Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1893-02-17
The O'Donnell Trial.

and plead not gulItyf to the CHaA &c VI W
dering ]. c. Conners.
Some trouble was experienced IN select
ing jury, as many men were challenged
By each side, and it was not until one o.
clock that the twelfth jury man was select
ed and placed in the box. The jury as
made up finally was as follows
Erred yogel. dairyman; William Richard
son. policeman; Charles Buckler, clerk;
John sproul, bricklayer; NJ. J. Byrne, hv-
erynan; Henry Brooker, farmer; A. Z.
Flood, laborer; Henry Eisenhaur, shoe
maker; John McGann, paper hanger; Jonn
Geisler, molder; Peter Stragen, miner, anu
William Drample, waiter.
The attorneys for the prosecution are
District Attorney Burleigh, John s Robb,
d. +. Patterson and Capt. E. \. Breck,
while the defense is handled by Maj. Mon
tooth and Messrs. Erwin, Cox, Resrdon,
and Bremen.
Or Moore s. McKennan of the West
Penn Hospital was the first witness called.
He attended the ambr lance which hauled
Conners from the Union depot to the hos
pital on the evening ofJuly 3. HlstestimohY
was the same as that given IN the trlal OF
Jack Clifford. He was followed by Supt-
Cowan of the hospital, Rev tatner Lyhcn
| who administered Inc ldcb AANto VI N~~
church to Connors, and by several other IN
| important witnesses.
| can't Cooper. of the Pinkerton forces
| was then called to the stand. His testl-
| mony was the same a. that given IN the
Critchlow and Clifford trials, and was the
story of the embarkation at Bellevue ana
the Trim mn the river to Homestead, the
SUBSEQUENT fight and surrender at the mill
landing. He was on the stand an hour
ana fifteen minutes when court adjourn ed
at 43O until o'clock next morning.
| Tuesday, the Court room WIS crowded;
| Capt's Cooper and Burt. and JOS. Malloy OF
the Pinkerton force in the barge were ex-
amined, and their evidence was similar 10
that in the previous trials.
Deputy Sheriff Joseph Gray was next put
ON the stand, and gave in detail the work
done on the barges at Homestead. de told
how orders had been issued not to fire on
the men on the bank, and how when the
barees were nearing the shore and the bull
lets were flying thickly that some OF the
men had come to him and asked if they
were TO stand such fusillade without re-
turniug it, He said he had told them there
was as vet no necessity for firing by the
men on the barges, as no one had yet oeen
injured, but when some Of the men on the
boat had been hit he had given orders 10
fire. His description of the journey OF tne
Little Bill from the doomed barges to Port
Perry and the return and the futiie ateemp.
of the crew to pull in and catch the barges
was interesting and was listened to with
the closest attertion.
In the course of his story Mr.. Gray told
how the pilot was driven from his house by
the storm of bullets and how he had met
him at the foot of the stairs and they TO-
pether had lain down fat on the bottom OF
the boat until the craft drifted beyond
range of the marksmen on the shore. HIS
cross examination was very briet.
f. B. McQuiston newspaper reporter
was the next witness called. He testlned
that he was in Homestead on the morning
of JuIv 6 a.d was among the men who
gathered on the river bank to oppose the
landing of the Pinkertons. He had seen
Mr.. O'Donnell on the bank of the river just
/ before the firing began from the barges.
Later in the day, in the company with Mr..
Martin, reporter, he had taxed into the
millyard by O'Donnell, who offered to pilot
them safely around Witness visited the
Office with O,Donnell and saw a man point
ing O gun toward the boats on the rlve
bank. Mr.. McQuiston said that O'Donnell
had at this said: "Come away, boys; you
don't want to be in position to give
tastimony.n Witness and ODonnell then
/ went lQLO Iut CupOld VI thO obOOA ~--~
had a view of the battle. When 1t was
ltime to come down the witness said ODon-
nell had said he would make everything
safe and had stepped to the side OF the
building and waved his handkerchief TO
some one, after which the witness and
O'Donnell passed down and out OF the yard.
George Campbell, editor of the West
Elizabeth Star, was next called and SAID
he got to the mill early IN the morning OF
the fight and remained all day. He was
in the cupola with O'Donnell and others.
While they were pumping the oil at the
barges the witness was standing on the
river bank and heard someone behind him
say: "That is no way. Build a raft, load
| it with oil, set fire to il and let 1t float
down against them" He turned around
\ aua saw III WOO o'DvnneI- On eIVss-v-A--
animation witness said he did not know for
sure that O'Donnell said that, but he heard
/ the words and on looking around saw
/ 0'Donnell standing there.
| Kirk Richardson of Mt. Union college,
who was on July 6 a reporter for the
Homestead Local News, who testified in
the Clifford trial, was then sworn. He al
so had been up in the cupola and heard
| O'Donnell say, Whats the matter with
boarding them 7" This remark he made
more to himself, as though thinking aloud,
/ Llan 10 anyone 6lsb. vi CIObo- CAhiulhh
tion be said most Of the men in the cupola
were newspaper correspondents.
Mr.. Bremen at this point asked if Mr..
O'Donnell was not himself correspond
ept for newspaper, but Mr.. Robb object
ed The objection was overruled by Judge
| Stowe, however, who said:
at IL proper and fair that the defese
should try to make out that the prisoner
was in the works in his capacity as anews
paper correspondent"
No further attempt, however was made
| to prove that 0'Donnell was working in
the interests of any paper, and Harry
Goshorn, a Pittsburg reporter, was called
to the stand. He had been up in the cupo-
Ia and corroborated the former witness in
what ne saw. In conversation with
O'Donnell about the matter he said speak
ing to several men, Gentlemen, this is no
longer riot. 1t is revolution.
Robert G.. Herbert, another reporter, was
then called and said he was at Homestead
on the morning of the riot. He did not
see 0'Donnell when the barges landed nor
until much later in the day. Some hum
orous turns were introduced when the wit
ness was asked to give some idea Of the
noise on the streets before the barges ar
rived that morning. Herbert described
! the actions of the people on that morning
B0u HdlQ. ll6y ulduo lOuu bLIhUEb
! noises" Attorney Breck at this point
said:
Cant yon give US some definite idea of
the noise made by the peopleG"
Mr.. Herbert looked surprised but the
judge with smile came to his rescue by
saying:
"Not here Mr. Herbert / must object
to your giving any warwhoops in court
even at your attorneys demand"
The tipstaves could scarcely command
order after this sally of his honor, but in a
few minutes the witness was allowed to
proceed He said the scenes of the riot
were beyond anything he had ever before
seen. and it was the first fuss of the kind
"hehad ever had the pleasure of enjoying"
did You enjoy that ightf' aoked at
torney Breck.
Indeed did," said Mr.. Herbert, at
which Hugh 0Donnell, his onor, and the
audience joined in laughter. Court then
adjourned to o'clock next morning.
On Wednesday several witnesses tessi-
fed TO hearing 0'Donnell giving orders,
and the prosecution closed
THE Republican members of the Kansas
House of Representatives took possession
of the Hall by force, Wednesday, and bar
ricaded it. The military as ordered out,
| and iha Stata Eanitol Ia