The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-03
GASPS AT
 ABRUPT CONFESSION
 OF THE M'NAMARAS
Leading Men United States Are Unanimous In Their demnation of Men-Not Single Extenuatng Fact Ad- vanced-Labor Officers More Indignant
 Than Others

to those committed by the men who sent them to do these jobs and who paid them for murderng men and destroying | buildings and bridges with high explo- slVes. These are the men we want and believe that when the United States grand jury assemblies in Indianapolis events will transpire which will make the confessions of the McNanaras puny by comparison
 Mir Drew told how five years ago his | association had undertaken to put an
 end to the dynamiting of its construction l work, and how ". J. Burns had been called in to work on the case
 We found, not greatly to our sur prise, that our lines lay in the same general direction and that the dynamit- ing had been part of a general occur renee. So we went at it in a logical way and have made considerable progress. But if anyone has idea that the Me- Namaras and McManlgal alone are guilty they have a surprise awaiting them. This is but one of many incidents I which will shortly attract attention, for the investigation now being conducted in Indianapolis is nationwide in it's scope. In California they dealt with isolated cases In Indianapolis they will deal with the question as a whole.'
 Until they had read the morning papers labor leaders here were almost universally inclined To u1Scfeull lHe news liidl lhS McNamaras had made a confession. To- day when they had satisfied themselves that the brothers had really admitted theil guilt some of them still declared that the whole thing was a frame up. which they could not explain, but would be un- derstood in due time.
 Last night when the report of the con- fession was first received labor men with out exception denounced it as canard. s4 It. l. sx.d, tl.a r ng Ano lac 0- ton" was the favored comment Express sions by these leaders today were brief and generally to the effect that union labor would not stand for such crimes as those confessed by the McNamaras.
 The sentiment in the McNamaras' case here was vividly shown last Labor Day, when a union flag carried in the four cor nered labor parade held at the end of the march si254, which had been thrown into it in small coins.
 Today it was announced the great mass meeting called for the night of Decem- Der II to proclaim the innocence of the two brothers had been abandoned. The McNamara Defense association has for warded about 5000 to Los Angeles.
 MT. Gompers said the McNamara con- fession would be considered at a meet ing of the executive council of the fed eration at it's meeting in Washington next month.
 "only d few days ago said MT. Com pers, "just before the close of the con- vention of the American Federation of Labor at Atlanta, we received a tele- gram from the McNamaras expressing appreciation for confidence and help In their humiliation.
 ''The assumption is. that the labor unions will suffer as a result of the con fesson. but I don't think they will even if it will do them no good.
 We had every cause to accept their innocence as a fact. Think of those tele- grams declaring that they were falsely accused and expressing the confidence that they would be adjudged innocent When men proclaim on their honor that they are innocent one day and 24 hours later plead guilty to a crime of the char acter of this, would it not unsettle any man interested in our cause?
 When I made my trip to the Pacific coast I went to see them as naturally I would. 1 saw big John, and taking mo by the hand, he said:
 '' 'Sam tell the boys that l am innocent. Give them this message from me and tell them how grateful we are for their as sistance.'
 He looked at me frankly and openly and believed what he had said and did convey his greetings as requested.
 q left there believing in the innocence of him and his brother, and was among those who expected that at the trial they would have been cleared.
 "As to Detective Burns, I don't want to consider him. He has nothing to do with us and that is all there is to it.'