Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1892-12-16
Another Homestead Sensation.


evening, revealed to the public the most
startling development yet made known re-
garding the Homestead strike, nothing
more or less than conspiracy to poison
non union men working at the Homestead
mill, with six deaths attributed to it and
many more suspected.
Capt E. Y. Breck of counsel for the Car
negie Steel Company, and who has also
charge OF the detective force OF
the concern whose members traced the
plot to the planners, talked of the whole
sale scheme for the poisoning of the men
to a reporter who saw him at his home.
He was guarded in all he said, making the
statements in deliberate tones and IN
serious manner, which indicated that he
was affected By the enormity of the plot
Capt. Breck said:
"About the first part Of last September
it was that an inkling of a plot was gath
cred. The physicians employed to look
after the men at the mill made the first dis
covery. They had their suspicious arous-
ed by the sicknesses which overlook the
men. 1t was of the nature of diarrh9a.
Try as they would the doctors could not
diagnose the complaint. 1t was accom-
panied by vomiting and gastric fever.
The usual remedies were non effective IL
was not impossible for the diarrhea to
have been caused either from the food or
water. There were notices posted at the
water supplies all through the mill for the
men not to use the liquid for drinking pur-
noses. This was done because some Of the
physicians in Homestead, who
were mainly responsible for
the visit of the state board of health,
maintained that the impure water and food
furnished the men by the company was re-
sponsible for the sickness.
"At that time, which was about the
middle of August. the complaints had not
increased with such frightful rapidity. SO,
at the suggestion of our physicians we pro-
vided full supply of water gotten IN the
city and examined by experts TO make sure
that it was chemically pure. The food OF
all kinds was closely scrutinized. But the
cases Of sicknesses were caused neither by
the food nor water. Then it was that our
physicians made the startling announce
ment that they suspected that poison was
being used. They came to this conclusion
only after they had exhausted all of the
remedies which usually cure cases OF d.
arrhea. The sickness of the men, in al
dition to the vomiting. was accompanied
always by symptoms of an irritant having
been introduced into the stomach whose
properties could not be detected.
eve acted without the slighted delay on
the suspicious OF the physicians. There
were detectives put into the restaurants
and four or five of them were used as
cooks in the kitchens. There were day
and night turns of the cooks and the de
tectiyes were put on each turn. From the
evidence they gathered we had nothing to
believe but that gigantic scheme was on
foot to poison all the men at work III the
mill.
"After the evidence accumulated to such
a ouantitv that there could be no error IN
tbe suspicions, we confronted the cooks
who were in the plot It was then, AID
not before discovered, that the scheme was
OF such terrible hellishness and so lar
resching. There were four cooks employ
ed in the mill who We're hired by the plot
ters, and they had performed their part
of the awful agreement so well that there
resulted among them six deaths we are
sure of from the poisoning. God alone
knows if the other deaths which occurred
from what WIS supposed to be natural
causes could be traced to the admlnlstra-
ton of the poison.
.sFrom each of the four cooks we secured
confessions detailing the entire fearful plot
in all its hideous features, these confess
ions are in writing. and they contain the
names of the persons who hired the con
fessors. together with all such information
a. To names and plans as they know. These
confessions are sworn to. They were OBJ
tanned after we had confronted the cooks
with the facts already in our possession.
gathered by the detectives
As to the plotters we can say there are
included one physician and two dueglsis
The doctor is resident of Home stead, rs
is also one of the druggists. Strikers HT-.
ing now at Homestead, or who have LETT
the town, members of the labor organiza-
tious giving sympathy to the strikers, form
the body Of the lea,;ers. The name OF ev-
eryoue Il known There is no possibility
OF escape for any of the guilty persons.
Every one of them is under surveillance.
Since we have known the names there
has not been man made move who was
not watched day or night, by one or more
detectives.
1--WE are now gathering more evidence
against the leaders and every day add
something to the chain being forged around
them. We think our case will be made
the stronger by few days waiting. We
are sure none will escape.
If IL had not been that the man Beatty
was about to leave the country the TACT OF
the evidence would still be secret. But
Beatty had made all arrangements TO es-
cane. He went down the river on the
steamer Nellie Hudson, now called the
San Lucie, which was purchased by John
II. Flager and is being taken to Florida
waters / sent two detectives to Cincin-
natti, being forced into action, but the
boat went past there without stopping.
The men went on then to Louisville by
rail. Ii was known that Beatty would
stop there, as his wife lives in that city.
There, ns you know he was arrested. There
is now an officer in Harrisburg securing
reouisition papers and the fugitive
will be brought back immediately.
Beatty was member of the Knights OF
Labor. He was the intermediary between
the plotters aud the cooks. He is not a
Pittsburgher. The poison Was gotten in
Homestead first and afterward in New
York. 1t was not given in the food, but
was mixed in the coffee or tea, and occas-
ionally in the soups. One, dose was suffi-
Gent unless the man receiving it had a
cast-iron stomach. The directions in or
der to catch all of the men were that the
drug should be administered every second
or third day. Enough of the poison was
used at one time to permeate about thirty
gallons OF coffee
There was positive directions given to
the cooks by the persons directing the plot
that particular attentention must be paid
to skilled workmen. The intention was to
prevent the Homestead mill from being
operated, and any means to do this were
not considered too hellish, too deadly"
To all questions as to the immediate
plans of the company the captain turned a
deaf ear He refused to make any re
ply to a question as to what the dotor
had discovered in the analysis OF the stom
ach of young Closer. He did not deny,
though, that the body had exhumed and
dissected for the purpose of learning some
thing of the nature of the poison.
Beatty was brought back to Pittsburg,
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