The Labor enquirer., 1885-04-25
PINKERToN's AssAssINs.
They are Invoked to lntimidate the Nc
% :. Cormick strikers, and there Is
Serious Trouble.
rBy Associated Labor Press.


CHICAGO, April 2O.-The great event OF
the past week in labor frcIes was the strike
at the Mccormick Reaper factory. Sixteen
hundred men went out on Tuesday. A few
"scabs" were smuggled into the factory,
wheT they were fed and lodged and armed
at the expense of the company. On the FOL.
lowing day Wednesday) a bus pulled out Of
the factory yard passed up the street until
it reached Hoyne avenue, where q large
body of the men were lettering and discuss
ing the strike. Some one in the crowd rec
ognized the vehicle as one Of the Mccormick
factory buses and made an attempt TO peer
into 1t to discoyerif if 1t contained any OF the
''scabs," when the inmates fired upon the
crowd of workmen, but without injuring any
one. The indignant crowd rushed upon the
vehicle, dragged out the cowardly mtscreants
and turned them loose, after which the strik-
ers drove the bus back to the factory gate and
left it. The bus was filled with PiRkerton's
police. The next day Thursday another
bus came out of the factory yard with twelve
OF Pinkerton's men in it, who were employed
by the Mccormick company. Some one OF
the seyeral hundred men who were standing
about undertook to look into and ascertain
the contents Of the bus. At this the Pink
erton assassins fred upon the crowd, fatally
wounding George Roth, who, with several
hundred others had assembled to draw their
nav, and was standing some distance away.
The maddened crowd vainly tired to seize
the bus, but the driver whipped I'D the horses
to a furious speed and they made good
their escape until they were oveftaken al ana
arrested BY the city police, locked up In a
station and afterwards held over 70 the
grs nd jury for murder, the Mccormick com
pany giving bond for their appearance In the
sum OF $4,000 each. .s-., 80
In the evening of the same day, about . :SO
O'Clock, the same bus from which the DIM
Guilty arose In the morning was being driven
| down the street towards the factory, when
an assembled crowd of strik eIs,i frenzied by
the wanton murder Of their eotnra 1etn the
morning, began firing npon the inmates a
horse was wounded and the vehicle stopped
The crowd dragged the inmates out. Some
of them were Pink kerton's police, others were
of the city police. They were told 70 throw
up their hands, which they DID, ana tney
were then disarmed. The bns was entered
and found to contain seventy Winchester
rifles, twenty-five Colts navy revolyers, and
several hundred cartridges. These were con
fscated by the strikers the bus was carried
to the prairie near by, and pouring gallon OF
two of kerosene oil upon 1t, it was set on fire
and burned to ashes. The Pinkerton mel
escaped in the darkness, otherwise had they
tbeen identified, they would IN all probaolllty
have been executed on the spot. The street
next day were blockaded by the strikers
The Trainmen's union refused 10 sWltcL
trains loaded with freight for the factory
ON Saturday afternoon the company sent fo
the executive committed of the strikers ano
restored the Is per cent reduction and made
an unconditional surrender. .'te-'i''T, .
lsYHThis Is the same Mccormick who recently
4 nave S400, 600 to churches and charitable In
4 stitutions of the country.