Tag: Mesabi Iron Range

Hellraisers Journal: Mesabi Range IWW Prisoners: Orlandich Speaks Thru Interpreter; Schmidt to Visit Dying Wife

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 November 1, 1916
From the Duluth Labor World: News Regarding I. W. W. Defendants

From The Labor World of October 28, 1916:

JOHN ORLANDICH TELLS HIS
STORY FOR FIRST TIME
—–

gavoilo-john-orlandich-isr-sept-1916

A great big hulk of a man with innocent baby eyes stood looking out of the bars in the St. Louis county jail. The interpreter spoke rapidly to him in his own language. The baby eyes lighted up and filled with tears. Gesticulating, the big man poured forth his tale, in melodious strange sounding words.

It was the first time that John Orlandich had been able to make himself clearly understood since he was imprisoned. Orlandich, Tresca, Scarlett, Cernogorovich, Nickich and Masonovich, Iron Range miners, who went on a strike, are all in jail charged with murder. The people of Minnesota, through their government, claim that these men killed James Myron, a special deputy [deputized company gunthug], during the Range strike.

Orlandich doesn’t even know why he is in jail. He asked the interpreter if he had broken any laws by refusing to work. The trials are to start Dec. 5.

 

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Hellraisers Journal: Italy To Aid Tresca’s Defense in Minnesota, Elizabeth Gurley Flynn Tours Mesabi Range

Janet RayeElizabeth Gurley Flynn
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By the Gods, it shall not be!
The bloated, beastly Steel Trust pirates
shall not murder our innocent
comrades and fellow-workers!
-Eugene Victor Debs

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

Hellraisers Journal, Sunday October 22, 1916
Mesabi Range, Minnesota – Italy Takes Up Case of Carlo Tresca

From the Appeal to Reason of October 21, 1916:

Italy Takes Hand to Save Tresca
From Steel Trust

EGF, Tresca, MN Iron Miners Strike, Ev IN, Aug 17, 1916

The SteelTrust wants to get rid of several striking workers (including Carlo Tresca and other leaders), because of their activities in the recent strike of the iron workers on the Mesabe Range in Minnesota. Of course, the Steel Trust has plenty of money and employs a sufficient number of thugs to have the work of “disposition” done in an efficient and effective manner. But since the Colorado incident [Ludlow Massacre], it is exceedingly unwise to do too much rough stuff at first hand, so the dirty work is left to the state. In other words, the Steel Trust is using the commonwealth of Minnesota to railroad Carlo Tresca, four strikers, one woman and two union leaders, to the gallows.

The Steel Trust decided to have these defendants charged with first-degree murder, so the legal machinery was set in motion, and the victims were thrown into cells. They will be tried in a section that is highly charged with bitterness against anyone who strives to improve the conditions of the toilers. They are the victims of a great injustice and the institutions of so-called free America are being used to aid in the conspiracy, rather than to protect the liberties of the people.

One would imagine that if this were a free country, Congress would do something to shelter these workers in chains, but, so far as is known, Republican and Democratic Congressmen hardly knew that there was a great strike in Minnesota. It remained for Italy to take a hand-Italy, with its king and its court, interfering with America, the land of the free hot air!

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Hellraisers Journal: AWO Wrapping Up Season in Harvest Fields, Turns Attention to Lumber Workers

Janet RayeElizabeth Gurley Flynn
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The boss will be leery, the “stiffs” will be cheery
When we hit John Farmer hard
They’ll all be affrighted, when we stand united
And carry that Red, Red Card.
-Richard Brazier

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

Hellraisers Journal, Wednesday October 18, 1916
From the Harvest Fields to the Lumber Camps: A. W. O. #400

The October 1916 edition of the International Socialist Review reports:

Harvest Workers, Farmer John, ISR Oct 1916
The Militant Harvest Workers

HUNDREDS of swarthy faced, hard muscled harvest workers are now turning their backs upon a hard summer’s work and are bound for the lumber camps and mills in the northwest, where they will be heard from during the coming winter.

