted that it was an insult to the citizens and
officials of Goldfield to have brought in Federal troops to maintain
order and that it conveyed an utterly false impression to the outside
public, but they did not recognize that the continuance of the troops
after their having once arrived was a daily repetition and accentuation
of what they regarded as originally an insult. They would, however,
absolutely accept no responsibility whatsoever for the retention of the
troops, and, while desiring their presence in order to keep the peace
for which these officials were themselves responsible, it was their clear
intention to get the benefit thereof and at the same time throw the
whole responsibility for the continued presence of the troops upon the
President.-
The county derives a large income from the bullion tax, and the
county commissioners boasted to us of their ability to make extensive
improvements and pay for them quickly. The sheriff has complete
power to summon every able-bodied man in the community as a
member of his posse for the purpose of keeping the peace.
We are satisfied that the county officials have full power and
authority to keep the peace in that county; that there are many law-
abiding citizens who could be employed by the sheriff in case of
emergency, and who would make a completely effective force for
the enforcement of order.
Thus not only the State, but the county authorities deliberately,
and in writing, refused to assume any other than a passive attitude
in this matter.
28 LAHOK TKol'HLES AT GOLDFIKLD, N KV.
There is ;d»ohitelv no question that if the State of Nevada and the
i\ ui Bsmendda exereise the powers at their disposal they can
HIM in la in satisfactory or<lcr in Goldlield; that so far, these authorities
have done not hin*: hut are relying upon Federal aid, and their attitude
nou is expressly that of refusing to do anything and desiring to throw
their own burdens upon the Federal Government for the maintenance
of those elementary conditions of order for which they, and they only,
are responsible.
CONSIDERATION OF THE LEGAL PRINCIPLES APPLICABLE.
The entire foregoing states the facts in the situation, the powers
of the several authorities of Nevada and of the county and their atti-
tude toward their own duty. We are satisfied that the findings
that we have stated are correct and that they are fully sufficient
for the determination of the action of the Federal Government in
this case. Being especially cognizant of these facts, we believe
it proper for us now to suggest their relation to the general principles
of law and the Constitution which are applicable thereto. While
the Constitution, section 4 of Article IV, and Revised Statutes, 5297,
provides that in certain contingencies the Federal Government shall
assist in maintaining order in a State, it is clear that such action must
be strictly limited. (Such action is further limited by the act of
June 18, 1878.) When a communtiy assumes the condition of state-
hood as a member of the Union of the United States and secures the
great rights and privileges consequent thereupon, it also assumes
certain great obligations and duties of which it can not divest itself,
and if these duties are not performed, or if an honest reasonable at-
tempt be not made to perform them, the members of that community
must suffer the consequences of such failure and can not be relieved
therefrom by appealing to any other power. Desirable as it is that
civil order be maintained, much as we may deprecate the loss of life
and property which may yet occur at Goldfield, far greater evils would
arise should these fundamental principles be set aside and any State
be allowed to relieve itself of those elemental responsibilities which
they have assumed by the mere fact of becoming a State. The Con-
stitution does indeed provide that the United States shall protect the
States against domestic violence, but the meaning of this provision
has been well set forth in Revised Statutes, 5297, based thereon,
which practically defines domestic violence for such purposes as
insurrection. It is obvious that the domestic violence referred to
must mean violence which a State can not control by reasonable
exercise of the powers at its disposal. Any broader construction
of this clause would mean that the State might at any time call
upon the Federal Government for assistance in mere police duty, in
the suppression of street brawls and ordinary breaches of peace,
such as occur constantly in every State of the Union, and might thus,
through the connivance of the executive and the legislature of a given
State, relieve that State of all its responsibilities and expenses for the
maintenance of ordinary daily order, throw the same upon the Federal
Government, and relieve the State and every subdivision thereof
of its most fundamental and constant obligation, and furthermore
destroy that very principle of a dual government, central and local,
upon which our entire political system is based.
