The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1875-09-18

your next issue. From what | know I
John SIney's sentiments, if the matter O
: releasing the prisoners were dependin.
) upon any act Of his, they should at one
he free. You say 1.-THE legal preliminar,
steps necessary had been taken by then
(the prisoners) friends, but the person
having the matter in charge were persu
AIDED by the friends of John Sinev an,
himself, 70 postpone action in the matter
until after Slrey's trial, when, if convicted
Siney was to be included in the applicant
for pardon who are now in prison.
Now, will you kindly inform us who ar,
the parties =" in charge" and if they feI
John Siney was alone, working for Johr
Slney, why they, having all things ready,
did not proceed in the performance Of ~,
mission for which they were placed il
charge IL seems to me your information
was at fault, or the " Indignation mani
Tested by the people Of the interior and
western portions Of the State" is mis-.
| placed. As | have been led to believe the
reason the case was not laid before the
Board Of PardOns was just because the
necessary legal preliminary steps we're not
complete. Perhaps | may be misln-
| formed
After having performed what you seem
to think your duty in this particular, you
I travel out Of your way little to tell your
readers that Mr.. Siney resides ia Schuyl-
kill county, Pa, and is President Of the
Miners National Association, at a salary
OF over two thousand dollars year.
Now II your remarks in other particul ars
are based on Information as currect az that
ot Mr.. Siuey's salary | 90 not wonder a
hlt ut their complete untruthfulness
fo put you correct in case YOU have
'- asiUn to speak Of it again, His
So arJ Il 81, 100 per annum. Again,
you say, 1T Is asserted by the friends of
those men IN prison, and soma If their
own number, that it was the official po-
sItlon Of MIR. Siney In their association
that caused them to unknowingly infringe
upon the laws of the Commonwealth" Z"
This | believe to be falsehood manufac-
tured hy yourself out of whole cloth The
men Of Cleartield county, members Of the
organization, the men in prison, Mr.
Parks, the organizer of the association,
who was retained there by the men dnrInE
the strike, all knew that had the will Of
the Executive of the Miners National AS
sOclatlon been carried out. and John Siney
Is the chief officer no such thing as a viola
tlOn of law or a trial would have been in
voked, and consequently no conviction
would have taken place. This Is fact
over which there can be no dispute, as "
have the documents here to prove 1t, SO
that when you Or anybody else makes a
statement of this kind, Just before the
trial OF Messrs. Parks and Siney, |, for
one, set you down as engaged by the pros
eCutiOu to work for conviction Of those
men under the transparent guise Of mock
sympathy for those i'll prison Every man
who was present at the meetings which
John SIney attended, kLows he counselled
obedience to law and order, III every par
tIcular, and ! do not believe a man III that
county can be had who will say otherwise,
and tell the truth. He will 20 to trial
for ''hls own act or inability to act, as you
have it, and will take the consequences
like man. He fears no one who will not
lie, and 1t is well you Will not be a wit
ness, and We expect the coal companies
will be as vIgllant can be III getting Just
such as they think will convict. Would 1t
not have been as well if the 4dDocate, the
protesting friend Of the working classes,
had waited till the trial had developed
those charges or established grounds for
them 1t would have smacked some more
like Justice hut that would not have
served its purpose. The feeling Is not
sufficiently strong against Mr.. Slney there,
and it must needs do its dirty part to make
1t stronger.
Senator Wallace and the coal companies
Of Centre and Clearfeld counties will
doubtless pay tribute to it for this piece Of
foulIng in their behalf, and it has truly
earned something from that source. Furth-
er on, you say, "the men who are now in
prison would have been free men to-day
hy the grace Of the board Of pardons, had
county friends; were hurriedly tried, con
vlcted, and sentenced and imprisoned,
while SIneys trial was postponed and the
best counsel the county could afford EN-
ployed in mis- behalf"
Now, the aostract Of the evidence in
the case Of the men will, show, or 1 have
not been correctly informed, that at the
time the plea for continuation Of the
Siney and Parks trial was put in and
argued. the same thing was done for the
other men, but it was not granted. The
implication il that John Siney is To be
held responsible for the hasty trial, the
sentence and Imprisonment of these men.
| say, out upon such villainous insinua-
Jions. The men for whom you show such
seeming concern would not for one hour
accept any defence you could raise for
them on such tiImsy grounds. | am much
mistaken If they will not see the motive
and the power behind the throne, that is
urging you to thus play the part of traitor
to one Of labor's best representatives. The
last paragraph of your article is scarcely
worth notice. You charge that the Mn
ers' National Association, through inca
pacity of selfish and designing officials, has
been made an engine Of oppression to the
rank and file of its membership. would
simply ask how you know this Have
you ever had any dealings with the officials
whom yrG denUunce As ''selhsh and de-
signing r. If 50, where, and in what ca
pacityl Do you know any case WHERE the
Association, by their acts, has been ''an
engine Of oppression to the rank and file III
Let us have the proof, please. One soil
tary instance, and ] will forgive you, if
you furnish it, from the charges | now
make against you of being a wicked, wilful
slanderer of woIkingmen, their leaders
and organizations. Till | hear from you
further, ! remain, yours, etc,
JOHN JAMES, Secy. Nj. n. A.