Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for November 1906: Gives Speech for Dettrey Campaign in Wilkes-Barre

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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While life remains I shall always
be with you conflict.
-Mother Jones

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Saturday December 15, 1906
Mother Jones Found Campaigning for Comrade Dettrey During November

Mother Jones, Mar 11, 1905, AtR

In the New York Worker of November 3, 1906, under “Party News,” National Secretary J. Mahlon Barnes reported on the whereabouts of Mother Jones:

PARTY NEWS

NATIONAL SECRETARY’S REPORT

The report of National Secretary Barnes to the National Executive Committee is in part as follows:

[…]

“Mother” Jones, in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Illinois and Pennsylvania;…

From the Wilkes-Barre Times of November 5, 1906:

Mother Jones, Dettrey f/ Congress, W-B Tx, Nov 5, 1906

From the Wilkes-Barre Times of November 6, 1906:

THE SOCIALISTS held a final rally in this city last night. William Dettrey and Mother Jones were the chief speakers.

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Hellraisers Journal: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn Slams Murderous Biwabik Editor; Judge Hilton Arrives on Mesabi Range

Janet RayeElizabeth Gurley Flynn
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Thursday December 14, 1916
The Mesabi Range – Miss Flynn Fired Up; Famous Attorney Arrives

MN Iron Range Strike, Tresca Scarlett Schmidt Button, 1916

The Duluth News Tribune, which newspaper seems to approve of the black-hearted Biwabik editor who advocated Everett-style murder against the iron range strikers, nevertheless disapproves when Elizabeth Gurley Flynn wonders aloud why that same editor doesn’t go right on ahead and “start something.”

Meanwhile the famous labor attorney, Judge Orrin N. Hilton has arrived on the Range and is honored to be on the defense team of those charged with murder in connection with a lawless raid on a miner’s home in Biwabik during the miners’ strike last summer. Judge Hilton was the attorney for Joe Hill during the appeal of his murder conviction in the state of Utah. Hilton delivered the Memorial Oration at the Chicago funeral of our Martyred Rebel Songwriter, and that oration so offended the state of Utah that the Judge was formally disbarred in that state on July 1st of this year.

From The Duluth News Tribune of December 11, 1916:

GURLEY FLYNN TAKES “SLAM”
AT PUBLISHER
—–

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, Reno Gz-Jr, July 12, 1916

HIBBING, Dec. 10.-Elizabeth [Gurley] Flynn, speaking here this afternoon at Workers’ hall in the interests of the I. W. W. members to be tried at Virginia for alleged murder, asked the editor of the Biwabik Times “why he doesn’t start something.” Miss Flynn directed that question from the platform to the absent editor after she had referred to his recent editorial in which he suggested that the best way to treat the I. W. W. on the range was to take an example from the vigilantes of Everett, Wash., where five members of the organization were killed and 52 wounded.

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Hellraisers Journal: The Everett Martyrs “were of the earth’s disinherited, the down-trodden, reviled and shunned.”

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Don’t Mourn, Organize!
-Joe Hill

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Wednesday December 13, 1916
From the Seattle Union Record: Red Flowers for Martyred Workers

In this week’s edition of the Union Record, Wilbur Maitre Fairbanks offers his view of the funerals held on Saturday, November 18th, for Fellow Workers Felix Baran, Hugo Gerlot and John Looney, who were murdered by Sheriff McRae and his gang of deputized company gunthugs on November 5th, a day which will go down in history as Everett’s Bloody Sunday.

IMPRESSIONS MADE BY FUNERAL
OF MURDERED WORKERS
—–

Everett Massacre, Funeral Gerlot, Looney, Baran, Nov 18, 1916, WCS

Over that crowd at Ninth and Union as it formed itself into line of march behind the dead hung Hugo’s “seven jaws of misery-night, solitude, nakedness, weakness, ignorance, hunger and thirst.” The night of despair, the solitude of social contempt, weakness against brutal persecution, ignorance of the reason for today’s despair and of what the abuse and degradation of tomorrow might be, hunger and thirst for just a place on God’s footstool whereon to live, to hope, to labor and to love.

Those men, every one, were of the earth’s disinherited, the down-trodden, reviled and shunned. Sorrow beat the requiem of that death march. A sepulchre and a tomb-one for those yet living, the other for the dead. Yet, tragically portentious as was that spectacle, there were those upon the curb who smiled, jested and even sneered. (Praises, be, these were few in number!)