In the case in question we find that, to put it tersely, the State of
Nevada, with a population of about 70,000 and the city of Goldfield,
LABOR TROUBLES AT GOLDFIELD, NEV. 29
with a population of probably 15,000, are thus far in the position of
deliberately and expressly abdicating their governmental powers in
the face of not more than a few hundred dangerous and disorderly
men and of calling upon the Federal Government to perform the work
of keeping these men in order by the use of Federal troops. We
believe that such a condition illustrates to the extreme the false
principles above condemned and that it would be a precedent of infi-
nitely evil possibilities should the Federal Government concur in any
such position as the governor of Nevada and the officials of Esmeralda
County desire it to take.
The above considerations apply to the fundamental question as to
whether the troops should be indefinitely maintained in Goldfield, as
is desired by many citizens there, and we believe that these consid-
erations answer that question emphatically in the negative. Since
we left Goldfield, however, and on December 31, the governor of
Nevada has changed the decision he expressed to us and has issued a
call convening the legislature of that State for January 14, 1908.
We believe it proper and expedient, inasmuch as the troops are now
in Goldfield at the request of the governor, that the troops should
remain there until the assembling of the legislature, to preserve the
statu quo, so that the legislature mav deal with the situation as it now
exists. But we also most firmly believe that upon the assembling of
the legislature, or within a few days thereafter, the troops should be
removed, regardless of any request for their retention that may be
made by either the legislature or the governor of Nevada, it being
essential that the State of Nevada shall understand this situation
completely, shall recognize the fact that there will, at that date, be
thrown upon it, and it alone, the primary responsibility of keeping
order, and that, recognizing this responsibility, it may take such action
as is the duty of the State and as will be sufficient in the premises.
LAWRENCE O. MURRAY,
Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Labor.
CHARLES P. NEILL,
Commissioner of Labor.
HERBERT KNOX SMITH,
Commissioner of Corporations.
The PRESIDENT, White House.
Governor Sparks to the President.
[Telegram.]
CARSON, NEV., January 17, 1908.
Hon. THEODORE ROOSEVELT,
President of the United States, Washington, D. C.
The resolution following has been adopted by both houses of the
Nevada legislature to-day without a dissenting vote. We earnestly
urge you to carefully consider the same. We are now working on
a constabulary law and will keep you advised of progress:
Resolved by the Senate of the State of Nevada, the Assembly concurring, that
Whereas, conditions exist in the State of Nevada that border upon and threaten
an immediate state of domestic violence; and,
Whereas, said State of Nevada has no State militia or other adequate police force
at its disposal sufficient to protect its inhabitants against domestic violence; there-
fore be it
Resolve*
dent of the United' States to retain in the Goldfield mining district of Nevada a sum
Resolved, that application is hereby made by the legislature of Nevada to the Presi-
~ Id"
;$() LAMOI: TRoi'KLKs AT GOLDFIELD, NKV.
• •f tin • I' nil ril Stai- o protect said State against domestic violence
and t.» iiiMiiv i" the inhabitant- of that community and the State domestic tranquility,
the preservation of law and onl»>r and the observance of the laws of the United States
ami ih«- Siaie of .Nevada, and that such portion of the United States Army be main-
tained in .-aid district until tin- Stat.- of Nevada through its legislature, now in extra-
ordin. :i assembled, shall be able to provide by law for the organization and
equipment of a State constabulary or other police force sufficient to maintain law
and order ami suppress any domestic violence that may occur.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor.
The President to Governor Sparks.
[Telegram.]
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, January 17, 1908.
11 on. JOHN SPARKS,
Governor of Nevada, Carson City, Nev.
In response to your telegram transmitting the resolution of the
legislature of Nevada, I authorize you to inform the legislature that
in accordance with its request I will permit the troops to remain
in Nevada for such reasonable length of time as will give opportu-
nity to the legislature to organize such police force as will enable
the State authorities to perform the police functions of the State.
I assume of course that there will be all possible expedition in pro-
viding this police force.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
Governor Sparks to the President.
[Telegram.]
CARSON, NEV., January 29, 1908.
The PRESIDENT, Washington:
Our State police bill passed both houses of the Nevada legislature
by a large majority and is now a law. We are working to organize
the force as fast as possible.
JOHN SPARKS, Governor of Nevada.
Gay lord Hros. m
Makers
Syracuse, N. Y. I
PAT. JAN. 21,1908
Live Music Archive
Librivox Free Audio
Metropolitan Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Internet Arcade
Console Living Room
Books to Borrow
Open Library
TV News
Understanding 9/11