Hellraisers Journal, Tuesday February 26, 1918
Mother Jones News for January 1918: Gives Speech at Miners’ Convention
On January 17th of this year, Mother Jones was found speaking in Indianapolis, Indiana, at the Convention of the United Mine Workers of America. She voice her support for President Wilson and for the war effort, declaring:
We must lick the Kaiser.
She also spoke regarding the ongoing attempt to organize West Virginia:
There is a system of industrial feudalism in the State of West Virginia but before another year ends the backbone of that damnable system will be broken and men will rise beneath those stars and stripes as they should rise, free, for the first time. We propose to put the infamous gunmen there out of business. We will make them find other occupations. You are robbed and plundered to pay these gunmen that are hired to keep you in industrial slavery. If it takes every man of the 500,000 miners in this country to march into West Virginia we propose to drive out that feudal system that survives there. It is an outrage and an insult to that flag. They may as well prepare for business, for we are going to do it. The president of the Winding Gulf gang said in Washington, “Don’t you know that Mother Jones swears?” I was asked, “Do you swear, Mother Jones?” I said, “You don’t think I’m hypocrite enough to pray when I’m talking to those thieves!”
[Emphasis added.]
From Indiana’s South Bend News-Times of January 4, 1918:
Ft. Wayne Editor Writing Career
of John Worth Kern
—–The story of the career of the late Sen. John W. Kern, covering almost half a century, is being written by Claude G. Bowers, editor of the Ft. Wayne Journal-Gazette, who was intimately associated with him during the whole of his senatorial career. The biography will cover the entire period and every phase of his life….
[Bowers intends to tell the story of the fight made by Senators Kerns] for an investigation into the conditions of the mining district of West Virginia. Mother Jones, popularly known as “the angel of the miners,” who was tried by a drum head court-martial for her life and was dismissed when her telegram to Kern was read on the floor of the senate, has made two trips to Fort Wayne to furnish Mr. Bowers with details f that dramatic struggle. The story of how she smuggled the telegram from her prison to Kern in Washington will read like a page from Russian history….
Hellraisers Journal of January 20, 1918 featured an article from The Scranton Republican of January 18th regarding the speech made by Mother Jones on January 17th at the U. M. W. Convention. The article stated in part:
Mother Jones was an unexpected arrival just as the debate as to printing constitutions and other official documents during the war was under debate. There went forth a lusty yell, the debate was forgotten and Mother swung into action.
You’ve been using your hands, now I want you to use your heads. We’ve got to do it, because we must lick the Kaiser.
She praised Woodrow Wilson as being the greatest president of all time and urged the delegates to stand loyally behind him and also their own president, Frank J. Hayes; to be politically ambitious within the organization, she admonished that this was no time to play politics, that the hatchet must be buried for the good of the cause.
She declared she had just arrived from a sleuthing trip at Cincinnati, where she had scoured the railroad yards.
[She said:]
Why we have hundreds of empty cars lying in the yards.
Hellraisers Journal of January 21, 1918, published the speech made by Mother Jones at the miners convention on January 17th. The following are a few gems from that speech:
The Earth Made for All God’s People
I belong to a class that has been robbed, plundered, murdered, maligned, vilified, jailed, persecuted all down the ages, and because I belong to that class I feel it is my duty to awaken that class to their condition. The earth was not made for a few, but for all God’s people.”
If Miners Do Drink, They Need It
In Washington, where four or five of them were discussing the great issues of the day, an old fossilized fellow who had been dead forty years before he was born said, “You know that the miners and the workers spend their money in saloons.” I let him shoot off his hot air a while and said, “How much of your money did they ever spend? How much of their money did you spend? You spend-a lot of it, because you have a stomach four miles long and two miles wide. If the miners do take a drink once in a while they need it. They have to go into the mines and work in water day after day and watch the roof for fear it will come down on them, watch for poisonous gases, and in West Virginia in some places they have to spend fourteen hours a day, or did some years ago. You know nothing about these things. You have been living off the life blood of your fellow-man and you have no conception of what he has to contend with.”
“Organize, organize, organize.”
