Nathan Haddad
(transcriber may have made spelling and punctuation changes)
NATHAN HADDAD
A witness of lawful age being duly sworn.
Q: Tell the jury you name.
A: Nathan Haddad.
Q: Where do you live?
A: At Clothier.
Q: Is it in Logan county?
A: No, it is between the lines of Locan [Logan] and Boone counties.
Q: Do you live on the Logan side
A: Yes.
Q: Were you living there in August and September, 1921.
A: Yes.
Q: What is your business.
A: The mercantile business.
Q: You are running a general store?
A: Yes.
Q: How long have you been in business at this place?
A: I guess about eight years.
Q: Do you recall hearing of the miners assembling at Marmet in Kanawha county?
A: Yes, I heard of it.
Q: After you heard of this assemblage at Marmet, did you see any armed men in Clothier?
A: I did.
Q: Can you give the date on which you first saw the armed men?
A: No, I could not give the date.
Q: Did you hear of some of them being turned back at Denwell?
A: I heard something of it.
Q: When with reference to their being turned back did you see the armed men in Clothier?
A: I saw them during that time, or a day or two afterward.
Q: From what direction did they come?
A: From Spruce and Stark and Little Coal River.
Q: How were they travelling?
A: Some came from the woods, and some from the trains, and every place.
Q: How long did these armed men stay in that neighborhood?
A: Two or three days.
Q: Were you there when the Federal troops came in?
A: I was.
Q: Do you remember the day of the week of the month the U. S. troops came in?
A: I think it was Saturday night or Sunday morning.
Q: During the time the men were there and before the U. S. troops came, did you hear any shooting on the mountains?
A: No.
Q: Did these armed men pass through or stop in Clothier?
A: Some stopped and some went on.
Q: How many armed miners would you say were there?
A: About a thousand.
Q: About how many passed through and went up the rive[r].
A: I could not say. I think there were about 1000 altogether.
Q: What kind of arms did they have.
A: Different kinds of guns and pistols.
Q: Did they have rifles and shot guns?
A: Yes.
Q: Did you see any provisions brough up through Clothier while they were there?
A: No.
Q: Were you on the firing line at any time?
A: I was not.
Q: Did you hear these armed men, any of them, while there say where they were going?
A: The most part I heard say they were going toward Logan
Q: Did you hear them say they were going anywhere else?
A: Most that I heard say said they were going to Logan County.
Q: Did you hear what they were going to do there?
A: No.
Q: Did they get any goods at your store?
A: Yes.
Q: How much did they get?
A: Over a thousand pairs of shoes.
Q: Did they buy them?
A: No, they just walked in and got them.
Q: Were they armed when they got the shoes?
A: Yes.
Q: Did they pay you for them?
A: No.
Q: Did they get anything except the shoes?
A: Only leggings, shoes and trousers.
Q: Why did you let them have them.
A: I could not keep them from it
Q: How soon after these armed men came to Clothier was it that they began coming to your store?
A: As soon as they got there.
Q: How long were they there?
A: A day or two.
Q: Did they come back to the store afterward?
A: They got enough the first day and quit.
Q: Who waited on them when they came in?
A: I waited on some of them, and some of then helped themselves. Some of them got behind the counters. They did not give me time to wait on them. They helped themselves.
Q: Were there any women with these armed soldiers?
A: Yes. There were some nurses.
Q: What did they have on their caps?
A: They had on Red Cross caps.
Q: Did they have any letters on their caps?
A: I did not see any
Q: How many were there.
A: I saw three.
Q: Were they in your store.
A: No.
Q: Was there any other red mark on their clothing worn by the nurses?
A: Red Cross on the caps was all I saw.
Q: Did you carry any red handkerchiefs in your store?
A: Yes.
Q: Did they take any of these
A: they paid me for these.
Q: How many handkerchiefs did you sell them?
A: I could not say. I suppose about two dozen. All I had.
Q: Did you notice whether the other armed men were wearing anything red on their persons?
A: I did not pay any attention to that.
Q: Did they say anything about charging the things they got to anyone.
A: They said charge them to the local, and I did not know what local.
Q: You say you did not know what local to charge them to?
A: No, and they did not give me time to charge them to anyone.
Q: Did you hear these armed men at any time say anything about Mingo county.
A: No, I never heard of Mingo.
Q: Do you know a man by the name of Philip Munsey, an officer in the United Mine workers?
A: Yes.
Q: Was he there in the store with the armed men?
A: He was there two or three days afterward.
Q: Do you mean after the soldiers came or before?
A: No, after the shoes were gone.
Q: What did he say about the goods that were taken?
A: I took the matter up with him, and he said he would see that I got the money, but I never have.
CROSS EXAMINATION
BY Mr. Houston
Q: What did you say your name was?
A: Nathan Haddad.
Q: How do you spell it?
A: Nathan Haddad.
Q: How long have you been in business at Clothier?
A: Going on eight years.
Q: You do a general mercantile business don't you.
A: Yes, sir.
Q: How far is Clothier from Logan Court House?
A: They say fifteen miles, and some say eighteen miles I don't know exactly.
