River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1877-07-26
THE GREAT RAILROAD STRIKE,
situation tn Baltimore Fee .-s..t R,ot An
Pittsburgh. and city at the Mercy CT
an Armed Mob. The Outlook in Chi
cage. st. Louis and Other Places

1
comes more perilous. Tie blockade of
freight trains previously established re-
mains unbroken. and in Baltimore, Pitts
burgh and other places passenger travel is
almost entirely interrupted. In Balti-
more the situation is comparatively quiet,
though great excitement is still manifest.
Since the collision of the night of the
goth, between the mob and the. military
in which nine persons We're Killed out
right and twenty more seriously wound
ed, no very serious skirmish has occurred,
though two distinct efforts were made on
the night of the 2lst to get possession of
Camden street depot, both of which failed,
the police and military succeeding in dis
persing the mob IN both cases without
serious results.
In compliance with the call of Governor
Carroll upon the President fort roops, those
at Fort McHenry have been placed at his
disposal and with their aid and that of
the local military, the reign of order has
been in measure reestablished. The
President has also issued his proclama-
ton warning all persons engaged in vio-
lenee and obstruction of the laws to dis
perse on or before noon of the 22nd, and
in view of ibc perilCus nature of the stu
alton. Gen. Winfield s. Hancock has been
ordered to Baltimore 70 asstliie command
of the troops there. Martial law is threat
ehed and the saloons have been closed.
At Cumberland and Westward to Graf
ton the strikers are in supreme control,
the mob at former place, having broken
open large number of freight cars and
carried off provisions and other things.
At Newark strike continues and troops,
ordered there by Gov. Young; ffatefnize
with strikers. The county commissioners
there having refused to vote money to
buy food for the military, the strikers
came forward and offered to furnish the
same without cost. 1t is further reported
that the citizens of Newark have guaran
teed to furnish the strikers the necessary
provisions to sustain life.
At Pittsburg during the morning of the
21st, the situation remained unchanged
but during the afternoon, upon the arrival
of 1900 Philadelphia militia under COM
mand of Gen. Brenton, fearful collision
ensued. Shortly after 4 o'clock Sheriff
Fife with large posse of deputies and
accompanied by the Philadelphia militia,
started for the outer depot of the Pennsyl-
iOtN W 0ilGoA SOiilC VI TIT
leaders of the strikers for whom he had
warrants. Upon the arrival of the mill
tary, the railroad tracks were found to be
completely blocksdcd by the mob who
began showering stones and missiles up
ON the soldiers when the latter fired in
discriminatory into the immense mass of
human beings. Twenty persons were
killed outright and 80 wounded. Among
the killed was Sheriff Fife, and among
the badly wounded was General BrentOn
commanding the militia.
Upon the firing the mob retreated,
but only to return, and by o'clock the
city was virtually in the hands of the
strikers and laborers, iron workers, coal
miners and others in sympathy with the
movement. The mob, it Subsequently
appeared, had visited and Quilted several
gun factories, and thts arming them
selves marched 10 the number of 5000,
through the streets with flags and ban
ners, to the scene of the riot where they
besieged the Philadelphia militia in the
round house. The soldiery would leave
the city but cannot do so on account of
the mob. Three soldiers who attempted
singly to leave the round house were fired
upon and killed and general massacre
is feared. The Allegheny arsenal is re-
ported in the hands OF the rioters. Pas
sengef travel on the railroad is complete
ly suspended The mob is hourly in
creasing, and tile eastern end of the city
is wholly at their mercy. The railroad
track for a quarter of mile west of the
depot is a sheet OF flame.
Burning cars are being pushed to the
round house to destroy that extensive
building. The Seventh Division of State
Militia from Meadville, Titusville and
other places, are hourly expected and a
large force of armed men with a section
of artillery are waiting tor them. When
the troops arrive there will in all prob
obility be terrible bloodshed. Such is
the situation as indicated in the latest
dispatch. The situation elsewhere is in
Dictated as follows: In Chicago great
excitement, but no outbreak anticipated
III Fort Wayne, great excitement and
strike imminent; in indianapolis, out
break imminent atany moment,and meet
ings Of railroad employees called for 23d;
in Vincennes, fifty brakemen struck ON
the 21st; Cincinnati and ST. Louis, antici-
pated strike on the Esd, of employees of
the Ohio & Mississippi Railroad; in
Omaha, meeting of delegation of
engineers of Union Pacific TO consider the
situation; in Buffalo, situation unchanged;
in Louisville, intense interest and COM
mittees appointed to wait on railroad of
ficials to ascertain their intentions rela-
tive to the reduction Of wages, and in ST.
Louis, large meeting of employees of all
the roads centering there, which appoint
ed committees to draft resolutions to be
acted upon on the evening of the 23rd.
In word indications are very strong of
a general strike in st. Louis.
Later dispatches furnish continuation
of the terrible scenes which were enacted
in Pittsburg on the night OF the 21st and
the next day. Finding it difficult to dis
lodge the military from the round house.
the mob resolved to burn the building,
and at latest accounts on Saturday night
were engaged in pushing burning cars
toward the structure. As a consequence
of the blockade the depot yards and the
tracks for some three or four miles were
filed with cars loaded with grain, mer-
chandise, oil cake and coal. The torch
was applied to the oil cars and in few
moments the whole mass was in flames.
An alarm was sounded to which the lire
department responded, but the mob re-
fused to allow them to do anything, de-
claring that they were determined to de-
stroy railroad property but would not in
iure that of private citizens.
Finding that the heat did not on ac-
count of the distance seriously affect the
round house, the rioters seized coke car,
poured petroleum it,, and igniting it,
pushed the mass against the round house.
From this the building caught but not
burning very rapidly, other ignited trains
were pushed up. Having done this the
mob left the doomed building and from
to o'clock Sunday afternoon,
devoted themselves to firing buildings
and cars along the track. The besieged |
militia then left the burning building
and on their retreat becoming known |
they were pursued by the blood-thirsty /
mob about 10000 streng.