Flora B. Stuart testimony
(transcriber may have made spelling and punctuation changes)
MRS. FLORA B. STUART.
Questions by Mr. Belcher.
Q: Tell the jury your name.
A: Flora B. Stuart, or Mrs. J. F. Stuart.
Q: You have just been sworn, have you not, Mrs. Stuart?
A: Yes.
Q: Are you the wife of J. F. Stuart?
A: Yes.
Q: Were you with your husband on or about the 24th day of August, 1921 at Lens Creek?
A: Yes.
Q: Did you see Mother Jones on that occasion?
A: Yes.
Q: Did you hear her make a speech on that occasion to the people assembled there?
A: I did.
Q: Give the jury some idea of the number of persons assembled there on that occasion?
A: I hardly know. I don't think I am a very good judge. The hillside seemed to be working alive with them. I could not give a definite estimate of how many there were.
Q: Did you see any of the men there assembled armed?
A: Not while the speaking was going on I don't remember that I did.
Q: Did you hear Mother Jones' speech?
A: Yes.
Q: Tell the jury what she said as nearly as you can recall it.
Exception by Mr. Houston.
Exception sustained.
Q. Did you see Mr. Keeney there on that occasion?
A: I suppose so. I seen a man and he said he was Mr. Keeney.
Q: Did you see Mr. Mooney on that occasion?
A: Mr. Keeney said it was Mr. Mooney. I don't know his face.
Q: Tell the jury just what Mother Jones said.
Exception.
THE COURT. The previous witness has testified that he saw Mr. Blizzard there, so I think this question would be permissible.
Q. You can answer the question, tell the jury what you heard Mother Jones say on that occasion.
A: Well as well as I remember she asked the boys to go home, she said that they had wives and children that needed them and that they shouldn't do that, they ought to be law-abiding citizens, and I cannot of course tell it like she did, but that was the meaning of her speech. I was there and that is the words as near as I remember that she gave to the boys and then she took a vote to see whether they would go back home or go on and she said the vote carried unanimously to go back home.
Q: Then what occurred?
A: Well, I went back to my car some few steps from where Mother Jones spoke and I don't remember hearing anything, any more words positive except in the crowd was interrupted by a gentleman I don't know - he had a sword or something like that, and was flashing it up and down through the crowd, and he was all but frothing at the mouth, seemed in a terrible rage, I don't think I can repeat anything he said, but everybody seemed to understand it was to stop. Then the next thing I remember my husband came to the car with Mr. Keeney and Mr. Mooney and says you can go out in my car and that was all I heard that occurred on the Assembly Grounds until we started out.
Q: What occurred as you started out?
A: The car was held up with a man with some kind of weapon, I suppose a high-powered rifle, I could not say positive, he stopped and Mr. Keeney said "This is Mr. Keeney." He said, "I cannot help who it is, I got orders not to let no man out of here." Mr. Keeney he says, "I am the man that gave the orders, this is Mr. Mooney in the car behind" but I have left off some; before this man held us up Mr. Keeney's car come along and Mr. Mooney got in that car and Mr. Keeney stayed in our car in order to get us out the creek without being molested. He says, "I cannot help who gave the orders I got the orders not to let no one out of here." He says "This is Mr. Keeney and Mr. Mooney, we are going to Charleston to see if this [is] a bogus telegram, we will be back here by - I wont say 5 or 6 o'clock that night, it was one or the other," - the gentleman with the gun says, "Give me your hand on that."
Q: When what happened when the man with the gun asked Mr. Keeney to give him his hand?
A: He did as near as I remember, I am sure that was the way, after that we drove on to the street car.
Q: Now, you say - how many times were you stopped before you were stopped by the man who had the gun?
A: Well, I am not positive of that, every little - we did not go very far until you would be held up with a gun, but it seems as though they all recognized Mr. Keeney or something to this effect, and we was not interrupted so bad until that one stopped them.
Q: Now, when you stopped the last time when this conversation took place between the man with the gun and Mr. Keeney, tell the jury when you were stopped on that occasion what was the man with the gun doing?
A: Well, he just pointed the gun at the wind shield of the car as though he was going to shoot and we stopped the car.
Q: Who was in the car with you at that time other than Mr. Keeney?