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Hellraisers Journal: Report from Everett Defense Committee: Mrs. Edith Frenette Faces Charges of First Degree Assault

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Tuesday December 12, 1916
From Everett Defense News Letter No. 2: “Latest Developments”

Everett Massacre, Def News Letter 2, ab Dec 9, 1916

IWW, emblem, libcom, Sioux City FSF of 1915

The preliminary hearing of Mrs. Edith Frenette, Free Speech advocate, who was arrested on Nov. 6th and charged with first degree assault, took place on Wednesday, the 6th, in Everett. Mrs. Frenette is supposed to have drawn a gun and leveled the weapon at Sheriff McRae when he was being carried to the hospital after having been wounded in the affray at the docks. The state had only two witnesses: Sheriff McRae, himself, and an ex-special-policeman, named John Moline. The contradiction between the testimony of the two witnesses was laughable. The Sheriff said that he was looking at Mrs. Frenette closely enough to see that her lips were moving; and this at a distance of only a few feet. Yet he did not see any gun in her hand. The ex-policeman said that he saw a gun in her hand, that he followed her on the street looking for an officer to have her arrested! He did not dare denounce her then and there, it seems, although the streets were crowded with deputies! It appears as though he only realized, after a good deal of thought, that she ought to be arrested! This is one of the crudest frame-ups which the hysteria of the authorities has as yet produced. Mrs. Frenette was bound over to the superior court on bonds of $2,500.

The counsel for the defense asked that the case be dismissed on the ground of insufficient evidence of criminality. But the judge, in refusing to dismiss the case, indicated so clearly his prejudice and that he had not the moral courage to decide for himself but would shift it over to the jury anyway, that our attorneys decided not to wet their powder by introducing the witnesses for the defense prematurely, at the preliminary hearing.

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Hellraisers Journal: From Pearson’s Magazine: Courtenay Lemon on Free Speech in the U. S. of A.; Praises I. W. W.

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Monday December 11, 1916
From Pearson’s Magazine: Courtenay Lemon on Free Speech

In a long article in this month’s edition of Pearson’s, we find Courtenay Lemon discussing the state of free speech as that sacred constitutional guarantee is applied at the present time in the United States of America. The Industrial Workers of the World comes in for special mention by Mr. Lemon:

IWW & FSFs, C Lemon, Pearsons, Dec 1916

Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: From Pearson’s Magazine: Courtenay Lemon on Free Speech in the U. S. of A.; Praises I. W. W.” →

Hellraisers Journal: Class War Prisoner, Pat Quinlan, Thanks Appeal to Reason Following Release

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Sunday December 10, 1916
From the Appeal to Reason: Pat Quinlan Expresses Gratitude

AtR, Letter fr Pat Quinlan, Dec 9, 1916

Fellow Worker Pat Quinlan During the Paterson Silk Strike:

Quinlan, Tresca, EGF, Lessig, BBH, Paterson Silk Strike, 1913
Pat Quinlan, Carlo Tresca, Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, Adolph Lessig, and Big Bill Haywood
Paterson, New Jersey, 1913

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Hellraisers Journal: From the Appeal to Reason: U. S. Supreme Court Declares Kidnapping Legal (If Perpetrated by the State)

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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If they hang Moyer, Haywood and Pettibone,
they’ve got to hang me.
-Eugene Victor Debs

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Sunday December 9, 1906
U. S. A. – Governors Are Now Empowered to Kidnap Citizens

From the Appeal to Reason of December 8, 1906:

KIDNAPING DECLARED LEGAL
—–

U. S. Supreme Court’s Decision Upholds
“Peabody Civilization.”
—–

HMP, McDonald Gooding, Kidnappers of Feb 18, 1906

Chief Justice Harlan, in behalf of the United States supreme court, Monday, December 3, handed down a decision in the Moyer-Haywood-Pettibone appeal case, in which the court declined to release the officers of the Western Federation of Miners from the custody of the Idaho authorities, in whose keeping they have been since February of the present year. The prisoners asked for a release on the ground that they were illegally arrested in Colorado, kidnaped and carried into Idaho and there detained without due process of law. At the time of their arrest Moyer, Haywood and Pettibone were charged with the assassination of ex-Governor Frank Steunenberg, who was killed on the night of December 30, 1905.

The appeal, taken from the Idaho courts, was argued by Attorneys Darrow and Richardson before the United States supreme court October 9 last. So important were the issues involved that the Washington tribunal sidetracked all other measures and applied itself to an immediate consideration of this Federation appeal.

While the decision, as announced, was not unexpected, the full measure of its meaning does not dawn on the inner consciousness until it is given mature and deliberate thought. Then it is seen that this decision is the culmination of as gigantic a conspiracy against the liberties of the working class as was ever concocted in the annals of time. It is the loud-sounding voice of challenge from the hired mouthpiece of united capitalism, determined to stifle the voice of those who would dare represent those who toil. It is the concrete command of the plutocracy to the radicals of the nation-“Thus far shalt thou go.”