I was traveling all night and I was fussing all day yesterday. A fellow asked me if I didn’t think it was time for me to die, and I said “No, I have a contract to clean hell out of you fellows and I cannot go until I have helped civilize you.” Now, be good boys and let us make this fight of our nation a fight to the finish. Show the world there is one grand body of men in America that stands loyally for the flag. You must understand that the men who watered the clay for seven long years with their blood, with blistered feet, weary backs and throbbing heads, they did it in order to hand down to you the noblest emblem ever handed down during all the generations of man as an evidence of their belief in social justice and industrial freedom. I happened to be one of those who walked over the clay those men watered with their blood to give me a vision of freedom. Their memory is dear to me. Every star in that flag was bought with the blood of men who believed in freedom, industrial freedom, particularly. Now it is up to us to carry on the work. Organize, organize, organize.
Industrial Feudalism in West Virginia
There is a system of industrial feudalism in the State of West Virginia but before another year ends the backbone of that damnable system will be broken and men will rise beneath those stars and stripes as they should rise, free, for the first time. We propose to put the infamous gunmen there out of business. We will make them find other occupations. You are robbed and plundered to pay these gunmen that are hired to keep you in industrial slavery. If it takes every man of the 500,000 miners in this country to march into West Virginia we propose to drive out that feudal system that survives there. It is an outrage and an insult to that flag. They may as well prepare for business, for we are going to do it. The president of the Winding Gulf gang said in Washington, “Don’t you know that Mother Jones swears?” I was asked, “Do you swear, Mother Jones?” I said, “You don’t think I’m hypocrite enough to pray when I’m talking to those thieves!”
From the United Mine Workers Journal of January of 24, 1918:
President Hayes introduced to the convention Mother Jones, who had come to the stage during the discussion on the report of the Committee on Resolutions. Following the introduction Mother Jones made a long and eloquent speech, couched in her usual vigorous language, in which she gave a great deal of good advice to the delegates. She emphasized especially the necessity of the miners and other workers standing solidly behind the President of the United States during the present war. She referred to President Wilson as the greatest president the United States has ever had and urged the miners and other workers to support him loyally during the war.
Mother Jones also discussed at some length the situation in West Virginia and the splendid organization that has grown up in some parts of that state. She stated that she expected to work in West Virginia until the state was thoroughly organized. She commended the work of former President White, President Hayes and Secretary Green, and urged the delegates and the men at home to support the new president loyally.
Mother Jones’ speech in full will be printed in the minutes of the convention as soon as it can be prepared.
From The Indianapolis News of January 24, 1918:
WAGE PLAN RESOLUTION LOST
—–
Miners’ Convention Votes Down Proposed
Constitutional Changes.The Biennial convention of the United Mine Workers, refused Wednesday afternoon to change the constitution so as to enlarge the joint wage conference of bituminous miners and operators.
The session at which this action was taken was the most turbulent of the convention thus far.
The resolution under consideration came from Waverly, MO., and provided that international or district officers should have no power to negotiates a basic wage agreement unless all districts to be affected thereby had an opportunity to have a voice and vote in the conference making the agreement….
Adverse Report Made.
The committee on constitution made an adverse report on the resolution, and after two days’ debate the convention adopted the committee’s report by a vote of 958 ayes and to 554 noes.
Disorder and noise in the convention delayed the proceedings for twenty-two minutes. it was due to an attempt of noisy element to prevent Frank Farrington, president of the Illinois miners and chairman of the committee on constitution, from making a speech. Farrington finally made his speech, however…
Frank P. Hayes, the international president, said he had promised Farrington, chairman of the constitution committee, to recognize him for a speech before closing the debate. He said that when Farrington had ended his address he would close the debate.
The supporters of the resolution undertook to hold down Farrington when he arouse to speak. “Question, Question.” they yelled. This demand broke into a roar that continued for twenty-two minutes. Farrington stood on the stage, awaiting an opportunity to speak.
Mother Jones Mounts Stage.
When the disturbance was at its hight. Mother Jones mounted the stage and seized the gavel from the hand of President Hayes and pounded the table vigorously for order. But even Mother Jones was unable to bring order. When she tried to speak, the delegates howled her down.
“We like you, mother, but you had better sit down,” a delegate cried, and the howlers howled.
