By Senator Reyburn:
Q. What is your full name?
A. C. G. Barnett. They call me Neall for short.
Q. Where do you reside?
A. I live 296 Centre avenue.
Q. What is your occupation?
A. I am solicitor for the Consolidated Gas Company.
Q. Were you present on Saturday, the 21st of July?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. At Twenty-eighth street?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Be kind enough to describe what came under your observation?
A. I will tell you how I got there. I live on Centre avenue, and I came
over the hill to our works. I went over there about dinner time, and
stayed at the works until about three o'clock. I had nothing more to do
that day, and I thought I would come up and see what the railroad men
were doing. I stopped there, I suppose, until about half past three,
and the train came in with the Philadelphia soldiers on, so I got
talking, like the rest of the men around there, and I stayed there, and
they finally commenced to holler, and they said, "There comes the
Philadelphia soldiers." I knew a young fellow in the Philadelphia
troops, by the name of Deal, and I thought I would get to see him. I
looked along the line, and finally found him; he was at the lower part.
As they came up they divided off.
Q. What is his name?
A. Willie Deal; he lives in Philadelphia. When the soldiers came up,
the first I saw was Sheriff Fife, General Pearson, Captain Moore, and
then the soldiers came up. I was talking with Deal awhile, and he says,
"You had better get out of here," and I finally walked up towards the
switch-house, at the corner of Twenty-eighth and the railroad track,
and I got up, standing beside the switch-house, and I took notice of a
few boys commencing to lift up some small stones that did not amount to
much; of course it would hurt a person to be hit with them. I told the
boys, "You had better quit that, you will get into trouble." They said
they were having some fun. I said it was wrong kind of fun to have.
Then there was a squad of about twenty-five soldiers came up in the
center, and they commenced to shove the crowd back, and the first thing
I saw I heard the command to fire given. I thought it was about time to
get down, and I got around to the side. I could still see the soldiers,
and the first thing I heard was General Pearson giving the command to
fire.
Q. You heard General Pearson?
A. I heard him just as distinctly as you are speaking to me.
Q. Do you know General Pearson?
A. I do, sir; that is, I am acquainted with him to see him. I have
lived in this town all my life, and I know him as well as my own
brother to see him.
Q. How was he dressed that day?
A. He had a blouse on. I should judge it buttoned up to about there.
[Indicating.] A plain blouse; I do not think there was any trimmings on
it, except the buttons. It was buttoned up.
Q. Did he have a sword?
A. That I would not positively say. I did not pay that much attention
to him.
Q. Did any of the officers have swords, or did you notice the other
officers?
A. I noticed an officer that was pointed out to me as General Brinton.
Q. Did he have a sword?
A. He had a sword.
Q. The captains of the companies had swords?
A. The officers had, yes, sir.
Q. All had swords?
A. Yes; but I would not say positively that General Pearson had a sword
on, because I did not take that particular notice of him. I did not
think it was necessary. I did not know they would ever have any
trouble.
Q. You are sure you heard Pearson give the command?
A. I did, sir.
Q. Where was he standing?
A. He was standing--there was a car between the sand-house and the
round-house, and General Pearson was standing at the far end of the
car, towards the Union depot, in the neighborhood of the sand-house.
Q. That is on the round-house side?
A. Yes; that is on the round-house side--that old sand-house.
Q. Where did the first fire come from?
A. The first fire was on the side that the round-house was on, about
midway of the soldiers. Some of them fired up in the air, and after the
first volley--there is a road runs up the hill, the way I came
down--after the first volley I thought it was getting warm, and I would
get out of that and get home. I run about half way, and there was a
little boy that was shot right there, and I grabbed the boy as I was
running. I just grabbed him and took him with me, and there was a
little hollow there where the water runs, and I thought that was a safe
place for myself and the boy both. After the firing there was a boy
standing there, and I said, "You had better go and get Doctor
McCandless." After the firing stopped, I carried the boy to a little
shanty house, and laid him down there. This other boy went for the
doctor.
Q. When Pearson gave the command, what became of him?
A. I did not notice.
Q. You are right sure he gave the command "fire?" He did not say not to
fire?
A. No; he gave the order to fire. I heard it distinctly.
Q. You are sure it was Pearson--you could distinguish Pearson among the
crowd of officers?
A. As a military man, I have heard him give orders. Have heard him time
and time and time again, and I know a man's voice when I hear it very
often.
Q. What did he have on--a hat?
A. I think he had a soft hat--black soft hat, with a rim about that
wide [indicating]--it may have been wider, but I did not pay particular
attention to it--did not pay enough attention to him to know that he
had a sword, because I did not think it was necessary.
Q. Did you see the troops come out of the round-house the next day?
A. After the firing was over, about five o'clock, I went home, and a
gentleman by the name of Root, that boards in the house with me--after
supper I says, "Suppose we go over and see what is going on over the
hill." We went over and stayed there awhile--did not go down. The next
Sunday morning, about one o'clock, I heard an alarm, and I got out of
my room and went through the hall and rapped at the door. Says I,
"There is an alarm of fire. I bet that's the railroad property." Says
he, "Oh, no." I went back to bed, and stayed there until the next
morning about seven o'clock. I got up and went over the hill, and about
eight o'clock--I think it was eight o'clock, I would not say for
certain--the Philadelphia soldiers went out of the round-house. I was
away up on the hill.
Q. Did you see them come out?
A. I saw a crowd. I could not distinguish. I was five or six hundred
yards away from them.
Q. You were up on the hill?
A. You can't see very well, because of the smoke and one thing or
other--I would not say for certain it was them.
Q. You do not know anything that occurred. Did you see any police in
this crowd when you went there Saturday--when you went to see this
friend of yours?
