Hellraisers Journal – Friday January 10, 1913 Wheeling, West Virginia – Mother Jones Speaks at Mass Protest Meeting
From The Wheeling Majority of January 9, 1913:
Protest Meeting Well Attended ———-
The Wheeling Majority January 2, 1913
The mass meeting held last Sunday afternoon to protest against the conditions being inflicted upon the striking miners of this state by heartless coal barons, and to insist upon a federal investigation of the coal mine industry in West Virginia was a great success. The Victoria theatre was crowded long before the hour for opening the meeting had arrived, and close attention was paid to the teaches and great interest shown on the part of the audience—an interest which proves that the working class is awakening to its own desires and that the days of inhuman exploitation in the coal mines of this state are numbered.
The meeting was held under the auspices of the Ohio Valley Trades & Labor Assembly, in behalf of the United Mine Workers of America, and T. J. Hecker, of the Assembly, called the meeting to order and introduced Harry P. Corcoran as chairman.
H. P. Corcoran Chairman.
Mr. Corcoran made a brief talk, explaining that the meeting was non-political and non-sectarian, and that it was held in the attempt to arouse public sentiment to demand a federal investigation of conditions in the West Virginia coal fields, and the passage of remedial legislation by the present legislature.
Marco Roman.
He introduced Marco Roman, international organizer of the United Mine Workers, who spoke briefly in Italian, giving a history of the present conflict.
Attorney Houston Speaks.
H. W. Houston, attorney for the Mine Workers, followed, stating that he was making an appeal from the supreme court of the state to the “Court of last resort—the people.” He reviewed the granting of political concessions in governments from the Magna Charta almost 700 years ago, and said that all these concessions would now be worthless until we abolished industrial slavery. Modern government, he said makes workers be good while it robs them. Courts are daily twisting old decisions in order to keep the workers in subjection. He cited the Hatters’ case, the Iron Workers case, and the Ohio county case where, before Judge Nesbitt, it was held that when workers combine and keep another fellow out, they must respond in damages, but when he asked if employers could be held if they combined to discharge men in malice and blacklist them he received no answer.
He said that Governor Glasscock established martial law while the courts were open, which is a violation of the state constitution. Then there were no jury trials, and no chance to cross examine witnesses. All the criminals of the state, he said, had never violated the basic law of the state as had Governor Glasscock. The military authorities used the words of Wellington to justify their deeds: “That martial law was the will of one man.”
The miner Nance [Silas Frank Nantz], whose case the supreme court refused to dismiss, was always an aggressive fighter for unionism and because of that he was arrested without warrant by the military authorities for an alleged offense committed eight days before martial law was established, and, although the penalty in law for the offense provided a maximum punishment of but one year in jail or $500 fine, he was sentenced to five years in the penitentiary. He quoted the opinion of the U. S. Supreme court in the case of Nance was not unanimous, even Judge Ira E. Robinson dissenting, saying: “I stand for constitutional law.” Attorney General Conley, also, refused to stultify himself by defending the state’s unwarranted action before the court.
Mother Jones.
“Mother” Jones was next introduced and spoke for nearly an hour in her accustomed vigorous style.She recited with much detail the horrors of the situation throughout the strike region. She stated that this fight had begun twelve years ago and told of the first meeting ever held. Contrary to general opinion, she said, she had not been in jail often, but had had that honor only once, when Judge Jackson put her in jail at Parkersburg.
When she came to West Virginia she had been working for the shop men on the Harriman lines, then on strike, and she came down to help the boys she knew. When she got here they told her that a stone wall was the dividing line in the Cabin Creek region and that no organizer was allowed behind the wall. She replied that no wall had ever been built by capitalist robbers high enough to keep her out and she proceeded to go in. And she had been in ever since, except when she came out, as she was out now, to tell the people of this state and country about the conditions that existed behind that wall.
Ledvenka Talks.
John Ledvenka, another international organizer for the United Mine Workers, followed, talking for five minutes in English and for ten minutes in Polish, translating for the benefit of the Polish people present the information given by the other speakers.
Collection Was Larges.
A collection was taken up amounting to $63.97, which was sufficient to cover the entire cost of the meeting.
When Chairman Corcoran asked all who favored calling a congressional investigation to stand, the entire audience stood.
Working Class Radicals The Socialist Party in West Virginia, 1898-1920 -Frederick A. Barkey West Virginia University Press, 2012 (Harry P. Corcoran found on pages 79, 86, 133) https://books.google.com/books?id=bcf-ygAACAAJ
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