_To the workingmen of Pittsburgh_: In the name of the whole
people of Pittsburgh we make an appeal for peace. There has been
bloodshed enough--far more than enough. The workingmen have
triumphed over the soldiers who rashly opened fire upon them, and
there is now nothing more to fight for. Now is the time to show
they deserve victory by proving themselves good citizens, refusing
to prolong a slaughter that is a mere useless butchery. The
Philadelphia militia, however rash, however boastful, are yet men
who thought they were obeying the call of duty. There were
undoubtedly roughs among their number, who gave an evil character
to the regiment; but there are many good men among them, who simply
obeyed orders; even when they fired their pieces they obeyed
orders. Now that their point has been gained, we beseech our people
not to sully their victory with the further shooting down of these
men, who only seek to escape. To continue to hunt them down in
their retreat on the north side, whither it is said they have gone,
is to stain the green fields of our suburbs this bright Sunday
morning with useless effusion of blood. To do this would only be to
cause a revulsion of feeling, and the sympathy which to this point
has been altogether with the strikers and their friends, and we
confidentially appeal to them, that having gained everything they
fought for, they now exert themselves as nobly to prevent excited
outsiders from taking advantage of their triumph to shoot men, when
they only want to get away.
Since writing the above it appears that the bulk of Philadelphia
have got away from Sharpsburg, and are scattered in clouds through
the hills. It is believed that they will now escape in safety,
though it is possible that some of them may be yet followed up and
shot down. It is a matter of thankfulness that they have escaped,
the victory is complete, and that a great final massacre has been
avoided. Let us now decently and solemnly mourn our dead, and mourn
in calmness and order.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. Have you any knowledge of the causes leading to this strike?
A. I have no special knowledge, no, sir, except what common rumor, and
what was published about the matter. It originated out of the
organization of the Trainmen's Union, precipitated in Maryland, and the
particular special cause here, as I understood it, was the
double-header grievance on the Pennsylvania railroad.
Q. Have you any knowledge as to the necessity of calling the military
to this place?
A. You mean Philadelphia military?
Q. Yes; I mean the military. I will say in explanation that in our
resolution we are required to inquire into the necessity of calling
out, and the conduct of the troops; and as a public man you would be
apt to know, and able to give an expression of opinion that would be of
value?
A. I could only give my judgment about it, I suppose, not being in the
service.
Q. That judgment could be expressed as a citizen, and would be formed
from facts, I suppose, coming to your knowledge?
A. It seemed to me at the time that the military need not have been
called so soon. I was under the impression at the time, strongly, that
the mayor, with policemen, might have quieted the trouble--and,
perhaps, would have done so if the military had not been brought so
promptly on the scene--and it seemed to me, also, that bringing
Philadelphia troops from a city that Pittsburgh has always felt a kind
of rivalry toward, was calculated, perhaps, to inflame feeling here
rather than to allay it. I remember there were rumors that Saturday
evening--whether authenticated or not, I do not know--that the
Philadelphia men had said that Pittsburgh troops had failed here, and
they would clean out the rioters. I don't know whether they said it or
not; but if they did not say it, it shows just as well the feeling of
jealousy with which their presence was regarded, and they asserted that
feeling during that whole Saturday night, that in attacking those
Philadelphia troops they were cleaning out Philadelphia men. They had
come here to interfere in what might have been settled by local
authorities, and from that point of view it seemed to me injudicious.
Q. Do you believe that the local authorities could have preserved
order, and finally quieted the strike, without any loss of property?
A. I believe that they could have preserved order until the Governor
would return, and I think that his presence would have prevented any
outbreak. The fact that the Governor's proclamation calling out troops
was gravely doubted here--everybody knew he was out of the State a long
distance--had, perhaps, a good deal to do with the disorderly feeling.
I do not believe that the local authorities could have eventually put
down the riot; but I think they could have preserved order here, and
kept things in tolerable order until the Governor himself had arrived
here. I think if Governor Hartranft had been here on that evening, the
collision could have been avoided.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. I see, in this editorial you speak of, the "sympathy being with the
strikers and their friends?"
A. There is no doubt that the sympathy of the people here was strongly
with the strikers, before any act of violence was committed.
Q. Before the burning of the property?
A. Yes, sir; and the idea spread, after the collision had taken place,
that it was all owing to reckless firing, without orders, which kept
the sympathy with the strikers until the actual destruction of property
commenced.
Q. In your opinion, was the sympathy of the citizens, and people
generally here in the city, with the strikers when they made the
assault on the troops in the round-house and driving them out of the
city?
A. No, sir; I don't think that. I think the mass of our citizens then
were not expressing sympathy with anybody--just paralyzed.
Q. Here is one expression: "The workingmen have triumphed over the
soldiers, who rashly opened fire upon them, and there is now nothing
more to fight for." Did the people, in your opinion, justify these men,
called workingmen, in driving out the troops and triumphing over them?
A. I don't think they did. No, sir; that is not the spirit of that
article, either, which is an appeal for the cessation of any further
hostilities. At that time, of course, it was said that it was the
workingmen entirely that was fighting--the railroad men--and they were
in sympathy with them, the railroad strikers and their friends.
Q. There is another sentence: "Now is the time to show they deserve
victory, by proving themselves good citizens, and refusing to prolong a
slaughter that is mere useless butchery."
A. That is to show that they had deserved the victory they had got, by
not using it any further.
Q. The expression is not used to justify them so much as to allay
further bloodshed?
A. Yes; that is the whole spirit of it. When that article was written,
it was supposed that General Brinton's troops were fleeing out into the
country. A large mob was pursuing them, shooting them down in every
direction, and nobody knew where the pursuit had stopped, perhaps not
until they were all exterminated. We could not get at their side of the
story, but it was supposed that they were even more demoralized than
perhaps they were. That article was written for the express purpose of
trying to stop pursuit, to try to allay the excitement.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. You had no intention of contributing any to the excitement by any
inflammatory article?
A. If I had I certainly would not have asked leave to let them go.
Q. Did you have any reporter with the troops as they retired from the
round-house and went out Penn street?
A. We had no reporter at any time with the troops. You could not get
any man to them. We had a reporter right in sight of the round-house.
He saw the retreat, and followed out some distance towards
Lawrenceville--towards the arsenal. That was Mr. George Vickers, the
man I spoke of before. I, myself, was out there early in the morning,
to look at the situation at the round-house. There was still some
firing then.
Q. Did you indicate all the editorials you wrote during the riot on
that subject in these papers?
A. I think I have indicated them all.
* * * * *
James W. Breen, _sworn_:
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. You have no regular file of your _Globe_?
A. No, sir; not bound. I gave the sergeant-at-arms two copies.
By Mr. Reyburn:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Journalist.
Q. You reside in Pittsburgh?
A. Yes, sir. Thirteenth ward.
Q. Did you reside in Pittsburgh at the time of the riots, in July last?
A. Yes, sir.