KinSource - Tale of the Week - Row At The Church

KinSource

Minnesota Tales

The Fairfax Standard, October 21, 1909, p. 5

ROW AT THE CHURCH

James Hope, Employe at the New Church, Receives Broken Arm in a Fracas Monday Night.

Fairfaxans were quite badly excited Monday evening over a mix-up between the employes on the Catholic church. The details of the affair are rather hard to get hold of.

As near as the Standard can learn James Hope who has been foreman on the job got into an altercation with Ole Haggenson who had been sent here by Contractor Donohue to succeed him. While Hope, Haggenson and another employe, James Given by name, were in the tool house at the close of the day's work, a mix-up started, amd Hope landed a couple of stiff punches on the neck of Haggenson. At this juncture the Standard understands Given drew cards and caught a full hand with a hammer on top. With this he made for Hope, and Hope made for the door. Up the street they went pell mell. At the corner of the Dickmeyer Implement company's store Hope went down, and when he got up his left arm was broken. He went at once to the office of Dr. Crandall where the fracture which is a very bad one, was reduced.

Mr. Hope claims that his arm was broken by a blow from the hammer in Given's hands. He states that he received the blow in throwing up the arm to protect his head. Given denies that he used the hammer, but that the arm was broke in the fall. Given was placed in the village lock-up and Tuesday morning plead guilty to a charge of disturbing the peace, and was fined, the costs and all amounting to $19. This was paid. Later he was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon. The Standard understands that his hearing will take place Oct. 26th. Meantime he is [out] on $500 bail furnished by Rev. Goergen and Mr. Donohue.

Tuesday morning Hope met the contractor near the building, and asked him if he had made certain statements regarding him, and Mr. Donohue admitted that he had. Retreating several steps Hope picked up bricks and began to hurl them at his late boss, but his control was poor and none of them landed. Mr. Hope had been employed on the church ever since the building started and made many friends.

The crew struck out of sympathy with Hope Tuesday morning, claiming that they would not go to work unless the new men were discharged. After a consultation with Mr. Donohue, however, they concluded that the best thing for them to do was to return to their work. Whether there are any more chapters to be unrolled in the tempest remains to be seen.