New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1867-07-11
THE SHEFFIELD oUTRAGES.

| which we gave some account rev DAYS ago.
are almost too horrible for belief For many
years the workingmen's organizations OF that
town have had national reputation for their
violent and tyrannical character. 1t has been
a common thing for men who made themselves
obnoxious to the Unions, either by refusing 10
Join them, OF working for low wages, or taking
apprentices or not paying their dues, to have
| their tools stolen, their machines mysterousiy
| mt out of ORDER their houses blown up with
gunpowder. If they were brickmakers, needles
were put in the clay to destroy their hands.
| One master was threatened with death for re-
fusng 90 drive his men into the Union. An
other was shot at, but burst not
! tell the police Two or three men
were actually murdered. The editor OF Shct-
field newspaper who had been loud in his de-
| nunciaton of the Outrages was for some
| months in constant danger OF assassination "A
! Parliamentary Commission was at last ap-
pointed to inquire into the matter and en-
powered to guarantee complete legal immunity
! to any one who confessed his guilt That Com
mission is still hearing testimony. Several OF
the assassins have confessed. England draws
long breath of horror, and hopes that she
I has got to the bottom of the iniquity. But it is
|
| criminals swear before their examiners that
they have told all they know, then confer to-
gether to determine how much more they had
better tell, and return to the stand with fresh
tales of wickedness. There may be depths of
crime yet to explore whose blackness no man
| has yet suspected.
| The center of this system of murder and IN
timidation, the Old Man of the Mountain, who
sent ont his assassins to do his bloody behests
was one William Broadhead, Secretary OF the
| Saw Grinders Union, and Treasurer of the
| National Association of Organized Trades,
body numbering 100000 members, including
craftsmen of every sort. But the first to con-
fcss was a creature named IIallum, who had
| taken nav from Broadhead for stealing work
mems tools, and for blowing up their shops.
| He was asked about the murder of certain
| Iinlcy who having fallen under the ban of tho
| Union. was shot one night 10y some unknown
| hand. and died after six weeks suffering The
scene which followed this question
was almost too horrible for description.
| The wretched witness trcmbled begged
for mercy, clutchcd at his throat,
struggled in Mysteries for nearly
quarter of an hour, and then, Gained by
promises of protection, he leaned his head in
his hands and told the whole story. Broad
| head had paid him and a man named Crookes
| l.. i0s apiece to MAIN I.ncy so that he could
not work But they did not succeed in stop
| ping the bullet Just where they meant it should
| lodge and the manning turned out to be
murder After Crookes had fully confirmed all
the statements of IIallum, the chief bravo,
Broadhcad, was placed upon the stand. If the
| .t.iI of of wi " horrible
his was simply loathsome. He acknowledged
the murder not only of Linlcy but of several
other enemies of the Union, though he had
| the brazen wickcdncss to assert that he had
ordered them killed with great regret lie
had blown up the house of butcher who had
no connection whatever with the Unions,
and whose only oiiense was that he har-
bored an obnoxious brother-in-aw; and
lac could not be made to see that the crime
was aggravated by the fact that the butchers
wife and children lived in the house. He
caused man to be crippled for life, another
TO be pounded and mashed till he was almost
dead lie caused seven houses and factories to
he blown up He paid for all these jobs out
| of the funds of the Socicty-about Go for an
explosion, and flj for a manning or murder
it seems TO have mattered little which, so that
the victim was prevented from earning his
living any more. Then lac offered rewards for
| the detection of the criminals, and attended
public meetings to denOuncc the outrages in
words of well -feigncd indignation. The con-
fession was obtained pccemeal, and interrupted
by frequent episodes of perjury. The reporter
adds that when the wretch left the stand he
was completely overpowered' Yet there
seems to have been in him none of the bastard
pcnitencc, born of groveling fear, which his
slave IIallum had exhibited-only cool calcu
lation that now he was found out confession
was the best way to save his neck-and he
even had the incredible assurance to demand
of the Government the usual per diem allow
ance paid to witnesses.
Wretches like Broadhead are phenomena
such as all ages and all countries have known;
but the blacklist feature about this case is that
| his proceedings were suspected, if not connved
at, by at least one of the trades associations.
OF course, he never told how his victims came
by their death; but the secretaries of two asso-
Citations gave him money to pay for the muir
ders OF course he never entered on his cash
book "Pad Gl0 for blowing-up," or "ff5
| for a murderr but he falsifed his accounts,
| and, under all the circumstances of the case, it
| is difficult not to believe that the members of
the Union suspected a great deal which they
| burst not or would not inquire into. The
minor oiiense of "rattening," as it is called, or
stealing mems tools seems to have been uni
versaly prevalent, and that oficnsc, 1T is clear
| enough, was sanctioned by the trades officers
generally.
When such q reign of terror as this which
| has made Sheffield infamous becomes possible
among worlnen the relations between masters