Tag: United Mine Workers of America

Hellraisers Journal: Pennsylvania Report Shows Grim Record of Death on the Job for Anthracite Coal Miners

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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Pray for the dead and fight
like hell for the living.
-Mother Jones

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

Hellraisers Journal, Friday December 29, 1916
Anthracite Coalfields, Pennsylvania – 333 Miners Killed in 9 Months

From the December 28th edition of the Northwest Worker:

333 MINERS MEET DEATH
IN 9 MONTHS
—–

PENNSYLVANIA REPORT SHOWS THAT
THE WAGE AVERAGE OF VICTIMS
WAS ONLY $13.80 A WEEK.
—–

PN Miners Killed on Job, Mt Carmel Item, Jan 11, 1916

HARRISBURG, Pa.-working for an average weekly wage of only $13.80, 333 anthracite coal miners in this State were killed and 6,958 disabled for periods greater than two weeks during the first nine months of 1916. These are official figures of the State Department of Labor and Industry.

There were 233 married men among those killed, and they left 481 fatherless children behind. If it were not for the workmen’s compensation act these men’s families would be left to starve, for, in the vast majority of cases, the miners had not been able to save a cent of their wages. As it is 181 of the fatal cases have been adjusted, the payments to be about $2,505 for each man killed, or a total of $453,499.80 for all cases.

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Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for November 1916: Pays Visit to President Wilson with Labor Delegation

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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I am loyally yours for a damn fine fight.
-Mother Jones

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

Hellraisers Journal, Saturday December 16, 1916
Mother Jones Found in Washington D. C. During November

We pause to review the activities of Mother Jones, that fearless champion of the cause of working-class men, women and children in their struggle for industrial freedom. We first find her remembered for her work on behalf of the children of the mills when she led them on the March of the Mill Children during the summer of 1903.

From the Iowa Bayard Advocate of November 2, 1916:

TENEMENT CHILDREN WILL
VISIT WILSON
—–
Their Welcome Will Be Unlike That
Once Given at Oyster Bay.
—–

Mother Mary Harris Jones, Logansport, IN, Sept 27, 1916New York, Oct. 28.-Fifty mothers of New York’s east side, with their children, who have been emancipated from sweatshops by the enactment of

the child labor law, are going to Shadow Lawn, Saturday, in person to thank President Wilson.

A “kind lady,” who prefers to conceal her identity, has donated a special car to be attached to one of the trains bearing pilgrims from New York to Shadow Lawn to hear the president’s address on “Wilson day.” The children will carry armsful of artificial flowers which they used to make in the factories, before their emancipation.

No such pilgrimage of the children of the poor has been attempted since the one when Theodore Roosevelt was president of the United States and a carload of children from the Pennsylvania coal mines [textile mills] journeyed to the summer capital at Oyster Bay to petition for a national child labor law.

“Mother Jones,” who conducted that excursion, told recently in public of the refusal of the guards at Oyster Bay to allow the children to pass the outer gate, and of their return home to wait 14 years for a Woodrow Wilson to set them free.

[Photograph added.]

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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: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for October 1916: Aids New York Street Car Strike & Campaigns for Democrats in Illinois and Kentucky

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

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

Hellraisers Journal, Thursday November 9, 1916
Mother Jones News Round-Up for month of October, 1916

UMWJ, Feb 10, 1916, Cover, Mother Jones, TVP, Pres White

During the month of October, Mother was first found in New York City advising the wives of the street car strikers to put on their fighting clothes and go out and raise hell. Her words greatly shocked the kept press, the same press which is never much shocked whenever workers are killed on the job, or beaten, shot, and otherwise brutalized on the picket line by the powers-that-be.

Mother was next found in Illinois and Kentucky campaigning for the re-election of President Wilson and Senator Kern. She was sent into the region by the United Mine Workers of America to speak to the miners and other working men.

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Hellraisers Journal: Walsh Blames “Brutal Slave Driving Methods” of Rockefeller’s Standard Oil for Trouble at Bayonne

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, Tuesday November 7, 1916
New York, New York – Frank P. Walsh on Bayonne Strike

From The Labor World of November 4, 1916:

BAYONNE TROUBLE FAULT OF OIL CO. SAYS FRANK WALSH
—–

Frank P Walsh from Harper's Weekly of Sept 27, 1913

NEW YORK, Nov. 2.-“Wherever there is a big Rockefeller interest, there you find brutal slave driving methods in the treatment of underpaid workers,” declared Frank P. Walsh, chairman of the Committee on Industrial Relations, in New York, at the height of the Bayonne strike.

[Mr. Walsh continued:]

The most dangerous as well as brutal feature of the Rockefeller treatment of labor, is the close control that the Rockefeller concerns gain over the police and other public authorities. With the mayor of Bayonne confessing that he is a hired attorney for the Rockefeller interests, and with the police department using its full force, and hundreds of special deputies [deputized company gunthugs] to beat and kill the revolting strikers, the American public has its latest demonstration of what Rockefellerism means.

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Hellraisers Journal: Women, Children, and Elderly Driven from Their Homes in New York and Illinois

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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The bosses ride fine horses
While we walk in the mud,
Their banner is the dollar sign,
Ours is striped with blood.
-Aunt Molly Jackson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hellraisers Journal, Tuesday October 31, 1916
Immigrant or American-Born, Neither Matters When Workers Strike

Today’s Hellraisers presents two stories of striking workers driven from their homes by company gunthugs. The strikers in Utica, New York, are mostly Polish immigrants. In Hardin County, Illinois, there are very few immigrants, most of the strikers are second or third generation Americans. But we find from these two stories that neither the striker of foreign birth nor the native-born striker can expect any mercy from the gunthugs hired by the companies and deputized by the county sheriff.