The Agricultural Workers Organization, better known among the farmers as Local 400 I. W. W., is closing its second year’s work 20,000 strong. The members are going to carry their organization with them into the lumber camps and on construction work. Thus insuring not only the continued growth of the organization, but new unions in other industries. In spite of the fact that crops were small in North and South Dakota, the boys were able to enforce job control on half of the machines, making $3.50 per day for ten hours’ work.

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Hellraisers Journal: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn on Tour on Behalf of Mesabi Defendants

Janet RayeElizabeth Gurley Flynn
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Your welfare ain’t on that rich man’s mind.
-Hazel Dickens

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

Hellraisers Journal, Tuesday October 3, 1916
Miss Flynn to Hold Meetings in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas

IWW Metal Mine Workers IU No. 490, Hibbing MN, June 19, 1916

Elizabeth Gurley Flynn is currently on tour on behalf of Mesabi I. W. W. defendants who are charged with first degree murder-we refer our readers to the recent article by Eugene Debs in the International Socialist Review.

Before leaving northern Minnesota, Miss Flynn spoke with Joe Ettor at a meeting in Virginia, Minnesota, where she said:

Tresca, Scarlett, Smith and the others are in jail for your sake, remember them.

She also spoke to the Ministerial association at the Duluth Y. M. C. A. where she declared:

A very large majority of the workers on the iron range are foreigners, and they have no friends except among their kinsmen and fellow-workers. If the American-born people would only co-operate, and enlighten the lives of these poor unfortunates, all these disturbances and misfortunes would be done away with.

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Hellraisers Journal: Eugene Debs Protests Frame-Up of Organizers & Strikers on Mesabi Range

Janet RayeEugene Victor Debs
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By the Gods, it shall not be!
The bloated, beastly Steel Trust pirates
shall not murder our innocent
comrades and fellow-workers!
-Eugene Victor Debs

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

Hellraisers Journal, Monday October 2, 1916
From the International Socialist Review: Support Mesabi Range Rebels!

From the current edition of the Review, Comrade and Fellow Worker Eugene Debs calls upon unionists and socialists everywhere to support the Minnesota iron ore strikers and I. W. W. organizers who are now under indictment for first-degree murder:

Eugene Victor Debs, ISR, Oct 1916

Murder in the First Degree

By EUGENE V. DEBS

TRUE bills against four strikers and one woman and against Carlo Tresca and two other leaders of the striking iron workers on the Mesabe Range in Minnesota charging them with murder in the first degree, have been returned by a Steel Trust grand jury.

Not one of the accused is guilty. On the contrary, they are all absolutely innocent of the crime charged against them.

It is another case of punishing the workers for the crimes committed against them by their masters. Let us briefly review the facts in this extraordinary strike on the Mesabe Range.
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Hellraisers Journal: Miss Flynn & Arturo Giovannitti Speak Out on Behalf of Mesabi Iron Strike Prisoners

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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It’s the wrong way to treat the Miners
It’s the wrong way to go.
It’s the wrong way to best the Miners,
As the Steel Trust soon will know.
God help those dirty Mine Guards,
The Miners won’t forget.
It’s the wrong way to treat the Miners,
And the guards will know that yet.
-Written by a Miner in Jail

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Hellraisers Journal, Saturday September 9, 1916
Virginia, Minnesota – Appeal for Support

From Michigan’s Escanaba Morning Press of September 7, 1916:

SAYS DEPUTY KILLED MYRON
—–

EGF, Tresca, MN Iron Miners Strike, Ev IN, Aug 17, 1916

Virginia, Minn., Sept. 6-Deputy Sheriff Edward Shubisky killed Deputy Sheriff Myron during the Biwabik riot July 3 and not Sam Scarlet [Scarlett], Carlo Tresco [Tresca] and others of the I. W. W. indicated for the murder of the officer, according to Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, who made the sensational charge at Socialist hall here last night before an audience made up, it is said, largely of curiosity seers.

She declared that Deputy Shubisky had fired three shots said that three bullets caused the death of Myron’ that Shubisky admitted firing three times. “Myron was struck in the back and it appears that Shubisky, who declares he does not know where he fired the three bullets, killed him,” she shouted. Nick Dillon, special deputy, was accused of the murder of Tom Ladvala, Biwabik pop-man.

