Tag: Edward Nockels

Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts and Doings of Mother Jones for September 1921, Part I: Found Celebrating Labor Day in Indiana, Pennsylvania

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Quote Mother Jones Princeton WV Speech Aug 15, 1920, Steel Speeches, p227—————

Hellraisers Journal – Wednesday February 8, 1922
Mother Jones News Round-Up for September 1921, Part I
Found Celebrating Labor Day in Indiana, Pennsylvania

From Pennsylvania’s Indiana Evening Gazette of September 3, 1921:

Labor Day.

Mother Jones, Lecompton KS Sun p10, Sept 8, 1921

The local committee announced this morning that the arrangements for the Labor Day celebration had been practically completed and that all that was lacking for a proper observance of the occasion was the promise of fair weather. “We expect all organized labor to join in the parade on Monday,” said the chairman of the committee this morning.

There will be hundreds of visitors for the occasion, music by four bands and a drum corps and talks from three well-known speakers-President John Brophy of Clearfield, President of District No. 2, United Mine Workers of America; Mother Jones, and John Ghizzoni, international board member. It was stated that Mother Jones would probably arrive here on Sunday afternoon, direct from the scene of the conflict in West Virginia.

—————

[Photograph added.]

From the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel of September 4, 1921:

“Labor Day and the Closed Shop” 
-Ad from The Employers Association of Fort Wayne:

Ad for Open Shop, re WV, Mother Jones, Ft Wyn Sent p6, Feb 4, 1922

From the Pennsylvania’s Indiana Evening Gazette of September 6, 1921:

Labor’s Holiday.

With the presence of three notables of the international association of the United Mine Workers of America in attendance-John Brophy, president  of District No. 2: John Ghizzoni, international board member & “Mother” Jones-organized labor held its annual celebration under the most favorable auspices at the Fair Grounds yesterday. Members of organized labor and their families, to the number of several thousand, came into Indiana for the celebration, the events of which were carried out with a minimum of confusion and no trouble worth mentioning…..

Note: emphasis added throughout.

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Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts and Doings of Mother Jones for May and June 1921: Found in Mexico Standing for Organization of Mexican Workers

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Quote Mother Jones PAFL Congress, p72, Jan 13, 1921————–

Hellraisers Journal – Wednesday December 21, 1921
Mother Jones News Round-Up for May and June 1921
Found in Mexico City, Standing for Organization of Mexican Workers

From the Tucson Citizen of May 11, 1921:

MOTHER JONES WILL RESIDE IN MEXICO. 

Mother Jones, ed WDC Tx p2, Aug 29, 1920

In January Mother Jones, the noted socialistic agitator who has been in the public eye throughout the United States through many years, went to the City of Mexico to attend an international congress of workingmen and women.

It is announced now that Mrs. Jones has decided to make her permanent residence in Mexico. She is quoted as saying that after many years of story experience in the United States including six penitentiary sentences served she finds Mexico “the only country where she can live la tranquility.”

[Photograph added.]

—————

Note: Mother has been taken into custody many times during her long life of standing with working people, but has never served a sentence in any penitentiary sentence that we know of.

From the Cleveland Toiler of June 4, 1921
-excerpt from article by Geo. N. Falconer:

MOTHER JONES. 

Seemed as if she had been imported specially to boost the Workers’ Mexican Government. “Workers,” she shouted during her several addresses during the Pan-American Congress, “stand by your government and it will stand by you.” 

“The pulse of the world is throbbing today,” declared ‘Mother’ Jones. “Humanity is watching the new Mexico. I want to tell you that there will be no intervention by the capitalist robbers of the United States in the affairs of Mexico. We won’t stand for it. We are going back to the United States and appeal to the workers there to stand by the workers here.”

When she shouted, “You are going to bring the new day in this country and center the eyes of the world on Mexico as well as Russia,” the applause was tremendous. 

Didn’t Mother Jones boost for Woodrow Wilson in 1916? And Mother Jones paid many compliments to that “grand old man of labor,” King Gompers. Why? Is she so ignorant of Samuels’ labor history?