A: My son, my son's wife and my two little girls, thirteen and eleven years old and myself.
Q: How far did Mr. Mooney ride with you before he got out and got in the other car, how far was it?
A: To the best of my knowledge it was something like a mile and a half I believe.
Q: This car that came up and which you were told by Mr. Keeney was their car was coming from the direction of Charleston, was it not?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: You noticed these guard lines as you went down the creek, about what was the length of those guard lines - the men that were armed with guns?
A: I don't know whether I could give you much information on that.
Q: Is there a railroad track running parallel with the county road that leads to Cabin Creek?
A: Yes, sir, most all the way.
Q: Did you notice if the railroad track was guarded the same as the road over which you drove?
A: Yes, sir, a man was standing on the railroad track, I think sometimes there would be two or three, they always put one down in the dirt road about middleway of the road.
Q: Did these men on the railroad track also have guns?
A: I think so, I think a part did at any rate.
Q: At the time you first started out to leave the camp just after hearing Mother Jones speak, what if anything, did you hear Mr. Keeney say?
A: I did not hear him say anything except what he said in the car to these men that I can remember.
Q: Did you see Mr. Keeney say anything to Mother Jones, - I mean did you hear him say anything to her immediately after she stopped speaking?
A: No, sir I did not. I noticed Mother Jones was in the crowd, but I did not hear anything that was said to her, I was too far away to hear.
Q: Did you know, Mr. Blizzard, the defendant, at that time?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you see - this is Mr. Blizzard here (pointing) did you see either Mr. Keeney or Mr. Mooney on that occasion while Mother Jones was making her speech?
A: Not that I know of, - in fact I did not see Mr. Keeney at that time.
Q: You first saw him when your husband told them they could go down in your car?
A: Yes, when they got in the car.
Q: How soon after Mother Jones stopped speaking was it until you encountered that guard line?
A: Well, it was not very long, I could not tell you just how long; things seemed to stir around pretty lively and it was not but a little while - I cannot tell just how long, - until we started out the creek.
Q: Did you hear these men that were armed tell any other men they could not leave the camp?
Exception to question by Mr. Townsend.
Q. I will withdraw it. You say you heard Mr. Keeney say he was going to Charleston to find out whether or not the telegram was bogus?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Had you seen Mother Jones with the telegram before that time?
A: Yes, sir, I heard the telegram read.
Q: What statement if any, did Mother Jones make of or concerning this telegram?
A: Well, I cannot say, she said she had a telegram from President Harding that - I could not tell what the telegram - how it read, she read it, but I was not close enough to hear what the telegram read.
Q: Now, you say you were stopped three times, did you see any one else stopped?
A: No, sir, there was no car went out at that time but ours.
CROSS EXAMINATION by Mr. Townsend.
Q: Upon how many occasions were you at the mouth of the creek?
A: Quite often.
Q: While this assembly was there?
A: I was there twice.
Q: Do you remember the days of the month you were there?
A: No, sir, I do not.
Q: You were there the day Mother Jones was there?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Were you there before or after that time.
A: Before.
Q: How many days before?
A: I don't remember.
Q: Were you with your husband both times?
A: No, my husband was not there the first time.
Q: Were you with your husband the second time?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: You left for Cabin Creek with your husband in the automobile?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Took the two children?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Who else?
A: My son and his wife and the two little girls, thirteen and eleven years old.
Q: What did you go there for?
A: We were going there to hear Mother Jones speak.
Q: You wanted to hear her make a speech?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Did you remain with your husband all the time there?
A: No, sir, I was not with my husband after we go out of the car after we got down there any more then until he brought Mr. Keeney back to the car.
Q: You did not see Mr. Keeney until your husband brought him to the car?
A: No, sir, that once I am speaking of.
Q: After Mother Jones got down was there any more speaking after that time? I mane after the time your husband brought Mr. Keeney to your car. There were no more speeches made, was there?
A: Nothing, only that man and I would not think you could call that a speech.
Q: You did not hear Frank Keeney say anything?
A: No, sir.
Q: Nor Fred Mooney say anything?
A: No, sir.
Q: Nor Mr. Blizzard?
A: No, sir.
Q: As a matter of fact no one got up on a platform to make a speech except Mother Jones?
A: They did not have any platform.
