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The
People of the State of Illinois vs. August Spies et al.
Evidence - People's Exhibit 63
"Blood"
Translated transcription of article published in the Arbeiter-Zeitung,
May 4, 1886
First introduced during testimony of Eugene Seeger (Vol. K pp. 683-690)
May
4th,
Arbeiter Zeitung (Local column).
Blood!
Lead and powder as a cure for dissatisfied workmen!
About six laborers mortally, and four times that
number slightly wounded.
Thus are the eight hour men to be intimidated!
This is law and order!
Brave girls parading the city!
The law and order beasts frightens the hungry
children away with clubs.
General news.
Six
months ago when the eight hour movement began, there were speakers and
journals of the I. A. A. who proclaimed and wrote: "Workmen, if
you want to see the eight hour system introduced, arm yourself. (If
you do not do this, you will be sent home with bloody heads and the
birds will sing May songs upon your graves." "That is nonsense,"
was the reply. "If the workmen are organized they will gain the
eight hours in their Sunday clothes." Well, what do you say now?
Were we right or wrong? Would the occurrence of yesterday have been
possible if our advice had been followed?
Wage
workers, yesterday, the police of this city murdered at the McCormick
factory so far as it can now be ascertained, four of your brothers,
and wounded, more or less seriously, some 25 more. If brothers who defended
themselves with stones (a few of them had little snappers in the shape
of revolvers) had been provided with good weapons and one single dynamite
bomb, not one of the murderers would have escaped his well merited fate.
As it was, only four of them were disfigured. That is too bad. The massacre
of yesterday took place in order to fill the forty thousand workman
of this city with fear and terror---took place in order to force back
into the yoke of slavery the laborers who had become dissatisfied and
mutinous. Will they succeed in this? Will they not find at last that
they miscalculated? The near future will answer this question. We will
not anticipate the course of events with surmises.
The
employes in the lumber yards on the south side held a meeting yesterday
afternoon at the Black Road, about one quarter mile north from McCormick's
factory, for the purpose of adopting resolutions in regard to their
demands, and to appoint a committee to wait upon a committee of lumber
yard owners and present the demands which had been agreed upon. It was
a gigantic mass that had gathered. Several members of
the lumber yard union mades short addresses in English, Bohemian, German
and Polish. Mr. Fehling attempted to speak, But when the crowd learned
that he was a Socialist, he was stoned and compelled to leave the improvised
speakers stand on a freight car. Then, after a few more addresses were
made the president introduced Mr. August Spies, who had been invited
as a speaker. A Pole or Bohemian cried out "That is a Socialist,"
and again there arose a storm of disapprobation and a roaring noise
which proved sufficiently that these ignorant people had been incited
against the socialists by their priests. But the speaker did not lose
his presence of mind. He continued speaking, and very soon the utmost
quiet prevailed. He told them that they must realize their strength
over against a little handful of lumber yard owners, that they must
not recede from the demands once made by them; the issue lay in their
hands; all they needed was resolution, and the "Bosses" would
be compelled to, and would, give in.
At this
moment some persons in the back ground cried out (either in Polish or
Bohemian) "On to McCormick's. Let us drive off the scabs"!
About 200 men left the crowd and ran towards McCormick's.
The
speaker did not know what was the matter, and continued his speech.
When he had finished, he was appointed a member
of a committee to notify the "Bosses" that the strikers had
no concession to make. Then a Pole spoke. While he spoke a Patrol wagon
rushed by towards McCormick's The crowd began to break up. In about
three minutes several shots were heard near McCormick's factory, and
these were followed by others. At the same time about 75 well fed, large
and strong murderers, under the command of a fat police lieutenant,
were marching towards the factory, and on their heels followed three
patrol wagons besides, full of law an order beats. 200 policemen were
on the spot in less than 10 or 15 minutes, and the firing on fleeing
workmen and women resembled a promiscuous bush-hunt. The writer of this
hastened to the factory as soon as the first shots were fired, and a
comrade urged the assembly to hasten to the rescue of their brothers
who were being murdered, but no one stirred. "What do we care for
that?" was the stupid answer of poltroons brought up to cowardice.
The writer fell in with a young Irishman who knew him. "What miserable
sons of b--- are those "he shouted to him" who will not turn
a hand while their brothers are being shot down in cold blood? We have
dragged away two. I think they are dead. If you have any influence with
the people, for heaven's sake run back and urge them to follow you."
The writer ran back, he implored the people to come along--those who
had revolvers in their pockets, but it was in vain.
With an exasperating indifference they put their hands in their pockets
and marched home babbling as if the whole affair did not concern them
in the least. The revolvers were still cracking, and fresh detachments
of police, here and there bombarded with stones, were hastening to the
battle ground. The battle was lost.
