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I told him I did not think that they would bother us. Suddenly he said, his voice trembling, "Oh! he's got him down with his knife in his hand and going to cut his guts out." "Go on and shave me", I said. "I can't", he said, "I'm afraid I'll cut you." Suddenly the fight quieted down and the crowd moved away from in front of the barber shop.
I waited a while for the barber to get his composure. He said to me, "I'm going to leave this wild town." As I lay in the chair, he began to lather my cheek again. He had done this several time before, trying to steady his hand. As he was about to commence shaving me, he backed behind the chair. I lifted my head slightly and looked toward the door. There I saw Billie LYONS, one of the worst gun fighters in Kentucky or in Tennessee. He stood in the doorway with two revolvers, one in each hand. He was bare-headed and with blood on his face. He looked desperate. As I was still reclining in the chair, LYONS stepped forward and peered closely into my face and then quickly left. That got the barber to shaking again. Six heavy revolver shots rang out, fired slowly as if at an object, sounding close by. Then it became very quiet again. At last the barber finished shaving me. I was told that he left town the following week. I had been in the chair nearly one hour and a half. All others who were waiting their turn had left. I was the only one that kept his seat in the shop.
The fight was between Marshal LOGAN of the Kentucky side of Jellico and LYONS, who lived on the Tennessee side. LYONS was very troublesome when on a drunk and would carry a rifle and parade the
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streets for trouble. One Sunday afternoon, Thomas LEYSHON and myself were passing by the Bear Dive, a notorious place, where many of the fights occurred, when a shot rang out. Many men rushed out of the door way. In a short while, some few of them returned and went into the building. LEYSHON said, "Let's go in and see what the trouble is." He knew that LYONS was operating the Bear Dive and that more shooting might take place at any moment.
After going into the room where the drinking bar was, I noticed a middle aged colored man lying on his back and shot through the neck. I could see he was dying fast. He motioned feebly with his hand to a white man named Tom BRENNAN as if he wanted to speak. BRENNAN kneeled down by him and placed his ear close to the dying man's lips. Suddenly BRENNAN cried out as if in pain. The dying Negro had sunk his teeth into his cheek. It was his last dying effort. BRENNAN and the Negro were companions in gambling. Both worked the mine that I had charge of. In a few days BRENNAN was unable to work. His cheek had swollen badly, but after a month's suffering it healed up again. It was LYONS who fired the shot that killed the Negro.
There was a marshal on the Tennessee side of Jellico named WOOLWINE, a fearless officer. He and LYONS had some differences with each other. All knew that it was only a question of time when shooting would take place between them. One Saturday night and Sunday morning a great deal of shooting was going on. WOOLWINE and LYONS were shooting at each other. LYONS was standing in the door way of his
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Bear Dive. Several others were mixed up in the shooting. Officer WOOLWINE fell over dead and then a shot fired from a railroad hotel killed LYONS. Several men were killed before the shooting quieted down.
At this time, Jellico was the toughest place in the states. Scores of men were killed there. Even school teachers were in danger from drunken and hasty parents. This condition kept up for at least fifteen years and then improved slowly. The influences of churches and schools were making conditions better. There were also firm rules among mine managers to discharge those who caused any disturbances in the mining camp. This had a quieting effect. The laws were lax. A discharge was more effective.
To give an idea, let me give a few personal experiences of my own. In the year of 1884, I accepted a position as mine foreman, then I followed it up a little later on by becoming general superintendent. This position I filled until the year 1896, leaving it to take charge of the Procter Coal mine; at that time one of the largest mines in the Southern coal field.
At the East Tennessee Coal Company my first experience happened on a Sunday evening, sitting on David LEWIS' porch with Harry WYNN, Walter LEWIS and Thomas LEYSHON. There was a wire fence built around the house with the gate directly in front. While we sat talking, I could hear yelling and it was getting closer. I could not see who it was as there was a slight hollow and also a turn in the road coming from Jellico and leading to the mining camp. The one doing the yelling came in sight, swinging a nickel plated revolver
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over his head. I could see he had been drinking and was hunting trouble. His name was MALCOLM, a bricklayer. He came to build chimneys in the camp. I noticed that he came out of his way so that he would pass close to the house where we four sat. Mr. LEWIS told LEYSHON to get the shotgun and place it near the door so that he could get it quickly should MALCOLM try to make trouble. He was getting near and still swinging his revolver and yelling. He was doing this for our benefit, thinking we would leave and go into the house. When he reached the gate, he stopped and looked fiercely at us. Then he rested his gun on the gate post and sighted it at us as if taking careful aim. Elder M. LEWIS shouted at him to go on away. Walter LEWIS reached for the shotgun and I ran down the steps and leaped over the fence close beside him. He was a heavy built man, but before he could point his gun at me I caught his arm and twisted the gun out of his hand. He kept swearing all the time and demanding his revolver. LEWIS shouted to me to see if the gun was loaded. I told him yes, that it was fully loaded. Mr. LEWIS reached over the fence and placed the muzzle of his shotgun against his forehead, leaving a round ring of burnt powder but did not fire, but looking as though he would fire he told him to leave. MALCOLM turned to me and wanted his gun. I told him he could have his gun back in a few days. He left swearing and saying he would go to his cabin and get his rifle and come back. When he reached his cabin, he got his rifle and began shooting and kept it up for some time.
