The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-05-01
T1.e S,oI,MunEIN RTCHMOND.


tured attic beginning Of The asrr
all the available machinery for the
manufacturer of arma vas taken
10 Richmond. Hundfeds Of workmen
and their wives and daughters had been
employed In, the ptsenals and machine
siiopS, and hey followed che mae hinefy
TO the capital in search Of employment.
They got Il. For 4 time they were reg.
uhiIy paid IN good money and every.
thing moved smoothly, sut as the cur.
rency deprsciatsd they began TO sutier.
The money received by the Workmen
would NOT support their families, AS the
WI progressed Confederate noteh became
almost yalueless. Grant had his hand on
The throat Of the Confederacy, a Peters.
burg. The wages OF the wofkmeti would
NOT purchase food for their families.
They protested, but in vain. They were
too patriotic TO organize revolution.
Their women, however, formed q secret
society based on communistic principles.
They.seemed to have held that their bus.
bands were working for the Confederaey,
and that the Contederacy was the only
safety OF the grocers and shopkeepers.
Without clothing and provisions their
huAbands and sors must stop work. This
would cut of necessary munitions and
supplies, the government wopld fall and
All Be involved 10 one common ruin. To
avoid this, q general division Of food and
clothing must be made. The wives and
daughters Of laborers and mechanics
throtjehont the capital generally Joined
In the movement.
while standing on Main street one
morning, The Major witnessed an extra!
ordinary icene. Hundreds OF women
suddenly appeared. The broad avenue
was filled with them. They came iiling
il from The cross streets by platoons and
began to sack the stores. Hollow.eyed
and gaunt with hunger, nobody dared re.
sist them. A crowd Of men hung upon
the outskirts, Offering. no inierierenee,
and expressing no sympathy with the
shopkeepers. The women took the stores
| in line, one. after the other. They pro.
ceeded systematically. The goods were
piled upon wagons drawn by horees
driven by female sympaihizers. Not .
word was spoken. The work was done
with terrible earnestness. Hhenthe mob
entered grocery q certain percentage OF
Them oiled no he goods upon the out
sirete6ed arms OF The others, and they
were borne TO the streets and dumped into
the wagons. The women had II all their
own way. Neither soldiers nor police
were 10 sight. Meanwhile the crowd, in.
creased. 6lber women heard what wa
going on. and locked 10 Main street for
a shsre Of the plumber. Not man Joined
them. and for 4 long time no one made an
sfIort To- stop them. AT last, Congress.
man ,I,aldwit. Of Virgins, Jumped upon
adry goods box and made an itnpassion.
al n me al iof1lAw and order. He might
"A Weil hsyeItaIketi 10 the wind. No one
Maid thelleas, attention 70 him., The wo.
men went on with their sackibg, and The
bystandets dIowped BALD yin,syoice with
tIsiyWboopa and cheers. y ~ s1g'if !'asl
.gWhiIeIt wxs gazing al the scenen said
Tho 'maior. az saw. A captain Of an Ala
hama cavalry repiment.with whom I had
sligbt aeo uaiptsnce. We were both in
in nniform. We agreed that something
ousht' to 6e done 10 restore order and stop
ihe robberv, Al lila Susees,ion we sta.
Toned ontselyes AT me door Of a store
!. already oyerrnn. In a few seconds a
rirego tried 10 mass ilsS / can see her
now. Her cheeks and lips were red, but
! she had pinched. starved look and an
sre like n hawk. She carried in her
arms half dozen bars Of yellow soap, a
niece Of dress silk. long box Of stock.
ms. and some raisins and herrinss.
said. -
aMad.me. Ibez your psrdop: but Won
. are 'forseiiinr yourself. These goods are
. not yonfs You have NOT paid for them.
and Won will NOT be permitted 10 leave
tbis stote with Them lEI{ NJ. ~ a''i7
iisbe Looked AT me y said The Msior. Tin
n wild Way. az though erdsayorinp 10
eomprebend' what i had said. and Then
Sant IN ths counter and threw down M
goods. IA sbe came back she deliberate.
. ~ took ma by the arm sluup me from
ber withsach force that / went spinpipp
around like \ ton and struck lie front ii
tbs bniliing 40 hard that Il took Inc
breath out Of me. She then ouietly
gathered uo her load from he counter
Innl walked out. line ALABAMA CQDtal1
looked nj uje.snd larehed. but kept M
hands inbis oeketsaSd aid nothing. /
Itold him. j thought we were out Of place
anI he nodded. We concluded after t6at
lio,remain simple spectators. 7Il5iIHi
MeanwLile The women were approach.
ling 1.-The Jew,I quarter. The Hebrew
were credited with great wealth. sItwss
said that thew had made barrels. Of mon.
ey ont Of The coniederacy. and The female
communists went at them without a
aualm OF conscience. Moses and Isaac,
however. had heard what was going on
above and tried 10 protect themselves,
They put IN their shutters, barricsded
Itheir doors, ran up stairs and watched
lie proceedings from the second .story
windows. But the women were moi dis
MAYED. While some of them ran for
laycs nthers fonnd lony niece M snant.