Hellraisers Journal: “Remember the Fifth of November,” by Walker C. Smith, for the International Socialist Review

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Today we pay tribute to the dead.
Tomorrow we turn, with spirit unquellable,
to give battle to the foe!
-Charles Ashleigh

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

Hellraisers Journal, Tuesday January 16, 1917
From Seattle, Washington: The Everett Martyrs Remembered

In this month’s edition of the International Socialist Review, Walker C. Smith gives a moving account of the great mass funeral given by the Industrial Workers of the World to honor our fallen fellow workers, Hugo Gerlot, Felix Baran, and John Looney. Gus Johnson and Abraham Rabinowitz are also honored as martyrs. They were buried separately by their families.

Everett Martyrs, Death Masks, ISR, Jan 1917

Remember the Fifth of November

By WALKER C. SMITH

“Do you remember the fifth of November,
With its gunpowder, treason and plot?
I see no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot!”

THIS ancient English verse in commemoration of the exploits of Guy Fawkes applies so undeniably well to the operations of the murderous master-class mob on Bloody Sunday at Everett, Wash., that it should be accorded a place among the songs of the social revolution.

Why should we forget that five members of our class were shot down in cold blood by the scab-loving lackeys of the lumber trust on November 5, 1916? Why should we forget that many of our brothers were punctured by the poisonous copper bullets and soft lead slugs from the guns of the open-shop camoristas [camorristas] acting for the commercial clubs on the Pacific coast? Why should we forget that seventy-four stalwarts of labor, absurdly charged with first degree murder, are at the mercy of the half-crazed sheriff of Snohomish county and thirty-four more are imprisoned in the King county bastile on the charge of unlawful assembly? I see no reason why any of these things “should ever be forgot” by the working class.

Felix Baran, Hugo Gerlot, Gus Johnson, John Looney, Abe Rabinowitz-French, German, Swedish, Irish, Jewish—these are the true internationalists who died in the fight for free speech in this “land of liberty.” In the words of Courtenay Lemon, “That the defense of traditional rights to which this government is supposed to be dedicated should devolve upon an organization so often denounced as ‘unpatriotic’ and ‘un-American’ is but the usual, the unfailing irony of history.” The names of those who are martyrs to the cause of free speech will be a source of inspiration to the workers when their cowardly murderers have long been forgotten.

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Hellraisers Journal: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn Coming to Seattle to Assists 74 Fellow Workers Jailed in Everett

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Prison bars do not frighten when
one has truth and right
deep in the heart.
-Elizabeth Gurley Flynn

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

Hellraisers Journal, Monday January 15, 1917
Seattle, Washington – Miss Flynn, of Mesabi Fame, Coming Soon

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn has barely had time to visit her family and her little son in New York City since the long struggle up on the Mesabi Range of northern Minnesota came to a close, when now comes the call from the fellow workers of Washington state for assistance to save the 74 imprisoned free speech fighters locked behind the bars of the Snohomish County Jail on charges of first degree murder. She is preparing to answer that call, and her arrival in the the city of Seattle, where the Everett Prisoners Defense Committee is headquartered, is expected soon. This story and further news regarding the Everett situation can be found below.

From The Seattle Star of January 12, 1917:

ELIZABETH GURLEY FLYNN
WILL SPEAK HERE
FOR I. W. W.

Everett Massacre, EGF Coming, Stt Star, Jan 12, 1917

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, the well known I. W. W. leader, and reputed the best woman labor speaker in America, is coming to Seattle to assist in the campaign for the defense of the 74 men in jail in Everett. Miss Flynn has just concluded a long campaign in Minnesota in connection with the strike of the iron ore miners on the Mesaba Range.

One of the usual subriquets applied to Miss Flynn by her admirers is that of “the Joan of Arc of the Labor Movement.” She has been a speaker in the working class movement since her 15th year and has since become prominent thru her activities in the Lawrence strike, the Paterson, N. J., strike and other great labor upheavals.

Miss Flynn is billed to speak at a meeting at Dreamland on Sunday, the 21st.

A dance in the evening will be given to raise funds for the defense of the accused.

———-

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Hellraisers Journal: 74 Class-War Prisoners Arraigned by Prosecution of Snohomish County, Washington

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I stood by a city prison,
In the twilight’s deepening gloom,
Where men and women languished
In a loathsome, living tomb.
They were singing! And their voices
Seemed to weave a wreath of light,
As the words came clear with meaning:
“Workers of the World, unite!”
-Laura Payne Emerson

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Hellraisers Journal, Thursday December 28, 1916
Everett, Washington – Free Speech Prisoners Arraigned

Everett Massacre, Def News Letter 4, Dec 23, 1916

Saturday, December 23, 1916

FREE SPEECH PRISONERS ARRAIGNED.

