Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-10-21

MEETING OF NEGRO LONGsHOREBfEN
About one o'clock yesterday afternoon
pursuant to previous notice. about one
, hundred Of the strikers assembled at a
wigwam on st. Charles street, near the
corner Of POlyn1nia. The object Of the
meeting, as kindly explained to the
Times reporter by the President, was
simply 70 give public expression Of the
objects Of the movement, and to fiX, as
clearly as possible, the responsibility OF
the murder yesterday.
The opening remarks were made by
Joseph Harris, temporary Chairman.
. He stated that the object Of the meeting
was % place themselves fairly before
/ the com immunity, and to let the public
/ understand their views. They only
wanted TO get better wages and regular
! hours Of work. The present ones were
/ insufficient. They wanted and would
! cOUntenance no fighting or disorder Of
/ any kind. They carried no arms. They
were accused Of a murder yesterday
! he could say they We're innocent Of
I that. The deed was not.cOmmitted by
/ their members, but by hangers-On and
/ followers Of the procession.
Victor Light thought it was no harm
I for any poor man 10 ask for his right.
That was all they We're doing now.
I Heretofore they had been cheated.
/ They had been driven at all hours, and
/ at the steved0reis office they had 10 take
I what he chose TO give them, or be driv-
: en- out like dogs. Why were they so
I poor and the stevedOres so rich? He
! thought be knew. As for the man who
was killed, he knew nothing Of il. The
deed was done by parties not in his pro-
I cessiOn.
He was not afraid of the law. If they
were peaeeable and quiet they need have
no fear Of the law. 1t would protect
them. There was no politics in the
question. He had heard il charged that
a political move was at the bottom OF
! it. 1t was not true. They cared noth-
ing for politics, and would have nothing
to do with n Any man who mem
tened politics in that wigwam would
leave it by q way he had not entered.
There was absolutely no politics in the
matter.
Mr.. Robert Hopkins said that being a
young man, and at the same time not
very old, be would only put a few ques-
tiOns to the company. He wanted par
ticularly TO say, touching the killing
Yesterday, that the man must have been
crazy. III could not have been otherwise,
when one single individual pitched into
twelve hundred. For eight years past
they had been cheated and defrauded-
he would say nothing about what went
before; but since they really had been
men, they had never gotten their rights.
The stevedore had faUtened OF them,
and they were as poor as ever-loo-s sr,
because money would not get now what
it would a few years ago. But they
would have their rights now. They
would be quiet and orderly, but they
would have their rights.
Lewis Gasby stated that he was in
the rear of the procession at the time Of
the difficulty. Heard no shots fired
saw only stones thrown. Could not tel
who threw them, 50 great was the con-
fusion. He didn't understand how a man
in his senses c,l % undertake to fight
twelve hundred. One lI--.l Who Thought
be could conquer that crowd, and actu-
ally tried to do it, with hatchet, was
certainly crazy, or else had no paTticu-
lar ambition to live long He had heard
that one of Mr.. Barnes's wOrkmen had
fired a pistol al the procession. He F..
didn't know lone person present said it
was true-the man who fired at him,
but he could say that one who would fire
at a peaeeable party Of men was no man
himself
Joseph Harris again made few clos
ing remarks, principally in reference to I
the way he managed to live during
the dull season. A butcher would give
him a lot OF bones and horns, and he I
boiled them down for soup. a baker I
would let him have stale bread-ten F.
Loo -es for q nickel-it was all very cheap; f.
inf a Ser four years experience, he bad .
coT,cluda,I that the bread was unhealthy I
and that the coup was nothing sut salt f.
and water. ..,
without the negro by importing chinese. I
What did Mr. Chinee do stand Oh Z
the turn-row and fan one a2otner.
There was no fear Of the Cbinee. the /
work here was in the hands of the ne
gro and the Irshman, and, II they would ]
BE- quite and fesOlute a little while, they |
would succeed in getting fair wages.
Statement Of Alexander Thomas. /
This is the man who was cut ia the Z
month with the hatchet According 10 |
his account Captain Barnes stood upon /
the stage plank of the barge, and kept |
forty or ffty men at bay. He had two /
hatchets and threw them, and then be I
pjcked up the stones thrown al |
him and sent them back. he wound /
ed three or four men. Mr.. Thomas |
had his chin cut open and about hall I
of his teeth placed in process Of diges- /
ton. He took no further part IN the 1
difficulty after that, his attention being /
wholly engrOssed in a successful attempt |
at sWoOniBg. But Thomas does not l
charge that Captain Barnes fired pis- |
tol. At least be did not say so TO this /
reporter. He is evidently pretty badly |
hurt.
There appears 10 be no desire to Use 4
any violence. They are perfectly con |
WINGED that they are right. They say I
thew cannot live on the pay they get. /
Some think the pay itself insufficient l
Others think they are not honestly dealt I
with: but all agree that they viii carry I
the movement through. They parucu- j
larly wish the community 20 believe |
that they are peaceabiy disposed.
The real point is, whether they have |
the right TO interfere with Others, who /
are willing to work foF less than four
dOllars2
RESOLUTIONS or THE MERCHANTS AND |
STEAMBOAT OWNERS.
At a very large and influential meet /
ing Of the merchants and steamboat I
owners the following resolutions were |
1'be Committee Of Ten, appointed at !
he To..effag held this morning TO lay the |
Of the steamboat and ship 4
: 5xners bei9re this meeting, beg toreport 1
Mat that class If laborers known as 1
have organized for the /
purpose Of enforcing bb-rdens upon our 4
carrying trade and co1uullfeial interests 4
that, II persisted in, will inevitably pro- 4
duce great financial trouble apd render /
the lives Of those directly Interested ID |
great and imminent danger Il
Therefore, We ask the cooperation OF
officials and all good citizens to aid Us in
securing these rights, that are equally
dear 10 every American citizen.
The direct grievances 10 be considered
are that, on Thursday morning, a mob
Of laborers paraded the ievee and visited
all the vessels where cargoes were being
OF DISCHARGED, and then and
there ordered all laborers % cease unless
employees we're paid eXtOrtiOuate wages,
far bevond the ability Of owners OF
agents 10 pag. LabOreTs who We're de-
pendent on their daily toll for the honest
support of their families were cruelty
driven from their posts, and they and
those dependent upon them are now
suffering in consequence.
Captain J. w. Barnes, a worthy ciu-
zen, an old man Of sixty years OF age,
while attending faithfully to his duty 1
and cOnscientiOusly protecting the inter /
ests Of his employers, was unmeTcitully 1
leaving a family and large
circle Of friends 70 deplOre bis untimely 4
death.
1t is worth q mans life to attempt 20 4
work on terms that may be agreed upon I
however fair they may be-, unless the
Of this may be conceded to.
Such concession cannot be made un-
less increased prices for carrying lreights
are exacted by the steamers, and they /
would necessarily be such as would be
deemed eXOrbitant.
There are thousands Of bales of cotton
and tons OF merchandise now on steam
ers and barges at our wharves, that can
not be discharged or loaded, and every .
branch Of commerce Is suffering iB con-
sequence. Your ships loading for the
coast and the foreign trade cannot COM
plete cargoes, aud finances Will soon be
seriously disturbed. We look to our
municipal authorities for relief. and ask
that these authorities be sustained by
the unanimous support Of all good cii-
zens.
We call for protection from this mur-
deTOus mob, and We demand that
prompt measures be taken for tie arrest
Of the ringieaders. We call for profec- I
ton for the honest hardworking peace /
fnl men Of our community, who are dis I
posed 10 give an honest days work for
an honest days wages.