You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
Hellraisers Journal, Wednesday March 21, 1917
Seattle, Washington – E. B. Ault Reports on Tracy Trial
E. B. “Harry” Ault, editor of the Seattle Union Record, organ of the Central Labor Council of Seattle and Vicinity, promises:
The Union Record has made arrangements to be represented at each session of the trial, and next week will cover the story from day to day covering those points the daily press avoids.
From the Seattle Union Record of March 17, 1917:
FAIR TRIAL ASSURED
THE FREE SPEECH PRISONERS
—–Judge J. T. Ronald Prevents State’s Attorneys
Taking Unfair Advantage-
Deputies So Far Heard as Witnesses
Bound to Convict Tracy-
I. W. W. Officers Prove Good
Antidote for Gunmen-
Jury to Get Liberal Education in Doctrines
of Organization on TrialBy E. B. AULT
With the second week of what may prove to be one of the greatest labor trials in history drawing to a close, in which Thomas F. Tracy, the defendant, is the first of 74 workers to be tried for the fatal fracas at Everett last November 5, one great outstanding fact is being made more and more apparent-in so far as Judge J. T. Ronald has power and influence, the trial will be absolutely fair.
Judge Ronald is the dean of the King County superior court, and it was probably for that reason he was chosen by Governor Ernest Lister to preside over these trials. His course throughout the examination of jurors and later on of witnesses, and his rulings on the introduction of testimony have been so fair and equitable as to call forth expressions of admiration from the large audience, many of whom had come to have but little respect for the law or for any one connected with its operation, owing to the many injustices they have suffered in the past at the hands of officers of the law.
A peculiarly pertinent case in point occurred on the afternoon of Thursday [March 15], when, after the “Sabotage” pamphlet by Walker C. Smith had been admitted as evidence, Prosecuting Attorney Lloyd Black read portions of the book to the jury. Mr. Black picked out only those portions which would tend to show sabotage as a method of violence, and carefully eliminated such portions as would show its use to be merely a matter of slowing up in work and without violent intent. As was natural, Defense Attorney George F. Vanderveer objected to the method of Mr. Black, declaring the desire was to prejudice the jury and not to establish any fact, and demanded the right to read with Mr. Black, supplying to the jury those parts of the text which were left out by the prosecutor. Judge Ronald ruled that was not permissible, and that Mr. Black was within his rights. The judge, however, closely followed the reading, and after Black had finished and had in one instance quoted all of a certain paragraph except the last sentence, which was set out in black type, he sent the jury out and heard argument on the point. The sentence omitted by Black was: “Note this important point, however, sabotage does not seek nor desire to take human life.”
Prosecution Not Fair
Judge Ronald then stated to the attorneys that while Black’s action was in accord with the practice, it is a very rare thing that it is done to such and extent, and calling attention to three paragraph above said that its elimination did not appeal to his sense of fairness. He then ruled that the defense might read portions of the book bearing on the portions Black had read. The jury was recalled and Attorney Vanderveer read quietly and effectively the true explanation of sabotage as a slowing up process designed to secure better conditions for the wage worker.
Judge Ronald’s ruling, while it was eminently fair, was a signal victory for the defense, for had the prosecution been allowed to continue on the line they started the jury would have been prejudiced beyond recall. Following the reading by Vanderveer, H. D. Cooley for the state read several articles from the Industrial Worker, the local I. W. W. paper, and showed cartoons which had been published in that organ.
The trial to date has been lacking in dramatic situations, the nearest approach to tenseness being at the time Deputy Owen Clay while on the stand admitted he himself may have fired the shot that killed Jefferson Beard, the deputy for whose murder Thomas F. Tracy is being tried. Clay also admitted he had joined the Commercial Club at the request of the Weyerhaeuser’s, for whom he works, and that he had been injured in the melee and his hospital bill paid by the company.
Deputies Determined to Convict
The “citizen-deputies” who have so far been called are either men who had been whipped into a state of real fear by the inflammatory articles which appeared in the daily press or are typical gunmen who are for hire for anyone who will pay the price. Of the latter class was William [also known as Charles] Tucker, who admitted having been employed as a guard at the Clough-Hartley Shingle Company, having the use of a machine owned by Colonel Roland Hartley, and having scabbed at Bellingham. He claimed it was not scabbing-he worked in an “open shop.” Tucker was particularly insolent and had to be admonished several times, both by counsel for defense and by the court. Judge W. P. Bell, formerly superior judge of Snohomish County and attorney for several mill and logging companies, while on the stand admitted having seen long-barreled guns, he didn’t know whether rifles or shot guns, in one of the warehouses on the wharf. He later on denied this however, and said he had seen the guns that evening at the head quarters of the Commercial Club.
The state’s witnesses have been unanimous that they had never seen an I. W. W. resist arrest or participate in any violence, yet they armed themselves and were ready to shoot at the slightest provocation.
Organization is on Trial
It is apparent that it is the state’s purpose to convict the Industrial Workers of the World of a conspiracy to destroy the foundations of government in this country, and the trial of Tracy is only incidental to an attempt to stamp this organization out of existence by legal means. That the defense is not entirely displeased at this turn of affairs is shown by their line of cross-examination of witnesses.
———-
The Union Record has made arrangements to be represented at each session of the trial, and next week will cover the story from day to day covering those points the daily press avoids.
———-
[Emphasis and photographs of Judge Ronald & Attorney Vanderveer added.]
SOURCES
Seattle Union Record
(Seattle, Washington)
-Mar 17, 1917 (031)
http://digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/cdm/search/collection/pnwlabor
Harry Ault
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Ault
Seattle Union Record
-Report by Natalia Salinas-Aguila
http://depts.washington.edu/labhist/laborpress/Union_Record_1900.shtml
King County Labor Council
(Scroll down to SCLC 1905-1919)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_County_Labor_Council
IMAGES
Seattle Union Record (May 2, 1914)
http://depts.washington.edu/labhist/laborpress/Union_Record_1912.shtml
Everett Massacre, Judge Ronald, WCS, p139
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015002672635;page=root;view=image;size=100;seq=145;num=139
Photo of George Vanderveer is from:
The Centralia Conspiracy by Ralph Chaplin,
IWW, 1919
Note: to view image, use link for PDF Version & scroll to page 76.
–! it takes a while to load.
https://iww.org/history/library/Chaplin/centralia-conspiracy
See also:
The Everett Massacre
A History of the Class Struggle in the Lumber Industry
-by Walker C. Smith
IWW, 1918
https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001106557
Smith’s Sabotage read into trial record:
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?q1=sabotage;id=mdp.39015002672635;view=image;start=1;sz=10;page=root;size=100;seq=158;num=152
Testimony of Owen Clay:
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?q1=owen%20clay;id=mdp.39015002672635;view=image;seq=155;num=149
Testimony of William/Charles Tucker of
(Clough-)Hartley Shingle Company
-also testimony of W. P. Bell:
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?q1=tucker;id=mdp.39015002672635;view=image;seq=157;num=151