The next morning LEWIS and myself received word that he would get us. After we had breakfast, LEWIS
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and myself started over to the store. LEWIS had a gun over his shoulder and I had the heavy revolver. Looking up the tramway, I saw MALCOLM with his rifle on his shoulder going to make good his threat. As we drew nearer to each other, he turned in another direction. He had seen LEWIS with the shotgun and backed off and went back again to his cabin more slowly. The next day, a team came into the camp to move him away. I sent his gun back to him. I do not know what ever became of him.
The following Sunday morning while walking down the track to the coal chute, I noticed several men crowded near a large tree close by the L. & N. Railroad bridge. From where I stood I could see the body of a man hanging from a limb. He was hung early that morning by lynchers. He was a colored man and kept batch on Black Oak. It was caused by a white woman visiting him. I knew several of the men that did the hanging. I told them they did wrong. If they had whipped the woman it would have a better effect. The colored man was very quiet and a hard worker.
Sixteen Italian men came at one time to learn coal mining. I arranged for them to batch near the mine in three log cabins in a small hollow. Everything went along smoothly for two months. Late one night heavy shooting could be heard in the hollow where the Italians lived. I got my gun and called LEWIS and WYNN. They told me a crowd was shooting to make the Italians leave. I said, "Let's go and stop it." They told me that nothing could be done with a lot of drunken men. I told them I was going to
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see what I could do. It was dark when I reached the foot of the incline. When I was near enough I looked into his face. I knew him. His name was Abe YUNT. He had a rifle in his hand. I said to him, "What are you trying to do?" The shooting and yelling was still going on. I did not go direct to the cabins. I went up the incline which was 600 feet long and then came down towards the cabins in another way. I knew their guard YUNT would inform others by now, but I had gotten close to the cabins. There was silence for a few minutes and then a volley of shots were fired in the direction I had taken up the incline. From my position I could see the flash of guns pointing in the direction I had gone. My first thought was to return their fire, shooting into them as they were bunched together. I was angered some because they fired a volley up the incline. I could hear the Italians' voices. I walked right into their cabins. Some of them could speak a little English. They were greatly frightened. It seemed that they all talked to me at the same time. I went outside the cabin to see if any of the shooters were still around. I noticed someone skulking back of the cabin with a shotgun in his hand. I told him to step out where I could see him. I knew him by name. His name was JENKS. He was a tough one from Stearns, Kentucky, who had recently moved into the camp. He told me he heard shooting and had just got here. I knew he was lying. Later on I had some trouble with him. I stayed with the Italians for one hour. I told them that the shooting was over, that the purpose of the crowd was to scare them away from the mines.
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Next morning I went to their cabins. They were all preparing to leave for Cincinnati. I knew it would be useless to try to persuade them to stay. They were not miners. The coal seemed thin and hard to mine with hand picks. They all left that evening. They started north on the L. & N. Railroad track, walking. I received a phone message from E. J. DAVIS from Knoxville, the President of the East Tennessee Coal Company, for me to go to Williamsburg, Kentucky, eleven miles north, the county seat and charges preferred against those men who were shooting to scare the Italians away. The next morning I went by train to Williamsburg. I explained the situation to the sheriff. He said he would attend to the matter, but nothing was done and no arrests were made. The Italians were glad to get away.
