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L. M. Reports:
Salt Lake, Utah, Tuesday, November 30, 1915.

Hedberg said today that the members of the Defense
Committee gave the detectives a good chase; that first they
would go over on the east side, then way over on the west side,
into the darkest alleys, just to see if the detectives would
follow them. He said that some would and others would lose
them and then have quite a hunt trying to find them again,
that sometimes they would make their appearance just on purpose
to give them a little more chase. He said that they never intended
to do any harm, but were afraid of the harm the cheap
detectives might do them; that if they suspect a man and cannot
get anything on him, they will "job" him in some way so
they can arrest him. He said that they were afraid the detectives
would try and slip a piece of paper with the same
handwriting on as that of the threatening letters, so they kept
their hands in their pockets whenever they were in large crowds.
He said that most of the threatening letters came from cheap
detectives and hobo I.W.W. men; that Rowan was surprised when he
heard of some of the threatening letters that were mailed in
Salt Lake, and said that he did not believe that they had come
from members of the local I.W.W. but that crooked detectives
were doing the work. He said that the local men here were
too cowardly to do anything that might get them in trouble and
that Rowan had fought against trouble of any kind, and had told
a lot of I.W.W. men who had come in from different cities of
the country to leave town, as their being here would cause more
trouble than it would do good; that it would be hard to find
out who these detectives were unless some of the I.W.W. would
give them away some time. He said that the detectives were so
low down that they would have to climb up to hell.

Hedberg said that someone had painted a black arrow
on the door of Spry's private office; that this was a frame up
between detectives and guards and that no friend of Hillstrom
could have done it because the place was guarded too closely
for anyone of these friends to get in there and this was proof
that the guards did it themselves or let someone in that did it.
Hedberg asked me how long Spry's term lasted and I told him
that I thought he was in for four years. He said, "Yes if he
don't drop out before." I asked him what he meant by that
and he said, "Well there is always some fool who would take a
chance at anything." I then asked him if he knew of the plan
on the night of the 18th to blow Spry's house up and he said
that he did not think that there was any such plan ever made:
that Rowan, Ritter, Child and all other important members of the
I.W.W. Defense Committee were watched too close to do anything
of that kind; that they knew just how close they were watched
and are still being watched; that the PInkertons were hiring
lots of detectives; that Mr. Pinkerton himself was out here
during the Hillstrom case; that the men had more respect for
that company, but that the cheap companies do more blackmailing
than any crook; that Gerry who claimed to be such a detective
would perhaps get what he deserved; that he was a big enemy to

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