The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1911-12-08
nNAilAlAS MAXI: full CONFESSION

! I'LL UUll LOOAJN
upon which James B. Mcnamara wa,
shown to have placed the dynamite
bomb that wrecked the Times wa,
exhibited to visitors. Gts
Scene In Courtroom. q
Seated with District Attorney
Fredericks was his entire stan. Fac
ing him was Clarence s. barrow and
three associate counsel for the de
fendants.
The people versus MCNAMARA
remarked the court. and Attorney Il
Compile Davis of the defense arose.
your honor" he declared. "the de
PENDANT is in court. In this case, PEG
pie vs.. Mcnamara, that is now on
trial, may it please the court. after !
long consideration of the matter and
final consultation between counsel
for the defendant, we have concluded
to withdraw the plea of not guilty
and have the defendant enter in THU
case a plea of guilty and we intend
" VuA0uC SAC A4AV NVUI00 Will E0I0E
ence to ]. L. Mcnamara in the case
of the people against him wherein hs
is charged with having destroyed the
Llewellyn Iron Works or with hav
ing placed dynamite at the Llewel
Ign Iron Works"
Mr.. Fredericksburg this indict
ment charging you with the crime OF
murder, do you plead guilty or moi
guilty?"
The Defendant-"Guilty."
Mr.. Fredericks-"J. ]. Mcnamara
you have heretofore been arraigned
on indictment No. 1858 in which you
are charged with the crime of OK.
ploding or attempting to explode dy
Mantle, nitro-glycerine. ETC.. in the
buildings or near the buildings ad
jacent to the I.lewellyn Iron Works
You have been arraigned on that in.
dictment and entered your plea of not
guilty. Do you now want to plead
guilty or not guilty?"
- The efendant-"Guilty."
Ortie E. McNanigal, the confessed
dynamiter whose admissions are said
to have been big factor in the Nc.
Namaras pleading guilty. will go vir,
tually free. if the plans of the state
in his behalf do not go wrong.
Death Penalty Demanded.
st. Joseph. Mo.-At meeting of
the central labor council of ST. 10.
seph, representing nearly all the la.
Dor unions of the city, resolutions
were adopted unanimously demanding
the death penalty for the McNama-
ras. Indignation is at high pitch
among the union men on account of
the affair."
The chief crime charged against
the McNamaras and the one which
finally led to their undoing was the
destruction of the Los Angeles Times
building. Organized labor opposed
this paper because of its successful
fight against the unions. There was
much talk of a "gas explosion" at the
time. and Socialist and labor union
papers discussed the theory serious
1y. but men on the inside invariably
smiled when they attributed the de-
struction of the Times to gas.
Shortly after the big presses in the
basement had commenced rumbling
on the morning of October /, 1910,
the Los Angeles Times building,
which was one of the landmarks of
the southern California metropolis.
was destroyed by an explosion which
startled the city. Twenty-one lives
were lost. The property loss was es-
timated at 100000.
Twenty minutes after the explosion
which shattered windows and broke
glass in houses many blocks away.
the seven-story brick and stone build
ing was mass of ruins. under which
the score of victims lay, with the an
cry flames licking up every bit of in
material in sight. including
several carloads of print paper stored
in the basement. 1t was believed the
explosion together with two other I'm
successful attempts. by which 1t was
sought to destroy the homes Of the
owner of the Times. General Harri-
son Gray Otis. and Harry Zechande-
laar. secretary of the Merchants and
Manufacturers association. was the
result of a conspiracy of certain
union labor leaders who were known
to be antagonistic to the Times and
the merchants organization.
For many years General Otis has
been waging relentless warfare
against labor unions. commencing
with his fight against the Interna-
tional Typographical union. He had
enlisted the support of the Merchants
and Manufacturers association. a
powerful and influential body Of Los
Angeles business men. who stood by
the Times publisher in its campaign
against organized labor.
Feeling Very Bitter.
The feeling between the labor or.
CARNATIONS and the Times was ex.
tremely bitter. General Otis openly
and strongly attacked unionism on
every possible occasion, and the
unionists were equally bold in de
nouncing him and his allied forces
On several occasions the newspape,
publishers life has been threatened
by men whom he had fought through
the columns of his paper.
A disavowal of labor union respon