This was my first trip to this town. There would be no train until evening to leave for Jellico. I walked around town to pass the time away. It was now nearing the time for the train as I approached the depot. I noticed that the Italians were sitting with their packs on a freight loading platform. There was a crowd of natives looking at them. I guess they never had seen so many foreigners before. While I was speaking with one of them a yell was heard, then a heavy set young man appeared. He was wild with drink and looking for trouble. Several of the natives got out of his way. He bumped with his shoulders those who did not move quickly out of his way. I stood still as he came toward me. There was ample room for him to pass by. Instead of that he leaned over toward me. He gave me a slight push. I kept quiet, but
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felt that I ought to call him down. He then walked up to one of the Italians who was sitting down on the loading platform and had his feet hanging over the edge about four feet above the ground. He caught the man by the back of his neck and pushed him roughly off the platform and tried to throw him on his head. When the Italian recovered himself he looked up at the tough and tried to talk to him. The tough cursed and told him to shut up or he would kill him. He jumped down off the platform on the Italian but did not strike him. Just at that moment all the other Italians came to his rescue. A large crowd had gathered. I also went to give help. I jumped down off the platform and placed my hand on his shoulder and told him to let the man alone, that he was not bothering him. He then looked me over and wanted to know who I was and where did I come from. I told him I am here now. Then he would slowly back away from me. I kept up close to him so I could look into his eyes in case he should try to pull a knife for a gun out. Somehow I had a feeling that he wanted to make a big noise, so I turned from him and walked away a short distance. He began cursing loudly and yelling. I knew that he was doing it for my benefit. Suddenly I turned back, but he had now left the crowd and was coming toward me. I turned around and met him. I placed my hand on his shoulder and looked him squarely in the eye. I asked him if he wanted any trouble with me. He looked at me for a moment and then took hold of my arm and said, "By God, let's you and me paint this town red tonight." With that he slipped his arm into mine. Then we both went to the south end of the depot. But all this time I was
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watching him closely, thinking he was trying to get me off guard. There were several box cars near. He withdrew his arm from mine and climbed up a ladder by the side of the car, to the top and then came down. It was now getting slightly dark. Just as he placed his feet on the platform he reached back in his pocket and pulled out his revolver and shot close to my left hip. I had taken about two steps ahead of him. I turned around quickly and pointed my borrowed revolver, which I had with me, at him. In his excitement he dropped his revolver on the floor. I told him to pick it up, which he did. He then ran in a stooping position southward. The sound of the shot brought a crowd of men to the front of the depot. One man spoke to me and asked me if he shot at me. I told him yes. I asked him what the man's name was. He told me it was MUSTERN. "He thought you would run from him", he said, "then he would shoot after you; but by you standing up to him, he was the one to do the running." The train was nearly two hours late so I walked back to the mines, eleven miles away. The Italians left Williamsburg that night. They wanted to leave for Cincinnati. No action was ever taken against the men who were the cause of them leaving the mining camp or against the man who abused them at Williamsburg depot.
In those early years around Jellico such scenes were looked upon as natural. Such were the conditions in Jellico in those early years. With me I tried to be friendly with those with whom I came in contact, but so many of them drank and carried guns and would use them at the least provocation. I thought I would
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have no more trouble and I went about my work at the mines as mine foreman. One day a middle aged man asked me for work as a miner. He said he had been a convict guard at another mine nearby, but convicts had been taken out. A new law had been passed in Kentucky, and he was now out of a job. His name was BATES and he would like to have a place on a certain entry where his cousin James CARTER worked. I told him I would get my tape, and measure off a place there so he could be near his cousin CARTER. As we went into the blacksmith shop to get the tape, he followed me in and I noticed that he was watching my movements. I just thought it was a peculiarity of his. Anyway I went into the mine only a short distance and measured off the distance where he wanted a place to work. He stooped down and began to examine the thickness of the coal. Then he began cursing and saying that the coal was thin and that it would be a wet place to work. I said to him, you asked for this place and if you don't want it you don't have to work the room. With that he started to swear louder. He was now working himself into a rage. He drew out a large hunting knife with a deerfoot handle to it; then in a stooping position took a step toward me with his knife drawn saying that if I said another word he would cut my guts out. For a moment I thought he was crazy. I took a step toward him, held out my hands and said, "Go on with your cutting if you have the nerve." I had stood close up to him. He was a large man with a heavy bearded face. He looked like a maniac under our lamp light. I had not got into a fighting mood because I thought he had a crazy spell. I began to feel that I should protect
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myself. A few feet away I picked up a mining pick with the intention of using it on him. Suddenly I threw it down, and as I walked past him I said to him, "I will settle with you on the outside.'" As I traveled my way to the outside of the mine I began to lose control of my temper. The more I thought over BATES' actions and his watching me in the blacksmith shop the more I was convinced that he came prepared to make trouble. I decided to go to my home and get my father-in-law's gun, a cap and ball pistol that he had in California when a gold miner in the year 1849. With it I hurried back to the mine which I had left a half hour before. I asked the shop men if BATES had come out of the mine. They said he had and that he had gone over the hill to get his rifle and come back. I made up my mind to meet him half way on the road, but he did not show up. But he did come back to the mine again. Men about the mine knew there would be trouble between BATES and me. BATES was looked upon as a bad man to have trouble with. The next morning early as I arrived on top of the incline I noticed BATES talking with a track layer named RALSTON. As I walked toward them RALSTON called me. RALSTON spoke and said that BATES wanted to apologize for the trouble he caused yesterday. Looking at BATES I said, "I don't want anything from him. If he ever draws a knife on me again he will not get away with it."