—————

From Proceedings of the Convention of American Federation of Labor at Denver, Colorado, June 13-25, 1921:

…..Ernest Greenwood representing the International Labor Office at Geneva, Frank Bohn, publicist, together with Mother Jones as the invited guest of General Villarreal, minister of agriculture of Mexico, accompanied the party [of representatives of the American Federation of Labor] from St. Louis to Mexico City. Mother Jones attended the meetings of the convention and spoke on two occasions.

On arrival at Nuevo Laredo we learned that that the government of Mexico had sent a reception committee representing the government and labor to the boundary line to meet and greet us…..

Note: emphasis added throughout.

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Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for May 1920, Part II: Found Described by John D. Barry and Speaking in Streator, Illinois

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Quote Labor Unions for Humanity, Streator Dly Free Prs p3, May 24, 1920———-

Hellraisers Journal – Sunday June 20, 1920
-Mother Jones News for May 1920, Part II
Found Described by John D. Barry and Speaking in Streator, Illinois

From The Pacific Commercial Advertiser of May 15, 1920:

Ways of the World by John D Barry, Pacific Com Adv p4, May 15, 1920

AN EVENING WITH MOTHER JONES

BY JOHN D. BARRY

Mother Jones, NYC Dly Ns p12, May 7, 1920
The News
“New York’s Picture Newspaper”
May 7, 1920

A few months ago I heard someone say: “I wonder where Mother Jones is now. I suppose that, like many an other she has pulled in her horns and gone into retirement.”

I thought of those words as I listened to the old lady in Los Angeles recently, on her way to San Francisco, and heard her declare in that deep, strong voice of hers, the highly developed voice of the practiced orator, that she had passed her ninetieth milestone.

“You’ve got a lot of fight in you yet,” said a man who had himself long been a fighter for good cause.

[Mother Jones announced:]

Whenever there’s a fight for labor, I want to be there. I’m still in the ring.

I wondered if those fights hadn’t been the means of keeping her so well and young. She fulfilled the law emphasized by the psychologists, that life, to be a success, must mean persistent devotion to the ideals of the mind and the spirit. Her ideals had been high. They had exacted hard service. She had lived up to them devotedly.

* * *

She knew that a group of us had come to hear her talk and it was characteristic of her good humor to talk freely for our entertainment and enlightenment. She was evidently a born story teller. She had a dramatic quality that, under different circumstances, might have made her a great actress or a great playwright. Her memory was like a series of brilliant slides. Now she would give us one picture, now another.

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Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for January 1919-Found Messaging Mooney Convention from Los Angeles

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Quote Mother Jones, Courts n Justice, ES2 p190, to Mooney Conv, Jan 14, 1919———-

Hellraisers Journal – Saturday February 22, 1919
Mother Jones News for January 1919
-Found in Los Angeles, California

On January 14th, Mother Jones sent a message from Los Angeles to the National Labor Convention for the defense of Tom Mooney which opened in Chicago on that date.

Telegram from Mother Jones:

Mother Jones, Eve Rv E Liverpool OH p2, Jan 4, 1919

January 14, 1919

To Ed Knockels,
166 Washington St.,
Chicago, Illinois

To the delegates in Convention greeting. May your resolutions be tempered with reason. Courts of our country must be exonerated. Convention must demand courts be cleansed of corporation judges. Place men on bench who will consider justice before dollars. Blot must be removed from courts. If the workers lose faith in courts then where are they to turn for justice.

Mother Jones.

———-

[Photograph added from The Evening Review (East Liverpool, Ohio) of January 4, 1919.]

From Nebraska’s Lincoln Daily Star of January 15, 1919:

LABOR RADICALS BADLY DEFEATED IN FIRST CLASH
—–

CHICAGO, Jan. 15.-After a fight which occupied the entire morning session the conservatives defeated the radicals by a vote or 2 to 1 today in organizing the national labor congress, called to consider plans for obtaining a new trial for Thomas J. Mooney, serving a life term for murder growing out of the San Francisco preparedness day parade bomb out rage.

[…..]

At the opening of today’s session Chairman Nolan made a plea for harmony and urged the delegates to speedily get to the consideration of the business for which the convention was called.

