The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1912-02-03

is angry on account of the publication
of the photographs in the East and
denounces them as "the rankest kind
of fake photographs"
Despite the fact that the photo
graphs are officially in the possession
of the War Department and show the
labor agitator, standing upon the
American flag which covered the table
from which he addressed the crowd
last Labor Day at Oakland, Cal, Com
pers insists that the pictures have
been faxed" and charges that the
Los Angeles Times, whose building
was dynamited by the McNamaras,
had imposed upon a Grand Army post
of Los Angeles which passed resolu-
lions denouncing the acts of Gompers
as soon as it learned of the pictures of
Gompers standing on the flag.
Besides charging on his own respon-
sibility that the photographs are
fakes Gompers today gave to the
press extracts from a letter from Or
ion T. Thomas of Los Angeles, credit
ing 'the artists of the Los Angeles Elk
aminer" with having pronounced the
photographs fake After the Com
pers denial had been issued the photo
graphs now in possession of the War
Department were closely scrutlnized
under strong magnifying glass and
failed to disclose either evidences of
taking or of composite double print
ing" process.
The text of Gompers denial follows:
"Of the two addresses l made in
Oakland, Cal, one was on Labor Day
in connection with the San Francisco
demonstrations and mass meeting, and
that was during the day. The other
meeting was during the evening and
was some days later in hall
my recollection of the meeting at
Shelmound Park, Oakland, was that
it was a park for athletics. There is
a grand stand and large field. A
temporary stand was erected in the
middle of the grounds, the speakers
facing the grand stand, and in this in
stance there were thousands of men
and women standing between the
speakers temporary stand and grand
stand. The crowd was so great that
many of them overlooked and stood
on the temporary platform, so that the
speakers could not have been seen by
any other than those on the tempo
rary speakers stand. There was a
table on this stand, intended for the
speakers notes and having a pitcher
of water and glass on it. The table
was festooned around by an American
flag. No part of it, except possibly
an inch, was overlapping the table, and
this simply for the purpose of holding
it in position.
when the meeting was called to
order the Instantaneous position of
the speaker was observed and the
public officers (School Superintendent
Mayer, supervisors, etc., as well as the
speakers who addressed the assemb-
lage, were called to by the crowd 10
ascend the table. The crowd mani
tested its discomfort because they did
not see those who were to address
them and they shouted their diapproy-
al and those nearer shouted to us TO
get on the table
"A chair was furnished and we
stood on this table. They did not one
of them, nor did l, stand upon the
American flag. l would as leave in
suit the memory of my revered mother
as to insult the flag of my country
But anything and everything is good
enough to charge me with, and try to
bring me into contempt with the
American people. But my life of more
than 81 years has been so straight
forward that my good name and the
work I have tried to do in the inter
est of the people of our country Will
live long. after my traducers viii die
and their names be coupled with the
contempt of the people of the United
States"
Gompers was taken completely by
surprise by the publication of the
facts this morning, He himself was
aware, though it was not known in
the East, that photographs showing
him with his feet planted upon the
national emblem were in existence in
California. But the publication today
of the fact that such photographs had
been sent to the War Department
from its officers in the field and made
part of the official archives. startled
the president of the American Fedora
ton.
Gompers knew of the existence OF
the photographs as long ago as Octo
Der. In that month Stanton Post No
So, G. A. r., meeting at Los Angeles
adopted resolutions protesting against
the infamous acts of Samuel Com
49,, ona Tohn Ka1lv in en- shame