BATES spoke hotly, "Do you want to pick a fight?" I said to him "Make a move and see what will happen." I had my gun in my hand. RALSTON left and told me afterwards that he thought there was going to be a killing and that he did not want
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to be a witness. BATES and myself faced each other, looking hard at each other and waiting for a move. BATES turned around and walked away. Six months after that one of the miners came to me and asked permission from me to let BATES go into the mine to talk to a miner on some business, and I gave him my consent. This was the last I ever heard of him.
I have always tried not to get into an argument with my fellow men. In the position that I held it was difficult to carry this out without lowering my ability to handle the miners in those rough and wild days. No matter how much I resolved to prevent dangerous positions, they would come up quickly and I was forced to carry them through. One morning, at the entrance to the mine, a middle aged man applied for work as a miner. I told him I could give him a place in the mine. He did not want a house. He was a single man. He gave me his name as WILSON. He was tall and dashing looking with a red necktie and wore his hat, which had a large brim, on one side of his head, giving him a bold appearance. One evening, I was passing his boarding house. We sat down together and talked of things around Jellico. He told me he could hypnotize anyone. I asked him to hypnotize me. He said he would not and he would not give me any reason why. I noticed he kept looking around quickly as if he were nervous. Miners worked one-half time.
After he had been here a few months it was necessary to divide cars in the mine equally among the miners as the miners worked on a tonnage basis. Miners working at night would have their cars placed conveniently near to load them. This man, WILSON,
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would take two to three cars and load them, depriving the miner who was entitled to them. The mule driver came to me one evening as he came out of the mine and said that he placed a number of cars for the night shift. I told the men that worked near there not to load any of them as they were for the night men. After I got a short distance away I could hear some one pushing cars around. I think it was that man WILSON. Then he said that man is dangerous. He carried a gun at all times. Don't tell him that I told you, or he will get me. In about two hours WILSON came out of the mine. I told him about taking the placed cars and that he need not come back to work tomorrow as I would see that he would get none to load. I also told him that this was the third time that he had taken cars belonging to others. He wanted to know who told me. I said no matter who told me. You must obey the rules of the mine the same as the others. I could see he was getting angry. As he turned away from me he hissed out a vile name. We were now only a few feet apart. I repeated to him what he had called me. As he backed away slowly he had his hand in his side coat pocket. I was on my guard, knowing that he would shoot if he could beat me to it. He had drawn his gun half way out of his pocket. I told him not to move any further or one of us would be a dead man. I had my gun ready. We were now only a few yards away from each other. He was now cursing and in a rage. He took off his mining cap and threw it down and stamped upon it, but did not try to use his gun. All this time I stood still with my gun in readiness. Once he stooped low with his hand on his gun and looked fiercely at me. I was most
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sure he was trying to get me off my guard or that I would leave. This I determined not to do. I would face and beat him on the draw. He picked up his cap and lamp and shoved his gun back in his pocket and went down the incline to his boarding house which was only a few yards off the road which I had to pass every evening going from my work.
Several men who had seen the affair told me not to go that way as he would shoot as I walked past, through the door or window. I felt stubborn and told them that I would not go any other way. When the time came for me to leave the mine with my pistol in my hand and when I came opposite the door it opened a few inches and I could see he was peering at me, but I did not see any gun. There was a window facing the direction I was going. I thought that he might use it to shoot from. I walked side ways with my pistol in my hand by my side and passed without any further trouble. That evening several men told me to be on my guard, that he would surely try you again. He is the kind of a man that is not satisfied with the way things went off.
The next morning as I rode up the incline in the mine car and as I got out of the car I looked toward the mine and saw WILSON with a long coat on. I could see the bulk of two large revolvers in his pockets. As I walked toward him I was determined not to say anything to him. I had to pass the blacksmith shop door on my way. I decided to tell the two men there to witness what was going to take place this morning. WILSON was outside looking for more trouble and that I would not start it. I walked out of the shop and
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