Q: Well, in a car, Mother Jones delivered her speech from a car, didn't she?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: She was the only one that delivered a speech from an automobile?
A: The only one I saw.
Q: You would have seen it, you did not hear any one say anything in the way of a speech except what Mother Jones said?
A: No, sir.
Q: How long were you there?
A: I could not tell just how long, probably a couple hours, probably longer, probably not quite so long.
Q: Was Mother Jones there when you got there, or did she come after?
A: She went up the creek just ahead of us.
Q: She was there when you got there?
A: We got there about the same time.
Q: How long after she got there was it until she made her speech?
A: I could not tell exactly.
Q: I am not asking the exact time, give some appropriate time, was it a short time, how long?
A: I don't think it was such a long time.
Q: Did she stay there two hours?
A: Well, I don't know, I won't say she did.
Q: Did you leave there about the same time?
A: No.
Q: Mr. Keeney left and you left?
A: We left her there, I don't know how long she stayed.
Q: You do not know how long she stayed and what was said by her after you left?
A: No, sir, I certainly don't.
Q: You were there a period of two hours, or something like that, an hour and a half or two hours -
A: I am not saying for sure.
Q: Did you talk to anybody while you were there?
A: Well, I don't know that I - there was a young man there that had boarded with us before that and he was on the ground and he was sitting up in the crowd on a bank, he motioned for me to come over and gave me his seat on the ground and put his coat down, I think we passed some words.
Q: You just passed around with the crowd while you were there?
A: I went straight to the place and sat down to hear the speaking, when I got up that gentleman taken me back to the car.
Q: Did you see any tents there?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you see any swords?
A: I don't know what you call it, the man after Mother Jones spoke had something in his hand about that long (indicating) somebody said it was a sword.
Q: That is the only sword you saw?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Did you see any bayonets?
A: No, sir.
Q: Any rifles?
A: I saw some kind of guns, I don't know what kind they were.
Q: Did they all have guns or a portion only?
A: I did not see a great deal of guns.
Q: You saw more men without guns than with guns, according to your best judgment?
A: I believe there were.
Q: Did they have on uniforms any of them?
A: No, I don't think so.
Q: Did you see any flags floating?
A: No, I did not see any flags.
Q: Did you see any brass bands?
A: No, they did not have any band.
Q: No military colors flying?
A: I think not.
Q: Mrs. Stewart, did you hear anything said about that time about mine guards?
A: No, I don't think, - I don't believe I understand the question.
Q: Did you hear anything said in that assembly about mine guards?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you say anything about them yourself?
A: No, sir.
Q: You never talked with any one about mine guards?
A: No, sir.
Q: Can you recall the substance of that telegram?
A: No, sir, I don't know how the telegram read.
Q: Can you recall anything you heard Mother Jones read from the telegram?
A: Nothing only that she had a telegram from the President.
Q: Did you see her read it?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: You don't recall anything in it?
A: No, I just saw her holding it in her hand.
Q: You had no trouble getting up the creek that morning, did anybody stop you going up that day?
A: I think the car was searched as we went up in the creek.
Q: Are you sure of that?
A: I am sure it was searched.
Q: Where were you stopped, how far after you left the mouth of the creek?
A: Right in the mouth of the creek, searched the car as we went in.
Q: Searched yours and passed you through?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: What were they searching for?
A: They said for whiskey and guns.
Q: They wanted to keep the liquor there?
Exception.
Judge Woods: I think they have a right to draw out all that went on at that time.
Q: You started up the creek in your machine, did you pass anybody or did you come in contact with anybody going in the same direction?
A: Yes, cars was going.
Q: Automobiles were going?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: People walking?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Anyone riding horseback?
A: I do not believe any was.
Q: They were not going in any sort of military formation, just straggling up the creek in crowds and bunches, is that true?
A: I do not know, I am not used to seeing state polices and so on, but to the best of my knowledge there was there was about the same form that you would call it marching up.
Q: They were going, how many did you see in any crowd?
A: I think I seen - I would say not less than fifteen or twenty in a crowd.
Q: Fifteen or twenty in a crowd, more than that in some and less than that in others?
A: Something like that.
Q: Some in the county road and some on the railroad, is that true?
A: Yes, sir.
Dismissed.
Adjourned until 2:00 for dinner.