The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-11-23
Hundreds of Representative Union
Men Garry Him High in
the Air.
SPEAKS IN LIBERTY's CAUSE.
Ringing Words Addressed to Lovers
of Liberty and Despisers of
Despotism."

CHICAGO, ILL, Nov. 22.-Eugene v.
Debs for five minutes this afternoon was
| literally "in the hands of his friends" It
was just after the arrival of the trainload
of enthusiastic admirers of the great strike
leader at the little town of Woodstock,
where he again breathed the air of free
| dom for the first time in half year. The y
had marched from the railroad depot to
the Jail, and Debs stood on the steps await
ing them.
There was a preliminary thunder Of
hurrahs and then the storm of admiration
broke and there was scene which has
hardly ever been duplicated in the annals
of labor affairs. Without giving him q
chance to speak the crowd rushed upon
! their hero, dragged him from the steps and
in few moments had him high in the air.
Those who had the good fortune to reach
him first were not long allowed the privl-
lege of holding him and he was passed
from hand to hand while all the others
struggled to get near him. A casual spec
tator might have taken the whose scene
| for one of the mighty battles between rival
| football teams and have imagined that
Debs had the ball.
Meanwhile the crowd kept up con-
slant yelling and the band played on,
selecting as their theme "See, the Con-
auering Hero Comes" Debs took it all
in the good-natured spirit in which it was
meant, and when he was put down began
a hand-shaking soiree that lasted until the
train was nearly ready to start. A lunch
con had been provided for his friends by
him, but everybody was so busy with con-
| gratulations that few had q chance to
| taste the sandwiches which constituted
the menu.
J The train arrived at Woodstock at s
o'clock and was filled with labor delegates
and personal friends of Mr.. Debs-about
500 of them in all. They occupied six
| cars. The Building Trades Association,
| the Trades and Labor Assembly and other
| local associations were represented,
! though there we're many of these associ-
atlons who failed to lend their counten-
ance to the demonstration. The only one
of the other eight directors of the Ameri-
can Railway Union who was present was
| William Burns of Chicago.
Among those who went to Woodstock
was ex-governor Waite of Colorado. He
came all the way from Denver to be pres
ent. There was notable scene when he
1 and Debs met. Debs threw his arms
around the aged executives neck and said
in tremulous voice, "God bless you, my
boy" The Governor seemed equally
overcome. He made some commonplace
remark about being glad to see him again
and then the two men fell to chatting of
the subjects nearest the hearts of both.
| The march to the train was like the tri-
umphal entry of a ruler fortunate in war,
! Al l. l.
guilty in the eyes of the law. The music
was the Marseillaise and the streets were
black and white with hundreds of citizens
of McHenry County, standing ankle deep
in the snow to catch glimpse of the GEN.
trail figure of the day. Fully half of the
spectators were women and one or two OF
these brought flowers and threw them at
! the cause of all the excitement. Coming
| back to Chicago on the train, Debs was
obliged to walk twice through all the cars
and shake hands with every occupant.
| Debs talked freely of his plans for the
future. which are, however, as yet only in
embryo. He. intends to start weekly
Industrial journal, of which he will be
| editor -in-chief, and reiterates the state
ment that he will never again accept
money from labor organization for per-
sonally conducting another strike. An
extensive lecture tour around the country
is contemplated, and it is probable that
before this is finished nothing else will be
| begun. He also AYERS that he will have
nothing whatever to do with politics in
| the future. Toward the United States
courts he says he now feels no bitterness.
| SIT is the fault of the system rather than
of the individual courts" said he to-day
in an interview. "Our laws will have to
be changed before our courts can render
every man the justice that is due to him."
/ Hundreds of kilograms of congratulation
| were received from labor organizations all
over the country to-day.
| Five thousand people were present at
| Battery D when the procession escorting
Debs on bis return from Woodstock
reached the hall, and the meeting was
soon called to order. Orrin E. Woodbury.
was chairman. He introduced Henry G..
| Lloyd of Chicago, who in the course of his
remarks said that Mr.. Debs was to-day
| the most popular man in the United
! States by the real people, because he was
repudiator of the Government by an
! injunction.
| Mr.. Lloyd was followed by Ex-Governor
| Waite, who made characteristic speech.
Among other things the Governor said
| the decision of the courts in the Debs case
reduced the American people to slavery.
The Supreme Court was composed OF tools
4 Of corporations.
| "For the last twenty years" continued