Q. Did all the miners employed by the company strike?
A. It was a general strike. I presume it was a tidal wave that went
through the country. The first commencement of the strike was the
railroad men struck, and they blocked the mines to a stand still, and
the miners at the meeting joined hands with the whole country.
Q. The miners struck?
A. They called a meeting, and decided to make a demand for higher
wages.
Q. Had you stopped work before you called that meeting?
A. There was a meeting--a preliminary meeting--there was some of the
mines idle for want of cars.
Q. Take the company that you were working for--the men that you were
working with--did they strike, or were you stopped for want of work to
do?
A. I could not state positive with regard to the whole mines. Part of
the mines stopped for want of cars.
Q. I am asking whether yours stopped for want of cars?
A. At that time I was unable to attend to my work on account of
sickness.
Q. Then you had not been at work for several weeks?
A. I was only working every other week. I could not work on account of
sickness at the time.
Q. What day did they hold that meeting and agree to join hands with the
railroad employés?
A. I am not positive of the date of that?
Q. Was it before or after the strike at Pittsburgh?
A. It was after the strike at Pittsburgh.
Q. Was anything done by the miners here about a strike before the
strike at Pittsburgh?
A. No, sir.
Q. Had you held any meetings or contemplated a strike until after you
heard of the strike at Pittsburgh?
A. No, sir; did not know of any meetings.
Q. Then that was the beginning of it?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. The railroad employés struck first, I understand you to say?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Did they send any word or have any interviews with the miners to
persuade the miners to strike?
A. Not to my knowledge.
Q. The miners held a meeting and resolved to strike also. Is that the
way of it?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. How long after the railroad employés struck?
A. I presume, if my memory serves me, it was about a week after the
railroad strike, so far as I remember. I did not take any notice of it.
Q. Did the miners have any organization, any societies among
themselves?
A. I presume that they had an organization. They used to have
organizations. What they termed the W.B.A.
Q. Had they any in last summer--in 1877?
A. I presume they had.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Do you know the existence?
A. I may as well say that I knew of the existence of the W.B.A.
By Mr. Larrabee:
Q. Workingmen's Benevolent Association?
A. No; it was the old organization.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. What was the new organization?
A. The new organization, I presume, the title is the Knights of Labor?
Q. What were the objects of the organization?
A. The only object of the organization is men combined together to
elevate labor?
Q. Are you a member of the organization?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Was it secret?
A. There were secrets in it.
Q. Was it confined entirely to miners?
A. No, sir.
Q. Other classes of laboring men--did it take any?
A. Took in mechanics, and all that earn their living by the sweat of
their brow.
Q. Took in railroad employés?
A. Any class in.
Q. Can you give us the extent of that organization?
A. I could not, sir.
Q. Do you know whether it extends throughout the State, or whether it
is confined to the coal region?
A. I do not believe it is confined. I do not know that it is confined
to any place.
Q. How many lodges do you know of, or did you, at that time?
A. I could not tell you, sir. I am not posted in the organization.
Q. Was there a lodge here in Scranton?
A. There was.
Q. More than one lodge?
A. There were several lodges. I could not state how many.
Q. Do you know whether there were any lodges in the vicinity of here,
around in the townships?
A. I presume there were lodges throughout the county.
Q. All through the county?
A. Yes, sir.
By Mr. Reyburn:
Q. Are those lodges composed of different trades--different branches of
the trades? They are all organized--that is, for instance, miners into
one----
Mr. Lindsey: No; he has just said, they took in all classes of laboring
men, miners, and mechanics.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. I understand that. I want to understand whether he means a lodge,
composed of those men generally, or whether they are lodges of each
trade, and these lodges compose the organization or delegates from
them?
A. I presume that there are lodges of different trades.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Under the same title?
A. The same title.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. Take the lodge to which you belonged. Were they composed entirely of
miners?
A. No, sir.
Q. What other classes of men belonged?
A. Mechanics, carpenters, engineers, miners.
Q. Were there any railroad employés?
A. I do not know of any.
Q. In your lodge?
A. I do not know of any. There may be.
Q. Carpenters?
A. Carpenters.
Q. Blacksmiths?
A. Blacksmiths.
Q. Miners?
A. Miners.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. What class of engineers?
A. Stationary engineers; not railroad.
By Mr. Engelbert:
Q. You only include those employed in collieries and about collieries
in your organization?
A. All employed around collieries.
Q. Can you give us the extent of the organization in the city?
A. I could not.
Q. Do you know how many members it has throughout the State?
A. I could not say.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Approximate about?
A. I have no "about" about it.
By Mr. Larrabee:
Q. Have you not heard an estimate of the number in this vicinity or
this county?
A. No, sir; I have not see anything official, more than it is stated
somewhere, from thirteen thousand to fifteen thousand.
Q. In this vicinity?
A. In this county. That was the estimate. I have nothing official about
it.
Q. The object is for the elevation of labor?
A. The object is the elevation of labor by honorable means and legal
means.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. Is it beneficial?
A. No, sir; only so far as helping a brother when he is in necessity.
Q. That is what I mean?
A. Yes; beneficial.
Q. If a man is sick or out of work or in distress, then he is helped?
A. Out of employment. In distress.
By Mr. Engelbert:
Q. Is it not more for assistance in case of a strike in distress than
in case of sickness?
A. This labor organization, it is on account of distress; for instance,
a man out of labor and in distress--a family in need; it is a matter of
charity.
Q. You do not understand me, or if you do, you do not take it right. If
a man strikes, he is helped quicker than if he is taken sick; was he
not?
A. I don't know of any proviso with regard to men that strike. If a man
is thrown out of employment, or deprived of employment, and in
distress, and wants help to go somewhere where he can get employment,
the object is to help him along, in order to sustain his family.
Q. Do they ever assist the miners of a colliery that are on a strike?
A. There is no proviso for strikes. Their funds would not afford them
to.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. If a man loses his employment from any cause, he receives
assistance?
A. Not any amount. A man, for instance, is deprived of employment, and
wants to go somewhere in search of employment--just help him a few
dollars to get employment elsewhere.
By Mr. Larrabee:
Q. Is it a part of the objects of the association to organize in
strikes case they think it is best in order to get their wages raised?
If they are dissatisfied with regard to wages, is it a part of the
intent of the society to organize?
A. No, sir.
Q. Or to help them on to arrange the machinery for a strike, so that it
will all come off together?
A. There is nothing connected with that organization, only to elevate
labor by legal means.
Q. I suppose they would not call striking, quitting work, illegal
means?
A. No; my view of the question, a man has just as much right to quit
work, and that is legal.
Q. But that is a question, whether this is a part of the objects of the
association. Whether in case the men felt that they have been aggrieved
by the reduction of wages--whether the association acts as a unit in
forwarding a strike, in assisting the men, to all quit work
simultaneously?
A. Oh, no; nothing of the kind.
Q. Nothing of the kind in the by-laws and constitution?
A. No; I do not know of anything that I could draw such an inference
from.
Q. Is this association in existence now?
A. Yes, it is.
By Mr. Englebert:
Q. Were you working in the mines in 1876?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. What wages were you getting then--average--you being a practical man
of intelligence, of course, you know about the average price of miners
and laborers in 1876?