The San Francisco call., 1897-06-04
Mass Meeting of Sympa-
thizerS at Odd Fellows
Hall.
A R. U, Speakers Declare That
the Condemned Man Is
Innocent.
When the Wreck Occurred Worden
Was in a Drunken Stupor
at Sacramento.

entrance to Odi Fellows Hall bore this
inscription: Mass meeting of citizens to
protest against the legal murder of Wor-
den, at this hall, Thursday, June 3, at
o'clock"
When the meeting was called to order
by J. w. Rose shortly after o'clock 1000
people, some forty or fifty OF whom were
ladies. were seated. Two policemen at
the door looked on.
Mr.. Rose, in the course of his preIim
mary remarks, spoke of the interviews
which had been held with Governor Budd
by representatives of labor unions. He
said that men had cen acquitted of COM
plicity in train-wre cking on the same
round that Worden was convicted, yet it
was presumed that the Governor thought
at Worden was guilty. The speaker
further said:
II tell you, standing here as an honest
man, that Worden Is innocent Ap-
plause. This poor man, addicted to
liquor. was a tool. The railroad influ-
ences kept the poor tool piled with liquor
and extorted confessions from him. When
We sent our lawyer to see Worden last
Monday the man sentenced to be hanged
tomorrow said he had never made a con-
fessiCn in his sob senses. The Southern
Pacific Railroad detectives and hirelings
gave him whisky by the. gallon. There
was a motive for fastening on some one
the crime of train-wrecking, for if the
corporation could not prove that the train
was wrecked it would be responsible for
vast damages We are IN position now to
prove that Worden Is innocent. We
can prove that Worden was in
Sacramento intoxicated and asleep
when the wreck occurred. Here is the
man that put him to led, that man sit
ting there with a red neCkIie.
Tomorrow morning att o'clock a COM
mittee will meet United States Marshal
Baldwin at the Occidental Hotel and send
him 10 Sacramento tell toWarden Aull not
10 nang the man Worden. [Great ap-
plausr
Worden viii not hang tomorrow.
Worden will not hang at al. i they do
hang him you people IN this audience can
take notice that he SoCthern Pac fc may
lake fancy to hang enc CT you, and 90
10 II e likes
81. r. Craig was the next speaker. He
SAID: Perhaps some of you people here
went 10 Sacramento during the A. r,
y. strike. Some of you may nave be-
IOnged to the State militia that was or
dered out at the behests of the railroad
corporation to terrify our wives and chill
dren; but l tell you that WOrden was
physical wreck from the day the strike
commenced until the day of his
death sentence. l did put Worden
to bed at headquarters on Second
and J streets, Sacramento, the day the
peastly state OF intoxication. l know
from my own personal knowledge that
Worden is innocent, and my wife, who is
as honest a women as ever lived, knows
that he Is innocent, as she saw me put
him TO bed. She saw me take him from
the Hotel Fremont and lock him up. We
will aCquit Worden on trial in the Fed
eral court. The last few days in our
struggle to help Worden we have been
bounded from pillar TO post by railroad
detectives"
Mr.. Rose, the presiding officer of the
meeting, asked contributions of money in
aid OF the cause in which the promoters
OF the meeting were engaged He saiA
the question involved was: Can corpora
tions take an innocent man and hang
him2'
Harry a. Knox was the next speaker
introduced. He spoke of the intervle Ws
which had been had with Governor Budd.
He said the Governor took hold of the
case with his mind made UP that Worde en-
was guilty. Il know" continued he,
that Worden is innocent and l will help
to save his life if it takes from my family
the last crust of bread and causes
me to lose my last job. 1 know
absolutely from my own personal knowl-
edge that WOrden was in Sacrament to
drunk when the train that was wrecked
left that city. He was in Sacramento
drunk when the wreck occurred. The A.
r. .. had nothing whatever to do with
the wreck"
The following resolutions were intro
duced and adopted:
WHEREAS. S. D. Worden has not had a fair
and impartial trial in the Superior Court for
various pertinent reasons of an illegal and
inequ.table nature, and should in all fairness
and caudOr have been tried in the United
States Distrcs Court,
ResoLued, That we call upon the Supreme
Court OF the United States to grant sufficient
stay of proceedings 10 enable us to present our
case and secure trial for the said WOrden in
the Federal Court, 10 the end that justice may
be established in the premises.
Before the meeting closed other resoIu-
tions as follows were read by w. NJ
Wiley and adopted by the audience:
WHEREAS In the judgment of this meeting
after an exhaustive hearing of the evidence
tence OF death for alleged completely in the
well-known Wrecking OF a train during the
A. R. U. strike Of 1893, causing the
of the crime fastened upon him
by perjured evidence, secured at the
instance OF the railroad corporations inter.
ested in his conviction; and whereas, expert /.
euce has taught US that the great railroad
Interests OF this country have no scruples ot
conscience as 10 the length they shall go in
defending their Interests, even though the
lives OF innocent persons may be involved
and whereas, it has been time ano again
proven that those corporations will destroy
their own property, imperiling the lives Of in
nocent people, if the end TO be gained requires
such a a sacrifice; therefore be 1t
Resolved, That we. the citizens of San Fran
cisco, hereby solemnly declare our faith il
Salter ID. Worden's innocence and vigorously
protest against his murder by processes of law
significantly in the interest OF railroad corpor
ations and prodigaI OF the lives OF our fellow
citizens that corporate wealth and power may
be conserved and the common people su bdued
terrorized and enslaVed.
After the adoption of the resolution.
Editor NJ. w Wilkins addressed the meet
s1JsS asgeaKtDg fer nearly an hour. He
said that he never knew a strike of any
great magnitude that was not based or
justice. He declared that corporation.
destroyed their own property and perpe
trated all sorts OF ou RACES when the end
demanded such destruction. He claimed
that Carter Harrison of Chicago was mur-
dered at the instigation OF capital
Just before the meeting dissolved IN,
chairman read this dispatch:
SAN RAFAEL, June 3, 1897.
George j. Crosby. Engineer Spreckets Building
Dg7 Market street, San FTGnctscO: Bonds ap
proved. Citation issued. Worden all right
Good night. GEORGE W. MoNTEITH.
The sum of $50 was collected at III,
meeting last night.