Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-07-31
BEYOND THE ROCKIES.
Convict and Foreign Con-
tract Labor.
INTERESTING REVELATIONS.
Death of BARLEY Campbell--A Clever
FOrger Captured---Fiftieth
Congress.

session of the Immigration Investigating
Committee, John B. Dyer, Secretary OF
the Granite Cutters National Union,
said he knew of stonecutters brought out
here under contract.to work. One George
Berry, acting for Gus Wilkie, a con-
tractor employed by syndicate to build
the new State capitol at Austin, Tex,
had brought over number of stone
cutters under contract to work on that
lob. Witness had met them at Castle
Garden, and three of the men were taken
before the United States District Attor-
ney, but he refused to act and they were
allowed to 60 to Austin. Seventy-eight
men came over and fifty-fve went to
Texas. They came over in April, 1886.
Witness produced an affidavit made by
one of the men to which was attached Is
copy of the circular given him by
Wilkes agent in Aberdeen, Scotland set
ting forth the work to be done, the scale
of prices to be paid for stone. cutters and
blacksmiths, rates of board in Austin,
manner of paying, etc. A hundred and
fifty granite cutters were needed and
number of blacksmiths. The circular
stated also there was eighteen months
work to cut enough stone for the build
ing. Passage money was paid by the
contractors, to be refunded out of the
mems first earnings. Dyer stated that
when he found that he could not stop the
men here he notified the Knights OF
Labor at Austin, and they now have a
suit pending in the United States Court
against the Capitol Syndicate under the
Contract Labor Law. Witness said the
Government furnished the contractors
convict labor to quarry stone, and that
the granite-cutters were asked by the
quarrymen not to cut the granite which
was quarried by convict labor,
and then Wilkie sent over to
Scotland for these men. He said
Senator Farwell was the chief man
of the syndicate, and Wilkie represents
himself as acting for the syndicate. Wit.
ness would not swear Senator Farwell
knew of Wilkes importing this contract
labor. The State of Texas gave the syn
dicate 100000 acres Of land and the
labor of tive hundred convicts.
David Dawson, one of the contract
laborers brought by Berry was next
sworn. He worked in Austin for the
syndicate eighteen months. He under
stood before he went there that Wilkie
had convict labor on the job, but was
told that the convicts would be taken off
as soon as Wilkie could get enough free
labor to do the work. On the contrary
witness said Wilkie doubled the number
of convicts. Wilkie paid witness "a
day, and at his request witness wrote to
friend in Aberdeen. who on his assur-
ance that there was work for them,
secured about fifteen others who came
here and were employed by Wilkie.
Wilkie said it was very common thing
for people of Aberdeen to come here and
work during the summer and re-
turn home in winter. Witness
said that he could make 1915
a day here, but in Aberdeen he could
make only $1.25 day. The skill labor
ers who come over here for summer
work are mostly stone-cutters.
Jas. X. Anderson, an Aberdeen man,
said he made $5.25 week at his trade
of stone-cutting in Scotland, but here he
made 1925 day. He was asked no
questions at Castle Garden when he
landed here.
Stanisaus NJ. Ledeochouski, native
of Russia Poland next swore that the
Bremen, Hamburg and Antwerpt steam
ship lines have agents there who per-
suade people to emigrate by means of
most untrue representations; the most
ignorant and poor classes are those who
come here. The authorities rigidly en-
force the law compelling all emigrants
crossing the frontier to show that they
had sufficient money to carry them
through. To meet this difficulty agents
furnish emigrants with bogus exchange
drafts which they show at the frontier,
and which are taken up again as soon
as they have crossed.