A message of greeting from “Mother” Jones at Los Angeles was read, in which she expressed the opinion that a rehabilitation of the country’s judicial system was necessary. “If labor loses confidence in the courts where can we turn for justice,” the message read.

———-

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Hellraisers Journal: National Labor Convention for Mooney: Debs Invited, W. F. Dunn of Butte Speaks for Radicals

Janet RayeEugene Victor Debs
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Quote EVD re General Strike, Journal Paper Mill Workers p7, Mar 1919

———-

Hellraisers Journal – Saturday January 18, 1919
Chicago, Illinois – National Labor Convention for Mooney Hears from Radicals

From The Butte Daily Bulletin of January 16, 1919:

National Labor Mooney Conference, HdLn, Btt Dly Bltn p1, Jan 16, 1919 National Labor Mooney Conference, Radicals, Btt Dly Bltn p1, Jan 16, 1919

—–

(Special Dispatch to The Bulletin.)

Chicago, Jan. 16.-At this morning’s session of the Mooney Labor Congress Ed Nolan scored the capitalist press on its criticism of the invitation of Debs and its attempt to give a sense of dissension among the delegates. Debs’ name was again greeted with tumultuous applause. It was moved that the Nonpartisan league be given the floor. The motion was defeated. Dunn of Butte moved to give the Detroit delegate the floor. The Detroit leader clearly outlined the program before the convention as follows:

No political begging, a general strike to free Tom Mooney and also to take a stand to free political prisoners and recognize Russia; reorganize the American Federation of Labor on an industrial basis.

The radicals are satisfied with the moves so far.

—–

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Hellraisers Journal: William Z Foster on the Alschuler Award: “How Life Has Been Brought into the Stockyards,” Part I

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Quote WZF, re Organizing Packinghouse Workers, LnL, April 1918

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

Hellraisers Journal, Friday April 5, 1918
Victory! for Packinghouse Workers by William Z. Foster, Part I

From Life and Labor of April 1918:

Life and Labor, Editors, and WZF, April 1918

The main questions, touching wages, hours and conditions of labor, involved in the Stockyards arbitration hearing before Judge Alschuler, and his decision concerning them, are of overwhelming importance, both in principle and in consequence. Just how far-reaching will be the results of the decision one cannot now forecast. But lips stiffened by poverty will perhaps now learn to smile, and thousands of families will for the first time taste of life.

[Part I of III.]

Chicago Stockyards, WZF, LnL p63, April 1918

EIGHT MONTHS ago the vast army of packing house workers throughout the country were among America’s most helpless and hopeless toilers. Practically destitute of organization, they worked excessively long hours under abominable conditions for miserably low wages. Hope for them indeed seemed dead. But today all this is changed. Like magic splendid organizations have sprung up in all the packing centers. The eight hour day has been established, working conditions have been improved and wages greatly increased. From being one of the worst industries in the country for the workers the packing industry has suddenly become one of the best.

The bringing about of these revolutionary changes constitutes one of the greatest achievements of the Trade Union movement in recent years. A detailed recital of how it occurred is well worth while.

Since the great, ill-fated strike of 1904 the packing trades unions had put forth much effort to re-establish themselves. But, working upon the plan of each union fighting its own battle and paying little or no heed to the struggles of the rest, they achieved no better success than have other unions applying this old-fashioned and unscientific method in the big industries. Complete failure attended their efforts. No sooner would one of them gain a foothold than the mighty packers, almost without trying, would destroy it.

The logic of the situation was plain. Individual action had failed. Possibility of success lay only in the direction of united action. Common sense dictated that all the unions should pool their strength and make a concerted drive for organization. Therefore, when on Friday, July 13, 1917, exactly thirteen years after the calling of the big strike, Local No. 453 of the Railway Carmen proposed to Local No. 87 of the Butcher Workmen that a joint campaign of organization be started in the Chicago packing houses, the latter agreed at once. The two unions drafted a resolution asking the Chicago Federation of Labor to call together the interested trades and to take charge of the proposed campaign.

Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: William Z Foster on the Alschuler Award: “How Life Has Been Brought into the Stockyards,” Part I” →