Hellraisers Journal – Thursday June 9, 1904
Summary of Miners’ Strikes in Colorado and Utah for May 1904
From The Salt Lake Herald of May 06, 1904:
Mother Jones with Delegates at Utah State Convention of Western Federation of Miners
From the San Francisco Chronicle of May 1, 1904
Southern Coalfields of Colorado – Union Organizer Beaten, Not Expected to Live
The strike zone of the southern coalfields of Colorado continues to be a dangerous place for union organizers working for the United Mine Workers of America. Brother Wardjon was brutally assaulted there and was not expected to live. The San Francisco Chronicle reported on that assault and other news regarding the labor situation in Colorado:
ASSAULT ON A LABOR LEADER
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Mine Union Organizer Wardjon Beaten on Head
in Colorado So Severely That He May Die
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DENVER, (Col.). April 30.-W. M. Wardjon, national organizer of the United Mine Workers of America wasterribly beaten on the head and shoulders with revolvers by three unknown men at Sargent, Col., to-day and lies in a critical condition at the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad Hospital at Salida. Wardjon was traveling eastward from Crested Butte, where he had been organizing the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company’s miners, and was attacked in a car while the train was standing at Sargent.
He is suffering from concussion of the brain, and the hospital physicians say his recovery is doubtful.
In a lengthy brief filed before the Supreme Court to-day by Attorney E. F. Richardson in the habeas corpus case of Charles H. Moyer, president of the Western Federation of Miners, who is held as a military prisoner at Telluride, Governor James H. Peabody is declared to be a usurper. Governor Peabody is compared by Richardson to a soldier drunk with power, and his acts in trying to suppress the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus compared to the acts of tyranny practiced on the people of England by the olden kings.
Richardson, in his brief, attacks the decision of the Supreme Court of Idaho in a similar case, and says it is the only court in the country that has said that the military was above the judiciary. He says that the decision does not follow precedent or commonsense, and that the Judges of the Supreme Court of Colorado should not consider it when deciding the present case.
The Legislature alone, Richardson says , has the authority to determine when the conditions require the suspension of the privilege of habeas corpus and then to suspend it.
PUEBLO (Col.).-April 30.-Because Charles Demolli, a former organizer of the United Mine Workers, failed to appear to-day as complaining witness against Oreste Pagnini, charged with being the ringleader of a gang whichassaulted the Italian labor leader several weeks ago, the case was dismissed by Justice McCallip. Pagnini, however, will be held on a complaint sworn to by William Gearhard, charging him with assaulting Demolli with intent to kill. Demolli is in the coal fields of Kansas and is in communication with friends here.
INDIANAPOLIS (Ind.), April 30.-The Colorado situation was again taken up at to-day’s session of the national executive board of the United Mine Workers of America……
President Mitchell has telegraphed to “Mother” Jones, who is being held in quarantine near Price, Utah, directing her to report to him in person in this city as soon as possible. He says that there is no significance attached to this, and that the order was issued because the work in the district 15 at the present time is scarcely suitable for a women.
Hellraisers Journal – Monday March 28, 1904
Colorado Governor Peabody Plots Further Deportations from Strike Zones
From the strike zones of Colorado comes news of further actions being taken against strike leaders by Governor Peabody. In Trinidad, where the United Mine Workers are conducting a strike against the coal operators, the military is planning to deport Mother Jones and other leaders from the strike zone.
In the strike zones of Telluride and Cripple Creek, posters and flyers (see below) printed by the Western Federation of Miners and authorized by Charles Moyer, President, and Big Bill Haywood, Secretary-Treasurer, were distributed. As a result, Moyer has been taken into custody for “desecration” of the flag.
From The New York Times of March 27, 1904:
TO RUN LABOR LEADERS OUT OF COLORADO
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“Mother” Jones and Mine Agitators
Among Those to Go.
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MINERS’ PRESIDENT ARRESTED ———- Charged with Desecrating the American Flag -Italian Paper Seized by Militia and Censorship Established. ———
Special to the New York Times.
DENVER. March 26.-Gov. Peabody and Attorney General Miller held a conference this afternoon at the Capitol, at which a programme of deportation was decided upon for Trinidad. After the meeting the Governor wired Major Hill to prepare to deport all non-resident labor leaders from the district.
A special train will be secured and the leaders referred to will be taken outside the State and left there. The names on the deportation slate include those of Mother Jones of Pennsylvania, W. R. Fairley of Alabama, William Wardjon of Iowa, Chris Evans of Indiana, and Edward [Charles] Demolli of Utah.
The local companies assert that if the miner agitators are taken out of the district two-thirds of the strikers will return to work. The fact that they are non-residents will prevent them from securing injunctions or habeas corpus writs, the privilege granted a citizens of the State.
At Trinidad to-day the office of the Anarchistic weekly paper, Il Trovotore Italiano [Il Lavoratore Italiano], was seized by a squad of soldiers and this week’s issue, which was ready for distribution, was confiscated. It is charge that the paper had incited strikers to violence. Major Hill has established a press censorship.