The arraignment of the 74 men charged with murder by the Prosecution of Snohomish County, Wash., took place on Wednesday, Dec. 20th. All morning was taken up in the reading of the information. These men were passengers on the “Verona” on Sunday, Nov. 5th,-Bloody Sunday, as it is more often termed,-and were part of a number of workingmen belonging to the Industrial Workers of the World, the Longshoremen, the Seamen and other organizations, who were going from Seattle to Everett in order to hold an afternoon street meeting to maintain their constitutional rights of Free Speech.

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Hellraisers Journal: Carlo Tresca Welcomed Home to New York City with Mass Meeting and Kisses to Both Cheeks

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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 26, 1916
New York City – Carlo Tresca Welcomed Home at Mass Meeting

From the New York Sun of December 25, 1916:

TRESCA WELCOMED BCK.
—–
I. W. W. Leader Kissed on Both
Cheeks at Public Meeting.

MN16, Parade for Tresca etc, NYC, Dec 2, 1916

Nearly a thousand anarchists and Industrial Workers of the World expressed in a variety of ways yesterday their happiness at the return to New York of their fiery leader, Carlo Tresca, who has been on trial* in Minnesota as a result of his activities in the Mesaba iron range strike.

A meeting of welcome was held in Manhattan Lyceum, 66 East Fourth street. In his exuberance William Shatoff kissed the protesting Carlo first on one cheek and then on the other, while the crowd yelled its appreciation of the scene Shatoff afterward made a speech, but as it was in Russian it will not be reported. Hundreds of his compatriots gathered around Carlo and kept him busy shaking hands for half an hour. Then the meeting began. Tresca said the Minnesota iron miners were ready for another strike “when the gong rings.”

[*Note-Tresca did not stand trial, but was released as part of a plea agreement.]

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Hellraisers Journal: Attempt to Suppress Everett’s Northwest Worker; 38 Prisoners Released; Beyer Turns Himself In

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In justice to the other boys accused,
I feel that I should share their lot
as well as the accusation.
-FW J. H. Beyer

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

Hellraisers Journal, Thursday December 21, 1916
Seattle, Washington – Forgotten Prisoner Turns Himself In

Everett Massacre, Martyrs, IW, Nov 25, 1916

One of the 74 members of the Industrial Workers of the World, now accused of first degree murder for the crime of being among those who did not perish in the Everett Massacre, was mistakenly turned loose when his fellow workers were transferred from the Seattle jail to the Everett bastile. After announcing that he was available for arrest in Seattle and waiting patiently for the authorities to provide him with transportation to the city of death, he has now paid his own expenses to Everett and presented himself for arrest there. The Snohomish County authorities have granted his request to join his fellow workers behind bars but have refused to refund his travel expenses to Everett. (See more on this story below.)

From the Everett Labor Journal of December 15th we learn of attempts by the Commercial Club to suppress the Northwest Worker, organ of the Socialist Party of Snohomish County:

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

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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

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

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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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Hellraisers Journal: Biwabik Times Advocates Everett-Style Murder for the Miners of Mesabi Should They Dare to Strike Again

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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, Tuesday December 5, 1916
Minnesota Mesabi Iron Range – Bullets for Striking Miners?

The Duluth Labor World recently addressed the grave concern displayed by the Biwabik Times for the poor picked-upon Steel Trust. The Times believes that the Lumber Trust of Washington set a good example on the care and treatment of labor agitators when their deputized company gunthugs committed mass murder on Everett’s Bloody Sunday.

From The Labor World of December 2, 1916:

BIWABIK TIMES ADVOCATES MURDER!

MN Miners Strike, Get Out IWW, Cartoon

The Biwabik Times in its issue of Nov. 24 openly
advocates murder!

Think of it! That staunch defender of the poor unprotected steel trust!

It, advocates and even urges the citizens of Biwabik to take human life!

The Times is really worried over the plight of the poor unprotected steel trust. It isn’t fair to call another strike. So naturally the Times has its first convulsion when it learns that a strike of miners will be called on April 1, 1917.

Here is their recommendation:

“To the Times there is apparently but one way to stop this outrage, and that is to just as did the citizens of Everett, Washington.”

The Everett tragedy, contrary to the statements made by the Biwabik Times, is a sad commentary upon the characters and names of the Everett business men who promoted it.

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