New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-07-08
WHO DEBS rs.
From The Ncw-York Recorder

From The New-York Recorder.
Terre Uaute, Ind July 1.-THE man most talked
~ I'm America to-day. Eugene '. Debs. the heaH
and front x the American RAILWAY Mon IS IN ms
thirty ninth year. - bold. eloquent aSEreSSEs'r;
~. was ~, liscovercr Of the poeucal ability %
James Whrcomb Riley. who is mis- fast friend. ana
until the present year has been "A radical democrat
lie IL married lives in an elegant house IN TIE
civ who're he was born November > lsjj. and
No., hoi~s several inches over Fix feet height.
ana is possessed of wonderful personal snsVs,m.
failed to come under the spell OF his ana0Ie ana
Dcbs Is natural born organizer and labor leader
Twice b. has served n city clerk OF this Gi,y al,
,h srF"h nom'nat!ng Daniel " Voorhees, to the
United states seuate IN 1855. which gained him quite
r.putafion as an orator at the time HIS parents;
Nsace. Germany. The elder Debs is still the pro-
pr.efor OF a grocery store here and s well to DO
| ~ A. the proper age young Dcbs was sent 70 the
; public schools OF this city and ADVANCED through
inr different grades III he entered The rerre Haute
High school. Then his parents 62yr nm a curse
AZ the Tcrre GIaute commercial CoIlese lie was
noted "a boy FOR ms stuGouS hlotS ms r"p.'
acquisition Of knowledge ard hts discriminating "p-
A. aftccn he entered the paint shops OF the Van
dala here as apprentice. but he preferred more
active NE and IN IL" he to9N position as Mas
here and indianapolis. He continued AZ a fireman
1t nineteen years Of age he obtained clerkship
I'm the large wholesale grocery house or huffman X
Coz in which he remained for seyetal years The As "a
young man h" was one OF the Qrganizers OF 'he &c
cidcntal Literary club now dIsoanded being chosen
II vas AZ thai time. when Debs was twenty four
yoars DID, that the Demoocratlc CITY Convention, IN
casting about for candidate for city Clerk. cnose
him by acclamation and he was elected 10y ma ~,
iorlty OF LOO in city that usually gives a Re
publican majority He WAS elected second time
to the same office. serving In that capacity -FOUR
years altogether.
p wa" came %"ns ms T' be f tn public ~ the
chief promoter OF coopers strike. Gutter. the
ho-q coouer resented Debs's Interference in the
strike on account Of his being public official. and
controversy ensued In the newspapers between
paper as we'll as for the strikers in what they de-
maniod The bitterness Of the coopers' controversy
st,l fingers In the minds or many.
JOINS woo LODGE
Drhs was initiated member q yiSo Lodge No, No
l6. brotherhood OF Locomotive flremen,s on ren,
ruary g. ls7i and al once becam" one or its most
active members In ISL he me % nf oT
is AZ which time the brotherhood was entering
upon period OF trials and ylci;ssitades that 'or
pcbs was one Of the leading members OF TINS
convention In 1873 he was sent As de'eSa to
whore ne oiclated AZ assstan secretary II Was
ha uerary abilities and elected him associate ed
tor OF "The Locomotive Firemens Magazine.
,n 5 rna os mr. Frank nR w wa" Arnod to be Grand
Secretary and Treasurer OF me rrenen;, anu i. ~
nosition bv the National Convention held In chi
r%e" which place he held for twelve consecutive
clInei the reelection two years ago At san Fran
cisco 10 organize his new union ne was pre-
l4
iororotiye Flremen's Magazine: which he stu
holds and he never mentions his own oruer IN
When Debs became Grand Secretary and Treas
mar ~ the Fremen there were ninety eight lodges
When ne LETT that office there were over 400 lodges
W,ben he was elected at Boston In ISL Editor or
..rbe Eiremens Magazine" the monthly circulation
,v,s DD copies: now Il has upward OF 5000 crcu-
Tn 1881 Debs was elected by the Democrats to the
7 acisafure and while in That body was lnstrunsn-
,ai In nassing several important labor laws The
democrats have since tried TO Induce him TO accept
far without
vrar In public speech in this city, Debs renounced
nen,orrocy and announced himself a Populst
His new order. the American Railway Union. IL
ohsolutelv his own creation He devoted much
"h"vnht 10 It's general plan before he launched It,
lie was always nm earnest advocate or federation
6r railway men, and through his efforts the United
order OF Railway Employees composed OF the Broth
erhood OF Railway Trainmen and Conductors, Broth
erhood OF Locomotive Flremen and OF the Switch
men's Mutual Aid Associa ton. was formed. That
federatlon dissolved because the switchmen with
drew from 1t, greatly TO Debs's disgust
FOR a year and a half he worked at the details OF
the American Railway Union. and Il came into ex-
stence in this city June 20. 1885. Since Its or
SANITATION II has prospered. and the union Is now
he largest body OF railway men in the world Its re-