Part 123
A. I sent word down to the mayor's office about this difficulty on the lines of the road, and that we feared that some effort might be made to destroy our property, and that, therefore, we wanted the protection due to every interest in our State and city--nothing more. He organized a police force. A great many of the people of the city were alarmed about the situation of affairs, and, I believe, they gave the mayor authority to take on additional policemen, which he kept employed for some days, until the threatened trouble was all over. I think his whole action in the management of the police force under him was very efficient and thorough.
Q. Did he respond promptly to that call?
A. Yes; and succeeded in maintaining order entirely.
Q. There was no trouble in maintaining peace and order?
A. No; excepting the exercise of a great deal of vigilance and care with a strong force.
Q. Was it necessary for the policemen to make any attack on the crowd?
A. I think nothing serious. They had several little disturbances. The crowd was armed and threatened trouble and all that.
Q. Did the crowd assemble in very large numbers?
A. I have been told from two to five thousand people; but they persuaded them to disperse. I do not think there was any trouble at any time. The mayor's policy was to prevent crowds from assembling, to prevent disturbance, and in the conduct of the whole matter I think he showed great wisdom and great efficiency.
Q. What day did you start your trains here?
A. From here west?
Q. Yes?
A. I think on the 27th or the 28th.
Q. Did you meet with any trouble in getting men to start them?
A. No.
Q. Was there any resistance made by the crowd?
A. Not here.
Q. Was it necessary to have any guard to protect the first trains that started?
A. Of military?
Q. Or policemen?
A. No. There were men here about the yards and depots to see that the peace was preserved, but they made no arrests, I believe, in connection with people in leaving trains. They did make arrests of some people for destroying some oil cars.
Q. On the Pennsylvania railroad?
A. On the junction road.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Did you, as president of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, at any time, make any requisition on the State authorities for troops to protect your property?
A. Not at all. The State authorities were called out, as I understood, on a requisition from the county of Allegheny.
Q. By the sheriff?
A. Yes.
Q. Have you any knowledge of any officer of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company calling on the Governor for troops?
A. None whatever. They, no doubt, suggested to the Governor of the State that it was his duty to put the force in such a position as to preserve peace and order.
Q. Did you understand that you, as president of a railroad company or as a citizen, have the right to call on the Governor for troops, and that the Governor has a right to respond to that?
A. No.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. In the case of an outbreak, such as existed there, to whom would you apply for help?
A. To the civil authorities of the place, and they, in their turn, are obliged, as I understood the law, to make the requisition. I do not understand that I, as president of a company, have the right to make a requisition on the Governor, but I certainly have the right to notify him. I have no right to make a requisition.
Q. You have the right to notify him under the act of 1864?
A. I have no reference to any particular act. I never understood that a railroad company or a mining interest or anything else had a right to make a requisition. I always thought they had the right to state their case, and ask that some action should be taken, letting the mayor or sheriff, as the case may be, make his own requisition.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. It has been charged by some that the troops were ordered by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company in their movements?
A. I think if you will ask the military officers--General Brinton--he will tell you that he moved his troops according to his superior officer's directions, and not at the direction of any railroad man. I guess he was careful to do that. I certainly never asked them to move troops to any particular place or to do any particular thing.
Q. But you conferred with the officers or advised them?
A. No; I conferred with the Governor of the State, and he gave his orders through his officers. I didn't give them any orders. I did give them every facility they asked for, just as we did with the Government of the United States when they got into the rebellion, when we stopped all our business for a time, and gave our road completely to carry men and equipments, and whatever they might require for the field or elsewhere. We gave them entire control of our road.
Q. Do you say you never made any requisition on the State authorities for protection?
A. We stated our case to them, and said we are in great danger, and the highways of the State are in great danger, and we want that protection which it is our right to have.
Q. As every other citizen of the State, you would have the right to demand protection?
A. I think we all pay for peace and order to be preserved in the State, and it ought to be.
By Mr. Engelbert:
Q. Then you never did dictate to the Governor, or to any one in his absence, what to do with the military?
A. Not a bit. I was especially careful not to do anything of that kind.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. State if you have been able to ascertain or to gather facts sufficient to form a judgment as to what produced the strike?
