The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-06-15
MOLLY MAGUIRES.
The Contest Between Capital
and Labor.
A REIGN OF TERROR.
How The Trade Societies were Dcbauched Into
an Organization Of Thugs.
TAMAouA, Pa, June IL, 1877.

Ss"ss-S~'~~
at Pousville, In schuyikl county i've at Mauch
Chunk IN Carbon county, and three at Bloomsbury,
IN Columbia county-thc aims and purposes oil tho
Molly Mcguire organization TO which these murderers
belonged, are much secret to-day as when their
hcndish war upon society began. With tho exception
OF Jack Kchoe 1t is doubtful whether there IL any man
inside OF the Order out OF who clucidate tins
mystery. Even McParlan, tho detective, who lived
for three years among tho wild and reckless spirits
who did the bloody work OF this bloody organization.
has givou only nets regard to H. Tho "quealers"
from Kerrsan 10 Sattery, have done iittc more than
hid TO Mcparlans array incs. Convicts ike
Doyle and Kelly ana McGohan, aud even Roarty and
Carroll and Campbell, have little real know ledge oil Tho
organization outside OF their own and thcir own
part IN II. The common people and even persons OF
more than ordinary intelligence IN tho coal regions
have no ideas upon tho subject except those OF unde-
lned terror and general notion that "Molly Ma
gnre is hateful Thing, without any reason or OK
cusc paution Tor his crimes Tho great coal and
carrying companies might perhaps, offer reasonable
theory for the existence oil the Order II IL suited their
interests to oner IT, but Tor OF their own they
have withheld II, seeking rather create the impress
that the Molly Mcguire organization is only dark
and deadly deduction from tho idosyncrasios OF Irish
character.
ALLEGATIONS TOUCHING the MAGUiREs.
These deductions cannot accept perhaps because
not IRISH IN sympathy, in habits OF thought or OF
lie, or OF single drop OF blood. do rot relieve
that the Molly Maguires are the same as the Ribbon
men OF Ireland, and nm far from beng convinced
that they arc part OF the Order OF Ancient Hiber
nians, which iour,shes wherever rishmon abound II
might as well be alleged that they belong 10 tho Car
honari OF the Ola World and part Of the Young
Europe and Young Italy OF the nrst half OF the pros
ent century. That the membership exclusively
Iris not IN ha dpnie cd hut Int was an
plication OF national clnnship at time OF peculiar
necessity aud under conditions where tho opposing
forces seemed hostile TO everything IRISH In this
connection nothing could be more absurd than the
speeches Of Mr. Y. b. Gowcn, tho President Of the
Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company and the
Philadelphia and Reading Coal Company the Molly
Mcguire prosecutions II shall say little about
the Irish,n he would cay, "exceps thai am
myself tho OF an lrishman, proud OF my
ancestry and proud Of and never ashamed or
IL except when SEQ that Ireland has gwen birth
wretchcs such us those Those men call themselves
Irishmcnl These mon parade on ST Patrick's bay
claim to be good Calnolicsi Where the honest
Irshmen of this county, Why do they not rise Up
AMI strike down these wretches that usurp tho
OF Irishncn2" Such appeals TO passion and prejudice
cannot be made 10 subserve any good purpose and
must have utcror meaning. In that meaning 10 the
whole stake between the Molly Maguires and the
and transpor laton companies aud tho for
murders 'ch disgraced the anthracite coal
gons II the ten years 1865 aud 1875 Disguise
1t may and deny and dispute IL AS we will. TINS
organizal,on ana ls or ines were part of tho contest
between labor and capital and but Tor this contest tho
Molly Maguires would never havo been known to
America
TIM CONTEST BRrwEES LABOR AND CAPITAL
Up TO the beginning OF the war nobody ever heard
OF tie Molly Maguircs or tue buckshois or the hlack
Spots the Shoppers With the unex-
pccied the coal regions with
expected development disorder aud anarchy. Coal COM
~, .e .mamn Saw mines were opanes and new o.