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Hellraisers Journal: U. S. Supreme Court Rules Against Moyer, Haywood, and Pettibone in Habeas Corpus Cases

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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There are no limits to which
powers of privilege will not go
to keep the workers in slavery.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Saturday December 8, 1906
U. S. Supreme Court Rules in Favor of State-Sponsored Kidnapping

Kidnappers Special by BBH, detail, AtR, May 19, 1906

The U. S. Supreme Court has ruled that kidnapping is legal as long as it is accomplished by the Governor of a state, or, as in the case of the kidnapping of Haywood, Moyer and Pettibone, done through a conspiracy between the Governors of two states: Colorado and Idaho. The lone voice for actual “law and order” upon the Court was that of Justice McKenna whose dissenting opinion states in part:

Kidnapping is a crime, pure and simple. It is difficult to accomplish; hazardous at every step. All the officers of the law are supposed to be on guard against it. All of the officers of the law may be invoked against it. But how is it when the law becomes the kidnapper?

When the officers of the law, using its forms and exerting its power, become abductors? This is not a distinction without a difference—another form of the crime of kidnapping distinguished only from that committed by an individual by circumstances. If a state may say to one within her borders and upon whom her process is served, I will not inquire how you came here; I must execute my laws and remit you to proceedings against those who have wronged you, may she so plead against her own offenses? May she claim that by mere physical presence within her borders an accused person is within her jurisdiction denuded of his constitutional rights, though he has been brought there by her violence?

[…..]

No individual could have accomplished what the power of the two states accomplished. No individual or individuals could have commanded the means and success could have made two arrests of prominent citizens by invading their homes; could have commanded the resources of jails, armed guards and special trains; could have successfully timed all acts to prevent inquiry and judicial interference. The accused, as soon as he could have done so, submitted his rights to the consideration of the courts. He could not have done so in Colorado. He could not have done so on the way from Colorado. At the first instant that the state of Idaho relaxed its restraining power he invoked the aid of habeas corpus successively of the Supreme Court of the state and of the Circuit Court of the United States. He should not have been dismissed from court, and the action of the Circuit Court in so doing should be reversed.

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Hellraisers Journal: Donations Pour Into Mesabi Defense Fund; Elizabeth Gurley Flynn and Joe Ettor Agitate on the Range

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“We wish to donate for the help of the
Minnesota Iron Range strikers
and wish for their ultimate success.”
-Bindery Women’s Local No. 213
of Norwood, Mass, sending $5.00.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Thursday December 7, 1916
Mesabi Iron Range – Defense of Class War Prisoners Organized

Funds are pouring into the Defense Fund set up on behalf of the strikers and the I. W. W. organizers who now stand accused of first degree murder in connection with the death of the deputized company gunthug who burst into the Masonovich home in Biwabik last summer. Today we catch up on the latest news regarding the Mesabi cases from The Labor World and from the union-hating Duluth News Tribune.

From The Labor World of December 2, 1916:

UNIONISTS DONATE TO I.W.W.
MESABA DEFENSE FUND
—–

Masonovich-P. & M. & Boarders, ISR, Sept 1916

Electrical Workers Local Union 397, Balboa, Canal Zone, Panama, sent from the tropics $20.00 to the Defense Committee, wishing complete success in the undertaking.

The United Neckware Makers Union No. 110116, New York City, send a check to further, they say, the good work that you are so nobly engaged in.

Croatian Mutual Benefit Society at Centerville, Iowa, sends in a money order for $11.65, saying:

“Keep on with the battle you have started against the Steel Trust and if necessary, we will try to collect some more after a while.”

Yours for industrial freedom,
Secretary.

The Bottle Cap, Cork & Stopper Workers’ Union No. 875, Baltimore, writes:

“You will find a money order enclosed and accept same with our best wishes for the success of your strike and defense. We have sent resolution of protest to the Governor of Minnesota, and the Sheriff of St. Louis County. Any other assistance you may desire just let me know and, if possible, same will bd done.

“Again wishing you every success, I remain.

Secretary.

Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Donations Pour Into Mesabi Defense Fund; Elizabeth Gurley Flynn and Joe Ettor Agitate on the Range” →

Hellraisers Journal: Everett Prisoners’ Defense Committee Publishes First News Letter: Attorney Moore on the Job

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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You ought to be out raising hell.
This is the fighting age.
Put on your fighting clothes.
-Mother Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Wednesday December 6, 1916
Seattle, Washington – Fred H. Moore, Attorney for the Defense

Fred H Moore, Defense Attorney

The Everett Prisoners’ Defense Committee has been established in Seattle with Herbert Mahler as Secretary-Treasurer and Charles Ashleigh as Publicity Agent. The Committee’s first edition of the Everett Defense News Letter was published on December 2nd. We now find attorney Fred H. Moore on the job, ready to act on behalf of the persecuted free-speech fighters.

Comrade Moore is a Socialist and long-time defender of members of the Industrial Workers of the World in their great struggles on the industrial battle field. He worked on behalf of I.W. W. defendants during the Spokane Free-Speech Fight of 1909, the Fresno Free-Speech Fight of 1910, the San Diego Free-Speech Fight of 1912, and, most notably, he successfully defended Arturo Giovannitti and Joseph Ettor from an attempted frame-up on a trumped-up murder charge following the Lawrence Textile Strike of 1912.

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