Hellraisers Journal: Fresno Jailers Turn Fire Hoses on Fellow Workers, Jailed for Fighting for the Right to Speak in Public

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Quote John Whyte, re Fresno Aroused Working Class, IW p1, Dec 22, 1910———-

Hellraisers Journal – Tuesday December 27, 1910
Fresno, California – Jailed Fellow Workers Given “Water Cure” 

From The Fresno Morning Republican of December 24, 1910:

Fresno FSF, re Water Cure, FMR p1, Dec 24, 1910

As the result of a second hostile demonstration in two days on the part of eighty Industrial Workers of the World, a fire hose attached to engine No. 5 was brought into play at 6 o’clock last night at the jail. For twenty minutes the howling prisoners put up a frenzied but futile resistance, and were finally subdued. This method of enforcing discipline within the confines of the jail proved effective and half an hour later the men informed Sheriff Chittenden that they would respect prison rules in the future.

From early morning until 6:30 last night the I. W. W.’s stormed within the jail. The riot was continuous and the authorities were powerless in their efforts to quell the raving Industrialists.

One minute they were singing their “Red Flag” song and the next they were climbing up the bars of the “bull pen” cursing and fuming. Not content with abusing officers and yelling with all the strength their lungs afforded, the men rushed to the windows and hurled insulting remarks to men, women, and children who were passing through the court house park.

Riot Lasts All Day.

The second riot started at 8 o’clock yesterday morning when the trusties appeared at the bull pen with a quantity of bread and water. The obscene demonstration of Thursday night, when the eighty I. W. W.’s wilfully broke the jail rules, resulted in an order from Sheriff Chittenden to place the men on a bread and water diet.

When breakfast arrived the Industrialists rebelled and the sight of the loaves of bread and buckets of water fanned the flames of fury within them. As the bread passed in the men in a long line accepted the loaves. After all had been served the riot began. As if from a gattling gun the loaves were hurled at the trusties and Major Ed Jones, day jailer. In the afternoon at 4 o’clock the men were again offered bread and water but they refused to eat a bite and declared with a shower of oaths that they would starve to death before they would partake of a bite of bread.

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