The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-04-08
CARNEGIE OWES TEN DOLLARS
Worked Four Days at the Time of the
Great Homestake Strike
(ChicagO Times-Herald.)

They were shopping stories in Mayor
Harrison's Office the other day. Score
tary Edward Lahiff was there. and
Theodore and DOnOhue and some 9TH
ers, big and little officials. DonOhue be-
gan to hum the old song OF the man JhsJ
That's right" said Lahiff "Only il
ought TO be andrew Carnegie singing the
sons, and he should be saying rnat ne
owed the $40 TO me. Yes, ITS gospel
truth that Andrew Carnegie owes me $40.
ana mas ever since the Homestead strike.
Ferhdps when this catches has eye, ii II
does, he IL send me the money
AT the time of the great Homestead
strike Ballard Smith was at the height OF
snIS IaIne as q New York managing editor.
he was making the W GRID known and reit
eEeryWnerG and 1 was working under
nam as reporter At the very outset of
the homestead troubles CWO WON iIivL
were sent there, but, in common with all
olner reporters, were only permitted in
size the works at O'clOck every after
noon. Then they found the furna ces run
nlnS, the whistles blowing and signs OF
great activity. In consequence they daily
tetesraphed their papers that while q
strike was in progress the Carnegie works
were not affected by il, and that every
thing was going on with them just as il
no labor trouble was at hand Ballard
smith got il into his head that this was
a he He came to the opinion that the
Carnegie works were practically at a
standstiIl and that the thrifty Scotchrnan
Tor once in his lie was hard pressed. AS
a result OF this conclusion Smith offered a
get inside the Homestead works and STAY
there days and nights until he could
write a true story OF the actual conditions
OF aIalfs there. 1t came into my head
that / might be the man to get the as
sigRment, but how to work my way in [
old not know. One morning 1 was read
ing the advertisements in the papers
when come upon one that struck me as
DelnS peculiar. 1t announced that skilled
mechanics TO go cat of town were being
hired at 755 Broadway. l Immediately
Went 10 my lodging house, where l was
staying with Jimmy Bates. and 1 rugged
myself up Just as am in the picture !
had mis- coat and I looked as near like
Inechanlc. as a man can that does not
know the difference between a rivet bolt
ana a go-ahead eccentric
Then l descended upon 100 Broadway
The man in charge there asked me:
. Are you a skilled mechanic?'
No says I.
That don't make any difference said
ne; You can work as a riveter's helper?
All right; you report at Jersey city
at 10 o'clock tonight. Your train will be
there. You'll be paid $3.50 a day
i knew then that 1 was going to
Homestead, that l would soon be inside
the works, and that was in the employ
of Andrew Carnegie. I walked out into
broadway dressed as 1 was, and CHANGED
to meet one OF the World : reporters who
knew me fairly well and he was so dazeJ
at nay garb that he flew 10 a telephone
and informed the Office that L had gone
graph taken-this picture-and gave it to
Ballard Smith, so that in the event of
S3nythliInlg happening 10 me l could be
q1ly Illustrated IN the story. That night
L left Jersey City with fifty of the vilest
that 1 ever saw brought to-
gether at one time. They were scum OF
the earth. weak, dissipated, irresponsible
WreIcneS hlreO TO go to Homestead, Os-
tensibly as skilled labor, but literally to
evade the law of Pennsylvania, which
forbade an armed force being brought
into the state.
we were locked in our cars. and re-
NAMED IN them until the next morning
when We were taken off near Swissvale
and at Mckeesport loaded on the steamer
Little Bill and conveyed to Homestead.
the PinkertOn men were killed IN che
hight with the strikers We were formed
cIuo; pistol a belt and holster. On
the holster was worked a thistle. and we
We're called, in honor OF Carnegie's Scotch
DloOd, the Thistle Brigade we looked
like thistles, too. Rut we represent
ed Carnegie determined effort to beat
the law, and get an armed force inside
ms works and We We're put inside the
stoekade which surrounded the works.
Inere d Colonel Nugent drilled and
worked us night and day When we were
nOl 9flIlng we were doing guard duty L
found out before ] was inside of Home
stead an hour that Carnegie had fooled
the american press and public as to the
activity of his furnaces No work was
gong on, and the activity shown at
o clock every day was simply TO blind the
Story. ana had proved the theory of Bal
lard Smith TO be a fact Ny object was
then to get out and get my story into
New YORK as soon as possible. I served
four days at $3.50 a day, which makes $40
and this amount Mr.. Carnegie or any Of
MS SuDOrd1nateS never paid me. Then.
being taken sick from drinking poisoned
water, and food poisoned by the strikers
1 got out and made my way TO COnnells-
Nlll6,. where was cared for by q priest
/ was deathly sick for a week and then
lett Tor Hot Springs, where L recovered
my health
Ny fiVe-cOlumn story went on to New
Ork and was read in the CODY by Doe
lie recommended that 1 be paid $500 for
the Trip, and eventually did receive $50
BUT, strangely enough. the story was
never printed. 1t has always been be-
time, lost that control of himself that
mad made him famous. The course of the
w orld IN the matter OF the Homestead
Irouples became almost anarchistic. Mr.
Pulitzer was cabled to Paris as to Smiths
conoluon, and cabled back:
Print nothing in the World of Home
stead but Associated Press matter
rms Oroer arrived the day before my
story was TO be published. My five col
umnS were thrown z way. and this is the
first time that the skeleton even of the
story has ever been told II is the ex-
p4anat1On of why Mr.. Carnegie owes ma
SlV II IN MS giving away of Libraries
ne should remember this, I would be
pleased. Not that l want the ten bueT'd
make souvenir Of the draft or check"
MT Lahln, although about as well
known as mayor secretary or. good
newspaper man can 01. VIII be remeIn-
Journalist who secured the famous Glad
stone interview in 1895 While abroad
From fighting for Irish freedom in Ire
land TO Drawing Homestead and political