A. I think I saw one or two police--I think I saw two police.
Q. Were they making an effort to keep the crowd back, and keep them
orderly?
A. One of these police talked to a man on the corner of Liberty and
Twenty-eighth street, right at the end of the Pennsylvania shops. I
judged, from the way he was talking to him, that he wanted him to go
home. I was not near enough to him to tell.
Q. There was no force there sufficient to make any impression on the
crowd?
A. There was nothing necessary for force. The men were quiet. Of course
they were standing on the railroad track, but there was no noise. They
were quiet, peaceable men. There was nothing until the Philadelphia
soldiers came. That was the commencement of it.
Q. When the sheriff came up, what did the crowd--did they say anything
or do anything?
A. Not until the squad of about twenty-five soldiers came up in the
center. Then they commenced to shove, and they had not room to get out.
I suppose if they had given them five minutes, they could have got
away.
Q. Did the sheriff make any call upon the crowd to disperse?
A. Not that I saw.
Q. You were talking with this friend of yours?
A. He told me to get out, and I walked toward the switch-house. Says
he, "Neall, go away; if there is anything happens here you will get
hurt," and I took his advice.
Q. What led him to say that?
A. I do not know. That is exactly what he told me.
Q. Were there not stones being thrown, that led this man to think there
would be trouble?
A. No; he was at the lower end, towards the Union depot.
Q. Could he not see?
A. Not where he was standing.
Q. Was there not a crowd making an attack upon the soldiers, and that
there was likely to be trouble?
A. Not at that time. They were not throwing any stones until I got to
the switch-house, and then I saw the boys throwing stones.
Q. Was the crowd resisting the soldiers?
A. Not at that time. This middle division had not gone up. Just as they
started, he told me to get out of there.
Q. When they got up, didn't the crowd resist them?
A. I think if they had given them five minutes there would have been no
trouble. There was a great many men tried to get away, and the crowd
held them back.
Q. Was it men there like yourself, or was it men there to resist the
soldiers?
A. There was a great many men I knew had nothing to do with the
Pennsylvania. They were there just standing looking on.
Q. If you went through a crowd like that, you could judge whether there
were men there to resist the soldiers, or whether they were there out
of curiosity?
A. I should judge that the most of them were there out of curiosity,
and I did not know the feeling of the men. I never go up that
direction, unless I am on business.
Q. Did you see any efforts made by the police during Sunday to stop the
burning?
A. I was not near the railroad track on Sunday. I stood away up on the
hill--not until Sunday evening, until half past seven, and then came
down by the car way, and came down to the Union depot. There I saw a
lot of police stopping the men from carrying away ale. I should
judge--from the looks of the barrels--what they call Milwaukee ale or
beer.
Q. Milwaukee ale or beer?
A. Beer, I suppose. It is not our style of keg that is made in
Pittsburgh here. I do not drink enough for to know that. I know it was
beer or ale.
By Mr. Means:
Q. Had you any trouble getting through the crowd when you wanted to get
away on Saturday?
A. No, sir. I ran alongside of the hill, while there was very few
people.
Q. You were right down the railroad among the soldiers?
A. I did see a lot of guns there, said to be Knapp's battery, lying at
the watch-house--that was all the trouble. Just as I got away from the
mob, I had no trouble at all--I could run away along the hill.
Q. Would it have been any trouble for the crowd to get away when the
soldiers came up to ask them to fall back?
A. I think some of them could get away--not all the crowd, because
there was cars on the other side of Twenty-eighth street, lying in
there, and they got in round the cars, and could not get out.
Q. You said three fourths of the men there were spectators?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. What did the other fourth come there for?
A. I have not the least idea, I never go there unless going to the
works.
Q. I suppose three fourths went there from mere curiosity, and that the
other fourth went for some purpose?
A. Most likely they did, but I could not see that.
By Mr. Dewees:
Q. Did you hear General Pearson say anything else but "fire!"?
A. No, sir; and it was not a minute or a minute and a half after he
gave the order to fire, until they did fire.
Q. How far were you from him?
A. I was standing about fifteen or twenty feet up off the railroad
track right out to the switch-house.
Q. Would not a man have to have said something before he could have
given the word "fire!"--you heard nothing before the word "fire!"?
A. They did not get away fast enough than was given to fire, and just
about a minute afterward the firing took place.
* * * * *
William Black, _sworn_:
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. What is your full name?
A. William Black.
Q. Where do you reside?
A. Out at Millvale borough.
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Boiler-puddler.
Q. Were you present at Twenty-eighth street on the 21st of July,
Saturday, at the time of the firing?
A. I was a little while, about the time I seen the Philadelphia troops
marching up the railroad four abreast, and they came to a halt just
before they got to Twenty-eighth street. Came to a front and open
order--rear open order, then the front rank came to about face, and
they faced the rear rank. Then a company marched up through the center,
right up front to Twenty-eighth street. I was standing outside then and
heard the order given to fire.
Q. You were standing where?
A. Just across from Twenty-eighth street, outside the crowd.
Q. You were out behind the crowd?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. You say you heard the command to fire?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Do you know who gave the command?
A. No, sir; I do not know who it was gave it.
Q. You just heard the word?
A. The minute the word was given to fire I left.
Q. Did you see anything of the firing? You left then--saw nothing of
it?
A. No, sir; I left the place then after they started to fire.
Q. Then you know nothing about the firing, any more than you heard the
command given--did it come from an officer?
A. I could not say that.
Q. Or was it from the crowd--did you hear the crowd talk about firing?
A. Not while I was there.
Q. Did you see anything thrown?
A. No, sir.
Q. Was there any disturbance there, any noise or resisting of the
soldiers?
A. There was some noise there.
Q. What do you mean by some noise?