From the Duluth Labor World of October 28, 1916:

2,700 POLISH TEXTILE STRIKERS DRIVEN
FROM HOMES IN NEW YORK
—–

BRUTAL GUARDS ASSAULT WOMEN
TEXTILE WORKERS
—–
By DANTE BARTON.
Member Industrial Relations Committee.

A. D. Juilliard (1836-1919), wiki

NEW YORK, Oct. 26.-Right in the heart of central New York, prosperous and boasting of its wealth, there is now an example of cruelty, incompetence and lawlessness against striking workers which rivals the things done in Colorado by the Rockefeller interests, or on the Mesaba range or in Pittsburgh, by the Steel trust.

Just outside of Utica, in the little town of New York Mills, 2,700 Polish men and women, industrious and peaceful, are being thrown out of company houses, terrorized and assaulted by armed thugs and guards, their children sickened and in many instances killed by the diseases of exposure; themselves and their families subjected to starvation and sickness.

These things are being perpetrated against them by their employer, the New York Mills corporation, of which A. D. Juilliard, New York city, is the responsible president, because they have struck for a 10 per cent increase of wages that are too low, by any standard, for decent living.

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Hellraisers Journal: Whereabouts & Doings of Mother Jones for July 1916: Pays Visit to Atlanta, Georgia

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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The future of this country is
in the hands of the women,
but they must wake up
and they must demand.
-Mother Jones

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

Hellraisers Journal, Thursday September 21, 1916
Mother Jones Interviewed During July Visit to Atlanta, Georgia

From The Atlanta Constitution of July 9, 1916:

Mother Jones, Atlanta Constitution, July 12, 1916

“Mother” Jones Will Reach Atlanta
Monday on a Secret Mission
—–

“Mother” Jones, famous internationally for her work for miners, will arrive in Atlanta Monday morning on a mission, the nature of which she refuses to disclose in advance, and for a visit of indefinite duration.

She is coming directly from Washington, D. C., and will be met upon arrival by a party of local friends, headed by Jerome Jones, who Saturday received a telegram from William Green, Chicago, secretary of the United Mine Workers of America, announcing “Mother” Jones intention to pay this city a call.

The visit of “Mother” Jones to Atlanta while the general assembly is in session would in itself be somewhat significant, because she is noted as a lobbyist and worker for laws which are intended to brighten and lighten the lot of the laborer. Many take her visit just at this time, with a factory inspection-child labor and factory labor bill on the calendar for debate and vote in the house during the week, as especially significant, and in all probability the week’s legislative grind will be materially enlivened by her presence in the city, if not in the lobbies and the galleries at the capitol.

“Mother” Jones-she is known by no other name-is a unique and at once an extraordinary American woman. About 80 years old, she has devoted the greater part of her life thus far to the cause of labor, and most of her years have been spent in the mining camps of the west, although she is equally well-known among the underground workers of every other section of the country and in Canada.

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Hellraisers Journal: “Educate and Agitate!” Mother Jones Speaks at Labor Day Picnic in Evansville, Indiana

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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The miners need no angel.
They are living in hell
and they want to raise hell.
-Mother Jones

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

Hellraisers Journal, Wednesday September 6, 1916
Evansville, Indiana – Labor Day Speech of Mother Jones

From the Evansville Courier of September 5, 1916:

WILSON AND KERN LABOR’S FRIENDS
—–
Mother Jones Tells 10,000, Gathered for Labor Day,
Their Duty to Re-elect Them
—–
HAVE PROVED THEIR WORTH
—–
“Educate and Agitate” Is Her Remedy to Bring About
Further Social Reforms
—–
Tells of Her Work in West Virginia and Colorado
in Behalf of Miners
—–
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Hellraisers Journal: Mother Jones in Evansville, Indiana, for Labor Day Celebration, Comes Out for Wilson

Janet RayeHellraisers Journal
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When there’s a fight on, I go.
-Mother Jones

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

Hellraisers Journal, Tuesday September 5, 1916
Evansville, Indiana – Two Interviews with Mother Jones

The people of Evansville were fortunate enough to enjoy the presence of Mother Jones at their Labor Day celebration yesterday. While in Evansville, Mother was interviewed by two of the town’s newspapers-which interviews we are pleased to offer in full.

From the Evansville Press of September 4, 1916:

Mother Jones, Evansville (IN) Press, Labor Day Sept 4, 1916

MOTHER JONES DEMANDS 6-HOUR DAY;
WANTS WILSON
—–

Eight-hour day! Huh!

Mother Jones, in Evansville Monday to speak at the Labor day picnic, thinks that six hours a day is enough.

(White-haired, she has, at 86, a complexion 16 might envy-rose and snow she is!)
Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Mother Jones in Evansville, Indiana, for Labor Day Celebration, Comes Out for Wilson” →

Hellraisers Journal: Eugene V. Debs on “The Socialist Party and the Trade Unions,” Part III

Janet RayeEugene Victor Debs
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The working class and the employing class have nothing in common.
There can be no peace so long as hunger and want are found
among millions of working people and the few, who
make up the employing class, have
all the good things of life
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sunday August 5, 1906
From The Worker: Debs on Leaving the A. F. of L.

Eugene Debs, Wilshire's Magazine, Nov 1905

Over the past few days we have been offering the response made by Eugene V. Debs to questions posed by the New York Worker regarding the debate on the relation of the Socialist Party of America to the trades unions. Today’s installment is part three of four parts.

The Worker introduces what it calls a symposium:

The question of the relation of the Socialist Party to the trade unions having again attracted attention within our ranks, The Worker has inaugurated a symposium to which representative comrades are being invited to contribute, setting forth various points view.

Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: Eugene V. Debs on “The Socialist Party and the Trade Unions,” Part III” →