“You are a crazy mob and you are not serving the interests of your people,” A. D. Lavendar, of Minersville, O., shouted, pointing to the yelling crowd.
Mother Jones left the stage and led delegate Ed Schneideke, of Missouri, to the front of the hall. To President Hayes she cried:
“Mr. Chairman, this boy is going to speak. Put that thing down” (pointing to Farrington).
Hayes Stands Firm.
The noisy element fairly screamed with delight at this performance, but President Hayes refused to yield. Looking at Mother Jones he said: “I am the president of this organization and I intend to preside over this convention. Delegates will sit down.”
Mother Jones led Schneideke aside.
Farrington proceeded with his speech after the disorder quieted down….
[After Farrington’s speech, the motion to adopt the report of the committee and to reject the resolution was taken. The committee’s report was adopted by a vote of 958 to 554.]
Hellraisers Journal of February 1, 1918 featured an article from the January 31st edition of the United Mine Worker Journal which described Mother Jones at the Miners Convention, January 26th, where she offered resolution in honor of Fremont Older, the late Senator Kern and Governor Hunt of Arizona. The resolutions were passed by the delegates.
SOURCES
South Bend News-Times
(South Bend, Indiana)
-Jan 4, 1918
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87055779/1918-01-04/ed-1/seq-6/
Hellraisers Journal, Sunday January 20, 1918
Indianapolis, Indiana – Miners Greet Mother Jones with “Lusty Yell”
Mother Jones to United Mine Workers Convention: “We Must Lick the Kaiser.”
Hellraisers Journal, Monday January 21, 1918
Indianapolis, Indiana – Mother Jones Speaks at U. M. W. Convention
Mother Jones Speaks at United Mine Workers Convention, Indianapolis, Indiana, January 17, 1918
The United Mine Workers Journal, Volume 28
(Indianapolis, Indiana)
-Nov 1, 1917-May 2, 1918
Executive Board of the United Mine Workers of America
https://books.google.com/books?id=OAxOAAAAYAAJ
UMWJ of Jan 24, 1918
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=OAxOAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&pg=GBS.PT410
Pages 6-10: “The Miners’ Convention at Work
Delegates Ratify Washington Agreement by an Overwhelming Majority”
(For more on “Washington Agreement” search this text with same.)
(This article overs Convention beginning with Morning Session of Jan 16th to Afternoon Session of Jan 21.)
Page 8: Morning session of Jan 17 begins with Report of Committee on Resolutions, followed by debates on various resolutions.
Page 9: [Note: according to Proceedings, see below, debate on resolutions continued into afternoon session, after which Mother Jones was introduced:] “President Hayes introduced to the convention Mother Jones…”
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=OAxOAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&pg=GBS.PT418
UMWJ of Jan 31, 1918
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=OAxOAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&pg=GBS.PT442
MJ Speaks at UMW Convention, Jan 26th
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=OAxOAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&pg=GBS.PT450
The Indianapolis News
(Indianapolis, Indiana)
-Jan 24, 1918
https://www.newspapers.com/image/37342608/
Hellraisers Journal, Friday February 1, 1918
Indianapolis, Indiana – Mother Jones at Convention of United Mine Workers
Mother Jones at Convention of United Mine Workers, Remembers Senator John W. Kern
IMAGE
Mother Jones Fire Eater, St L Str, Aug 23, 1917
https://www.newspapers.com/image/204372148/
See also:
Proceedings of Convention of the
United Mine Workers of America
Indianapolis, Indiana
January 15 to 26, 1918
https://books.google.com/books?id=8fQUAAAAIAAJ
Page 359: Address of Mother Jones Jan 17, Afternoon Session
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=8fQUAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&pg=GBS.PA359
Page 741: Re stormy afternoon session of Jan 23 described in Indianapolis News of Jan 24
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=8fQUAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&pg=GBS.PA741
–Note: Proceedings do not mention the actions of Mother Jones during this debate. Proceedings quote President Hayes:
President Hayes: Is this convention going to respect the rights of the chair? The chair promised the other day that President Farrington would have a right to discuss the resolution before the question would be put.
Page 969: Jan 26th, Morning Session: Mother Jones submits resolutions-
https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=8fQUAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&pg=GBS.PA969