It was
in the neighborhood of half past three o'clock when the little crowd
of between two and three hundred men reached McCormick's factory. Policeman
West tried to hold them back with his revolver. A shower of stones for
an answer put him to flight. He was so roughly handled that he was afterwards
found about one hundred paces from the place, half dead and groaning
fearfully. The small crowd shouted: "Get out you D-----d scab,
you miserable traitors," and bombarded the factory windows with
stones. The little guard house was demolished. The "Scabs"
were in mortal terror, when at this moment the Hinman street patrol
wagon, summoned by telephone, came rattling along with thirteen murderers,
when they were about to make an immediate attack with their clubs, they
were received with a shower of stones. "Back, disperse," cried
the lieutenant, and the next minute there was a report. The gang had
fired on the strikers. They pretend subsequently that they shot over
their heads. But be that as it may, a (few of the strikers had little
snappers of revolvers, and with these returned the
fire. In the meantime other detachments had arrived, and the whole band
of murderers now opened fire on the little company---20,000, as estimated
by the police organ, The Herald, while the whole assembly scarcely numbered
8,000. Such lies are told. With their weapons, mainly stones, the people
fought with admirable bravery. They laid out half a dozen blue coats,
and their round bellies, developed to extreme fatness in idleness and
luxury, tumbled about, groaning on the ground. Four of the fellows are
said to be very dangerously wounded, many others, alas; escaped with
lighter injuries. (The gang, of course, conceals this, just as in '77
they carefully concealed the number of those who were made to bite the
dust.) But it looked worse on the side of the defenseless workmen. Dozens
who had received slight shot wounds hastened away amid the bullets which
were sent after them. The gang, as always, fired upon the fleeing, while
women and men carried away the severely wounded. How many were really
injured and how many were mortally wounded cannot be determined with
certainty, but we think we are not mistaken when we place the number
of the mortally wounded at about six, and those slightly injured at
about two dozen. We know of four, of whom one was shot in the spleen,
another in the forehead, another in the breast, and another in the thigh.
A dying boy, Joseph Doedick, was brought home on
an express wagon by two policemen. The people did not see the dying
boy; they saw only the two murderers. "Lynch the rascals,"
clamored the crowd. The fellows wanted to break away and hide themselves;
but in vain. They had already thrown a rope around the neck of one of
them, when a patrol wagon rattled into the midst of the crowd and prevented
the praiseworthy deed. Joseph Hess, who had put the rope around his
neck, was arrested.
The
scabs were afterwards conducted under the protection of a strong escort
down Blue Island Avenue. Women and children gave vent to their indignation
in angry shouts; rotten eggs whizzed through the air. The men about
took things cooly and smoked their pipes as on a Kirmess day.
McCormick's
assistant, superintendent C. J. Bemly, was also wounded, and, indeed,
quite severely.
The
following strikers were arrested: Ignatz Erban, Frank Kohling, Joseph
Schuky, Tomas Klafski, John Patolski, Anton Sevieski, Albert Supitar,
Hugh McWhifter, Anton Stirnack, Nick Wolna and Thomas O'Connell.
The
"pimp" McCormick, when asked what he thought of it, said "August
Spies made a speech to a few thousand anarchists It occurred to one
of these "brilliant heads" to frighten our men away. He put
himself at the head of a crowd, which then made an attack upon our works.
Our workmen fled, and in the meantime the police
came and sent a lot of anarchists away with bleeding heads."
Last
night thousands of copies of the following circular were distributed
in all parts of the city:
Revenge! Revenge!
Workmen, to arms!
Men
of labor, this afternoon the bloodhounds of your oppressors murdered
six of your brothers at McCormick's. Why did they murder them? Because
they dared to be dissatisfied with the lot which your oppressors have
assigned to them. They demanded bread, and they gave them lead for an
answer, mindful of the fact that thus people are most effectually silenced.
You have for many, many years endured every humiliation without protest,
have drudged from early in the morning till late at night, have suffered
all sorts of privations, have even sacrificed your children. You have
done everything to fill the coffers of your masters---everything for
them! and now, when you approach them and implore them to make your
burden a little lighter, as a reward for your sacrifices they sent their
bloodhounds, the police, at you, in order to cure you with bullets of
your dissatisfaction. Slaves, we ask and conjure you by all that is
sacred and dear to you, avenge the atrocious murder which has been committed
upon your brothers to-day, and which will likely be committed upon you
to-morrow. Laboring men, Hercules, you have arrived
at the crossway. Which way will you decide. For Slavery and hunger,
or for freedom and bread? If you decide for the latter, then do not
delay a moment; then, people to arms! Annihilation to the beasts in
human form who call themselves rulers! Uncompromising annihilation to
them! This must be your motto. Think of the heroes whose blood has fertilized
the road to progress, liberty and humanity, and strive to become worthy
of them!
Your
Brothers.
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