Q: Can you tell us the day of the week that you first say some armed men around Clothier?
A: I can't give you the date.
Q: How far is it from Clothier to the town of Blair?
A: About eight miles I think.
Q: And both of them are on branch lines of the C & O Railroad?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: And going from the town of Sovereign to the town of Blair what towns do you go through?
A: Mifflin, Doby, Sharples and then Blair.
Q: How do you go from Sovereign, that is traveling the County road, how do you go from Sovereign to Logan Court House?
A: [?] Goerges [Georges] Creek through the Mountains?
Q: You have made that trip have you?
A: Yes, sir I did so.
Q: Are you able to state the day of the month or about the day of the month you first saw armed men around Clothier?
A: No.
Q: Do you recall the Federal soldiers coming in there?
A: Yes sir that was Saturday or Sunday.
Q: Now if the soldiers came in there on Saturday or Sunday can you fix the day upon which you first saw armed men in Clothier?
A: No, I cannot.
Q: Did you know any of these men?
A: No, I did not.
Q: You don't know whether they were all miners or not?
A: No.
Q: You don't know whether they were all members of the United Mine workers?
A: I do not.
Q: When they came in your store, what did they say?
A: Some of them were nice enough to ask me, and some took things themselves.
Q: Did they promise to pay you?
A: They didn't promise themselves, they said the local would pay it.
Q: Did any of them pay you for shoes?
A: Two or three of the boys did.
Q: They paid you for the handkerchiefs?
A: Yes, sir they paid for them.
Q: Did you see any aeroplanes around Clothier?
A: I did so.
Q: How many?
A: About three or four I think.
Q: Did these men have any aeroplanes?
A: What men you mean?
Q: These armed men?
A: I never saw them with aeroplanes.
Q: Did you see them drop any bombs around Clothier?
A: No.
Q: In what direction did these aeroplanes go?
A: Different directions.
Q: Do you know the direction of Logan County?
A: Yes, sir I seen some going that direction.
Q: Do you know of any bombs being dropped around there?
A: No, sir.
Q: Do you know of any Gas bombs being dropped?
A: No, sir.
Q: Do you know of any missiles of any kind being dropped?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you hear any violent explosions?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did these men say what they were going to do?
A: I heard them say they were going to Logan, I didn't know what they were going for.
Q: You had a good idea of what they were going didn't you?
A: I heard them talking but I didn't know what they were going there for.
Q: All of the mines at or near Clothier on that Creek were organized were they not?
A: Yes, sir it was an organized field.
Q: Were there any mines being operated in that field?
A: There were but they stopped.
Q: How close is your store set to the County road?
A: The road tuns right by in front of it.
Q: And these men passed directly in front of you store?
A: Yes, sir
Q: You had an opportunity to watch these men, and did [you] watch them?
A: Sometimes I did.
Q: I believe you estimated there were about a thousand men passed up that Creek?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: How many of them were armed?
A: I couldn't tell.
Q: Were all of them armed?
A: Some armed and some not.
Q: Did you see any uniforms in the crowd?
A: No, sir.
Q: Did you see any uniforms of ex-service men?
A: Not until the Federal troops came in.
Q: You took particular notice of these men marching up and down didn't you?
A: Not exactly.
Q: Do you know Mr Blizzard here?
A: Yes, sir I know the gentleman/
Q: How long have you know him?
A: A few years.
Q: Did you see him up there?
A: No, sir.
Q: Never at any time did you see Mr. Blizzard up on that Creek?
A: No, sir.
Q: During this march?
A: No, sir.
Q: Do you know Frank Keeney?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Was he there?
A: No, sir.
Q: Do you know Fred Mooney?
A: I do.
Q: Did you see him there?
A: No, sir.
Q: I believe you said you say Phillip Murray there?
A: I did.
Q: Did you know Phillip Murray prior to this time?
A: No but a man told me who he was.
Q: He was introduced to you?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Do you know how he came there?
A: To hear about the robbing going on there, and wanted to know if it was true.
Q: Did you hear him say anything about going up there to get these men to return to their homes?
Objection.
Sustained.
Q: Did you see Mr. Murray upon more than one occasion?
A: The only time I saw him was when he came to the store I sent out after him.
Q: Where was he when you sent for him?
A: I don't know.
Q: It was in answer to your request that he visited the store?
A: Well someone said he passed in an automobile and I sent him word to come over and look up about the shoe question.
Q: And you told him about the stuff being taken?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: And he said that he would see that you were paid for it?
A: That is what he said but I have not heard from him since.
RE-DIRECT EXAMINATION
by Mr Osenton
Q: Do you know how far it is from Clothier to Jeffries?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: How far is it?
A: Three miles they say.
Q: Where does the C & O Branch run in reference to your store?
A: The county road is in front to the store and it runs behind.
Q: During the time that these armed men were coming into Clothier did you see any armed men going through there on the train.
A: I did so.
Q: How many train loads did you see?
A: They passed in the night, I can't tell exactly.
Q: Did you see any go by during the day at that time?
A: No, sir.