The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1922-10-27
REDS RUINED MEATS
TO POISON SOLDIERS
Ex-Lieuterant Of Bio Bill Haywood
Reveals Sabotage Of
M M


Sacramento, Cal, Oct. 26.- Test.
mony that the Industrial Workers of
books and pamphlets but pass the IN
structions by word OF mouth" was
given to Superior Court here Tuesday
] by w. Il. Townsend, who said he for
merfy was lieutenant OF William
Chg Bill') Haywood head of the
!. w. w.
Townsend was surprise witness
for the prosecution Of ten admitted
members of the organization VINO are
on trial charged with violation of the
California syndicalism law.
Townsend testified that he, as a
trusted assistant OF Haywood, had OBJ
tanned employment on at least two
railroads during the worlds war, with
instructions to blow them up, and that
he had served in branches Of the mill
tary service, including the marines
at Mare Island
During the war he said, several
hundred members OF the |. w. w
were employed at a Chicago packing
house where many OF them acting az
/ inspectors, passed canned meats he
said were unfit for consumption and
probably would poison the troops in
France, for whom they were dest II.
ed, and that the l. w. w. carried on
an extensive system OF sabotage in
the harvest fields OF the middle West.
In their sabotage Of the harvest
fields, Townsend testified haryesters
were destroyed, hay fields fired and
harvested wheat often destroyed By
placing the sheayes OF the wheat up.
side down so that the kernels drew
moisture from the ground and sprout.
ed
All these acts of sabotage, Town.
send related on the stand, are part
OF a general plan, and crews OF men
are ass ned to the work OF destruc-
ton.
Townsend testified that during the
period he belonged TO the l. W. w
from 1909 to 1922. he had joined
various branches OF the military ser
vice eleven times.
Regarding his being stationed as
a Marine at Mare Island. Townsend
said
'In my company of forty-eight men
eight of them had carried the l. w.
W. card The plan OF the l. W w
is to gain friends in all branches of
industry and the Government so that
when the industries are taken over
there will be no trouble.
The I. W. W, sought to place its
members in responsible positions so
they had help from within. Through
Haywood became special railroad
agent on the Rock Island and Santa
Fe railroads.
1.-THE plan was, could help blow up
the railroads. But | never carried out
my plans as the Government got busy
and was arrested by the Department
OF Justice
The industrial workers organization,
Townsend testified. maintains flying
squadrons' which are really gunner.
who ride up and down on the trains.
They beat up the train crews threat
en- them and even seek to coax them
into allowing l. w w members to
ride on the trains"
Townsend testified he had out the
organ cation because he believed it
was wrong.
Townsend testified that in one OF
the big packing houses in Chicago 3or
or 400 industrial workers We're at
work and that part OF their task was
to test canned goods before shipmen.
Instead OF condemn ng the cans, he
said. the Industrial Workers would
let them pass.
we wanted to cripple the packers
and also we were opposed to the
war" Townsend testified. I'VE used
to say let them pc son Uncle Sans
damned gunners.
Further. to ruin food contained in
the cans, Towsend said. the workers
drove in the nails on the boxes SO
they would pierce the cans, and
sometimes nails were driven through
tho boxes at places where they were
not needed in order to ruin the con
tents.