 

Her version of the Biwabik tragedy was that Mr. and Mrs. Masonovich and three boarder were in their home when Deputies Myron, Shubisky, Dillion and Hoffman entered; that Dillion struck Masonovich; that Mrs. Masonovich tried to get her husband’s shoes and that she was knocked down by Dillion and that three boarders jumped to the rescue of Mrs. Masonovich; that Dillion left for help and that in the excitement Shubisky accidentally killed Myron. She claimed that the boarders had no firearms.

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Hellraisers Journal: Repression on the Mesabi Range: The Masonovich and Andreytchine 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: Friday September 8, 1916
From the International Socialist Review: Minnesota Justice

The Masonovich Case

INVADING MINERS’ HOMES

By OTTO CHRISTENSEN

p-m-masonovich-boarders-isr-sept-1916

ON the afternoon of July 3rd mine guard Nick Dillon, in company with three guards, invaded the home of Phillip Mesomovich [Masonovich]. Now Dillon, who led the guards, has served as a mine guard for several years both in Minnesota and Colorado. He has also served as a strong arm man identified with the assignation house in the neighborhood of Virginia, Minnesota. The notorious Dillon is known to most of the people on the range, and he was the only mine guard of the four that was known to any of the Mesomovich family.

When the guards entered the house Mrs. Mesomovich offered them chairs to sit down, but Nick Dillon replied that they had not come to sit down, but came to take Phillip Mesomovich and Joe Hercigonovich to jail. Mrs. Mesomovich replied to Dillon, “You fellows will not take my husband to jail before Old Man O’Hara comes from Biwabik.” O’Hara was the village marshal of Biwabik and the Mesomovich family lived at the Chicago location, which is within the village limits of Biwabik. Mrs. Mesomovich’s husband was asleep at the time, but came out of the bedroom shortly after the guards had entered the home. Mesomovich asked for his shoes and Mrs. Mesomovich started toward the bedroom when Dillon assaulted her. Mrs. Mesomovich told her story as follows:

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Hellraisers Journal: George P West on Mesabi Iron Range Strike: 1000 Gunthugs Deputized by Sheriff Meining

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: Thursday September 7, 1916
International Socialist Review: George P. West on Minnesota Strike

THE MESABA STRIKE
By GEORGE P. WEST

masonovich-p-m-boarders-isr-sept-1916

The following are extracts from a report on the strike of iron miners now in progress on the Mesaba range in northern Minnesota which has been submitted to the Committee on Industrial Relations by George P. West, author of the report of the United States Commission on Industrial Relations on the Colorado strike. It is based on a field investigation.

The City of Duluth, the County of St. Louis, and the State of Minnesota, as represented by Governor Burnquist and other public officials, have joined hands in a relentless effort to crush out the strike of 15,000 iron miners now in progress on the Mesaba range, 70 miles north of Duluth.

With the support and good will of the United States Steel Corporation and affiliated interests as the stake, Governor Burnquist, Sheriff John R. Meining of Duluth, County Prosecutor Green and the Duluth Chief of Police are playing at ducks and drakes with the most sacred rights of the foreign workmen who mine the ore that goes down to the ships at Duluth for shipment to the Pittsburgh mills.

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Hellraisers Journal: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn Speaks to Striking Miners on Minnesota’s Mesabi Iron 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, Monday August 14, 1916
Mesabi Range, Minnesota – Miss Flynn Fights for MinersFrom the Duluth News Tribune of July 12, 1916:

GURLEY FLYNN IS SORRY SHE WASN’T
ON RANGE EARLIER
—–

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

GILBERT, Aug. 12.-“I wish that I had been in charge of this strike at the start. The demands of the miners would have been higher that $3 per day,” was the statement of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, strike agitator, speaking to a crowd at the Socialist hall here.

Joseph J. Ettor, Miss Flynn and other I. W. W.s have been addressing crowds on all parts of the range during the week. All of the meetings are almost the same, the press, the mining companies and the government being flayed on each occasion.

At each meeting strikers are asked to make out affidavits of abuse at the hands of mining companies or the captains and these are being present to the federal investigators.
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