[Note: Il Lavoratore Italiano is an Italian-language newspaper published since 1902 in Trinidad, Colorado, which serves as the official organ of the United Mines Workers’ District 15.]
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OURAY, Col, March 26.-Charles Moyer, President of the Western Federation of Miners, was arrestedhere to-day on charge of desecrating the American flag, and started overland for Telluride.
President Moyer was arrested on warrant which charge that he used pictures of the flag with inscriptions painted between the bars as poster.
Hellraisers Journal – Tuesday March 18, 1913 Paterson, New Jersey – Silk Strikers Will Not Scab Under The Flag
From the Paterson Evening News of March 17, 1913:
The patriotic demonstration of the manufacturers of Paterson [for their self-declared “Flag Day”] proved rather disappointing in its result this morning, for when the whistles blew at all of the mills represented in the manufacturers’ association, the expected rush of workers to get back to their loom did not occur.
Saturday afternoon, a huge flag was stretched across Market street, near Paterson, with the legend under it: “We Live Under This Flag, We Work Under This Flag and We Will Defend This Flag.”
The Socialist retorted by stretching a flag to the wind in front of their headquarters bearing the words: “We Won’t Scab Under This Flag.” and the I.W. W. distributed a number of small buttonhole flags to the workers bearing the same words and instructed the pickets at the mill to show the flag to any of the workers who wanted to go back.
[…..]
Display of American Flag Not Very General.
While nearly all the mills hung out the American flag, the appeal to patriotism did not meet with very much success, as far as the strikers returning to work was concerned. The request that merchants display the National colors, disclosed the fact that only two American flags were hung to the breeze along Market street. At the Socialist headquarters on Main street an American flag has been hung and beneath a sign bearing this inscription was hung: “Dont Scab Under This Flag.” This is the slogan that has been adopted by the strikers in answer to the call of the manufacturers.
[…..]
Efforts of Strikers to Prevent Break In Strike is Successful.
Many who have been following the strike carefully believed that a break would occur this morning in many of the mills of all those out on strike. A committee meeting of the ribbon weavers held in Helvetia Hall, yesterday afternoon, indicated the fact that this branch of the industry are standing more firm than ever before. Practically every delegate who was present stated that the strikers had expressed the sentiment that unless the manufacturers granted them some demands they would not return to work. This is practically the same feeling that exists among the greater majority of the broad silk weaver and dyers. They are all determined to remain firm in their stand and will not return to work until the manufacturers have made some counter compromise.
[…..]
Haywood Arrives at Turn Hall.
[As Miss Flynn was addressing the strikers, meeting] Haywood arrived from New York city. He was met at the depot by Organizer Koettgen. There was no police escort this time to take him to police headquarters, so he continue to Turn Hall without interference. He listened attentively to Miss Flyn who continued her remarks […..and] followed with an address…which was well received and which will be printed in The News tomorrow.
Hellraisers Journal, Sunday July 28, 1918
Chicago, Illinois – Testimony of Ralph Chaplin
Report from Defendant Harrison George:
Ralph Chaplin, defendant, artist-poet, and editor of “Solidarity” during 1917, took the stand on the morning of July 19th, 1918, and gave an account of how his life’s events had influenced his conclusions upon industrial and political questions. Born in Kansas thirty years ago, he had studied art at night-school while working during the day-time in the darkroom, “Spot-knocking” photographs. Later, another boss, knowing he was a “scissor-bill,” had him pledge $10 a week out of a $16 wage to invest $500 in the boss’ business. When that was paid in, the boss told him to go to hell and got another victim. This $500 was recovered because Chaplin was a minor when the contract was made; so he took this and started into business for himself with the ambition to be “independent.” But—he found a trust controlled all supplies and he was unable to buy anywhere and had to quit. So he went back to the easel, working for wages.
He then went to Mexico for one year and noted the extreme poverty of the peon class under the Diaz regime. Coming back, he had worked for the Chicago Portrait Company until the artists struck against conditions there. When that strike was lost he went to West Virginia, where he did artist work in the coal mining region. For several years previous he had been an enthusiastic member of the Socialist Party, “soap-boxing” and writing articles.
In West Virginia he did much work on the “Socialist and Labor Star” at Charleston [Huntington], which paper became the spokesman for the U. M. W. of A. coal miners’ strike at Paint Creek and Cabin Creek. During this strike Chaplin acquired his hatred of the labor-crushing militia. He described to the jury the “Bull Moose Special,” an armored train, built by union machinists in the C. & O. shops, loop-holed for machine guns and rifles; a train that was manned by Baldwin-Felts detectives and commanded by Quinn Morton, a company superintendent, and in the darkness run through the strikers’ colony at Holly Grove, belching death to men, women and children.
Chaplin came out of that strike zone with undying hate for industrial tyranny. He had written many poems about that strike and Vanderveer read them to the jury: “What Happened in the Hollow,” “The Mine Guard,” “When the Leaves Come Out,” and “Too Rotten Rank for Hell.” The latter Vanderveer asked about. “Does it express your contempt for the prostitute newspaper men?” “Well,” said Chaplin, “a part of it.”
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