The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1894-07-26
ANSWER FOR DEBS.
ATTORNEYS OUTLINE THE DE.
FENsE OF THE A. n. U.
1t Is Denied That the Omcers and
Director Ordered the strike or
That TheyCOunseIIed Any Hut
Peaceful Measures.

~
Director Ordered the strike or
That TheyCOunseIled Any Hut
Peaceful Measures.
Chicago, July 24-What is considered
by labor leaders and their counsel to h,'
one of the most Important legal battles
in the nations history was begun IL the
United States circuit court yesterday
wien President Dchs, Vice Presidan
Howard, Secretary keliher aud Director
Rogers, of tie American Railway union
ly their attorneys, w. w. Erwin. s. s.
Gregory and G.. s. narrow, filed their
answer to the contempt rule issued by the
court against them last week, and came
themselves into court to answer The
policy of the defense will he IL question
the right ind power of the court 10 is
sue injunctions ike that obtained by
the railway companies against Debs and
his associates and then imprison those
enjoined if the Injunction be violated. 1t
will be eontentied that what the court
has dCre anniIts to u ussrpatiou of
power not given to the federal judiciary
by the constitution The defense will
follow closely III, lines of the report of
the Dos tncr committee of congress which
investigated the injunction aud coru ampt
proceedings by JLCge Jenkins Labor or
ganizatiCns throughout the country viii
cortributc money to defray the expense
Of this legal struggle. The American
Federation of Labor has given 81 ,0GO.
Other associations will follow and the
contest viii be carried TO the bitter end.
If the supreme court declares the in
junction and contempt method to be
good law congress will be asked, local
labor leaders say, to amend the statutes
and curb the power of the courts, and
every candidate for COL gress will be
asked to pledge himself for such reform.
The defendants admit that the Ameri-
can hallway union is voluntary asso-
iatiun of which Dlany thousand employ,'s
were at the time of filing said bill, and
still are, members; that the defendant,
Eugene v. Debs, is president of said as
sociation, and George r. Howard, vice
President; Sylvester KELLER, secretary
and treasurer, and l.. w. Rogers, one
of the directors, and that all of said de-
PENDANTS were and are directors of said
association.
They deny that it was at any time the
purpose and object of said American Rail-
way union, or of it's officers or directors
thereof, or of these defendants or either
or any of them, to concentrate the power
and jurisdiction of said American Rail
way union under one official management
and direction with a power to order
strikes or diScontinuance of the SER
vice of such employees at any time that
the board of directors or the American
Railway union should elect to do 50, as
alleged in said informs tion CT pthcrwi:".
sSnd they allege that by the organization
of the said American Railway union
6 rik@s could only be declared or discon-
Ii3Ued by the vote of the majority of the
II emberS of such American hallway
Irion cnP,oyed i'll the service affactei by
Gry such strike. and that the only power,
authority OF office of the said officers OF
directors of said American Railway union
o. of these defendf Is or either of them
i'll respect To said matter, was to notify
the s1la,,,llars ss-;e..,s Itss;l--...s-
union in the service concerned in snch
strike of the action taken by such ma
jority. They deny that they ordered the
strike, as they had not that power.
The defendants admit that upon some
of said lines of railway there was "Xer-
cised upon the part of some persons to
the defendants unkBt WI, violence agIinst
persons and property. They deny that
Trey or any of hem have any knowledge
sufficient to form belief as to the COM
mission of the specific acts of violence
in said information set forth, or any
thereof, and upon information and belief
they deny that any member of the Ameri-
can Railway union in any manner par
| ticipated in said act of violence or any of
them.
Further in the answer the defendants
plead not guilty, and allege that as soon
| as the injunction was served upon them
they consulted attorneys and learned
| from them what they could rightfully do
without violating the order of the court.
| Also that nothing was done contrary to
| the advice of attorneys, and that there
was no intention to violate the injunction
| or act in defiance of it's authority.
After Tic reading Of the information
against the prisoners by the district at
torney and the hearing of the answer as
| read by the defendants lawyer, Attorney
Erwin moved formally that the defend
| ants be dismissed. He also asked that
| the government elect whether it would
try the prisoners on the original indict-
Il ent or on the injunction. Judge Woods
replied that the government would elect
by going ON and Attorney Gregory be-
gan his argument In support of the mv
ton to dismiss the BILL
| Couldn't Give Bail.
Chicago, July 21.-Only two of the men
indicted by the federal grand jury gave
bail in the United States court to-day
Most of the day was consumed i'll max.
ing out bench warrants against the in.
1 dicted. The men who gave bail were J.
G. Hanahan, vice grand master of the
brotherhood fFemen, and Augustus
Hodges, one of the Brighton Park strik
ers. Bench warrants for all the men In,
dicted were handed to the marshal to be
served. They numbered seventy-three
Hanahan is charged with intimidating
and endeavoring to induce o fireman tc
leave his cab.
Debs, Howard, Keliher and Rogers
| figure in five of the indictments In one
of them they are charged with conspiring