lieries established IN every direction aud yet inc supply
ie below the demand Even black aust sold as coal,
shalc, and indeed hing that dark
color weighed 10 the unrcsisting customer
rs iucl. rne carrying companies prospercd as they
Ind prospered before. aud used the exraordi-
nary surplus they had acquired In this unexampled
Of prosperity 70 become coal mining as
tho SIX great transportation companies owned all tho
coal lands in tho anthracite region In the London
World oil only lew days ugo lnd an interview with
Mr. Gvwen, which Is reprinted with approval tho
Pottsvile journals which not only comes ny authority
but itself clear an exposition 81 the origin OF
these Molly Mcguire outrages II Is OF tho arguments
upon which tho Presiden. OF the Philadelphia and
Reading Railroad Company expects 10 raise money IN
II found he said .that $50 600 900 had been spent
In constructing lines 10 certain mineral basins, and
mineral traffic thcy carried. Yet anybody else was
tree mako limo 10 the samc point and ruin our
line. therefore deemed II measure Of saicy TO pur
these mineral basins entirely aud the $50 00O 600
which this required lett US rather bare or
money Then came long continued depression, nris-
ing causes, and local troubles, and now
In order put the property on u thoroughly SOUND
Loot &, We want little time" II Mr. Governs frank
ness had CONTINUED he would have added that the
same policy which inluccd tho aggrund cement Of the
coal basins had also compelled the oppression OF
laDor and that tho sloca 10 which he rcfer.
RED was rebellion Of the laborors against grind.
ing monopoly that had undcrtakcn moro than II could
perform. Without excuse, us the Molly Mcguire muir
ders are. the Molly Mcguire opposition was the natu-
ri necessary outgr0wth oil the policy pursued Ny
the great mining and carrying companies, which CON-
bine coal cheap al the mines and dear la tho
market, because both the producer and consumer are
rnn EARLIER MOLLY xAGuIRg MURDERS.
The Molly Mcguire murders AS organized crime can
not be sad 10 antedate 1868 Iu that year David
Muir, coliery superintendent was shot IN the pub.
lie highway Foster township, SchuyKil county, In
b. Dad daylight, and within zUU yards vi the co!icIy.
The murdcrers ESCAPED and no arrests were ever
made Two months later Alexander Rae, mining
superintendent WAS shot upon tho public road thc
neishborhood Of Cen,raiia, Columbia county. several
persons were arrested charged with this murder,
against whom strong case vi circuinstantia evidence
made out, together with tho testimony OF an
compllce Dul they escaped by means oi AN aibL
Early Ia January, 1856, Henry ii. Dunno another
mluing supcrinlcndcnt, was shot IN tho public
highway. subsequently murders OF this KIND were
aud 1871, when William H. Llttlehoies was killed in
sshuylgill county and +. w ). fangdon, Morgan
Powell aud other mining superintendent la Carbon
county. Between 1871 and 1874 murders were again
], IS frequent, and whcn James Mclarlan tho detcc-
tive, put bs foot In Schuykiil county not OF tho
crimes which DO executed (scven al
Pottsve and three al Msucu Chunk Ind yet been
mtcd rms was ia 1873, and al that time Nr Gowcn
said to Alien PinkcrtUn az, reason Tor employing
detective, "rhe coal regions infested by a most
desperate Glass oI men, banded together Tor tho worst
purposes, and they are making sad havoc with tho
country. Wherever anthracite IS employed Is lelt tho
vceike grip oil TINS midnight, dark Iantcrn murder
GUS minded fraternity. Wherever IN the United
states IRON Is wrought, from Maino TO Georgia.
from 10 ocean, wherever hard coal IL used Tor
fuel tnore tho Molly Mcguire leaves his Shiny trad
and wiclds with deadly elect his two powerful levers
secrcsy and combination. Men having their capital
locked In the coal beds are obcdicnt puppets In
ms hands they have Tor some limo ielt that They
last losing sway that which by right should
be their own TO command. They think with some
show oil reason that their money would have prohted
them much II II had boon thrown the fishes In tho
gwen up to the dovourng flames. others wish
ing 10 engage IN mining operations, aud who are pos
scsscd oil the capital and experiences necessary are
driven away. They cannot intrust thor hard earned
property to venture which Will be at the beck nnd
call OF fierce and sanRuinary raobc, and It's headless