A. I think the trouble originated through the discontent of men all over the country--not confined to railroads. Every other branch in some how was directly or indirectly connected with the outbreak, looking for compensation of an increased character, without regard to whether parties were able to pay it or not, and altogether, I think that whole movement was made up--either agreed upon or concerted and agreed upon under their own mode of organization. I think they took this abatement of ten per cent. as one pretext for making the outbreak.
Q. What facts have you that lead you to believe it was a concerted movement or agreed upon?
A. Simply their action, and the results spread before us everywhere.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Is the pay of railroad employés less, as a general thing, than that of any other ordinary avocation?
A. No; I think it is greater; and I think it ought to be a little greater, because the men are subject to risks in railroading, that they are not subject to in ordinary work; therefore, I think it is the duty of railroad companies to pay a little more for that service than is paid for an equal amount of labor in the ordinary channels of life. I think we pay twenty per cent. more to-day than men receive in the various other channels of business.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. Are they subject to greater expense than others?
A. Yes; by reason of going from their homes, their extra cost of living is something.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. And in one sense you call it skilled labor, in addition to the risks they run?
A. Yes; we want men understanding their duties to run our trains and take care of the property and of the people in their charge. We want that in all the men, and, I think, as a general thing, we have as good a set of men as was ever organized.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. Was there any complaint among the men about their not being able to work full time?
A. Yes; when the depression of business came so strong, we undertook to retain more men in our service than were needed to do the work, and we did that very often at the request of men--of the older men, in order that younger men might have an opportunity to get some work and get a living out of the general result. Instead of men getting ten hours work they would probably get an average of six, seven, or eight hours, and in that way the work was distributed among a greater number of people.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. You did that instead of discharging them?
A. Yes; the result of that was that it made the average low, and was a cause of complaint, and when this thing was all over, we had simply to compromise and in giving more hours of work, consequently, to do with fewer men.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. Looking at the matter from the experience you have, was that plan of retaining more men than you could give full work to a good one?
A. No; it caused dissatisfaction to the men, and caused them to complain, I think unreasonably and unjustly against the company, because the company, so far as it was concerned, was perfectly willing to pay that number of dollars for the service done, but it was distributed among so many that instead of their getting fifty dollars, say, per month, they would get thirty or forty, perhaps. Very many of the oldest men had their sympathies aroused in favor of men, and wanted them retained even if they could not get full time, and asked us to do that thing in many instances; but it resulted just in that discontent I have mentioned. Now we have changed our policy, and endeavor to give our men nearly as full time as we can, and in that give our oldest men and thoroughly loyal men, of course, the preference.
Q. From your experience and knowledge of the number of railroad men in the country, is there a surplus?
A. There is to-day.
Q. There are men out of employment?
A. Yes; the depression in the iron business, and coal business, and lumber business, and everything else, makes less traffic, and a greatly decreased number of trains. This decrease has made a corresponding decrease in the demand for men. We hope one day that it will change, and we can take on all our people and pay them better wages than now; but we cannot do it until the country becomes more prosperous than now.
Q. Did this number of men out of employment have a tendency to produce restlessness among them, and bring on the trouble?
A. There is no question about that. It was the want of employment that made the labor of the country dissatisfied. I think if we could set men to work making a living for themselves and their families, I think there would be no trouble about it. I think it is the best law that can be made.
Q. It was more that, in your judgment, that caused the trouble than low wages?
A. I think so.
* * * * *
George R. Sowden, _sworn_:
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. Where do you reside?
A. I live in west Philadelphia, No. 1421 Locust street.
Q. What is your business?
A. I am a practicing lawyer.
Q. Go on and state what knowledge you have of the occurrences at Pittsburgh last July, and the movements of the militia?
A. During last summer I was colonel of the Third regiment of infantry, connected with the First brigade of the First division. I was in the brigade commanded by General Mathews. On the evening of Friday, July 20, I got a dispatch from him, asking me to assemble my regiment, and report for duty as soon as possible at the West Philadelphia depot. I got the dispatch at Bryn Mawr. I got to Philadelphia at nine o'clock, and sent out dispatches to my field officers and staff officers and company commanders, and I assembled part of my regiment there, and at two o'clock of Saturday, July 21, I went on the train to Pittsburgh. We reached there about two o'clock on Saturday. There the troops were ordered out of the train, and we moved up the railroad track. I was on the left of Colonel Benson, and in my rear was the Weccacoe Legion and the Keystone Battery. They were dragging the Gatling guns at that time without horses, but it was found impossible to drag the guns over the railroad ties, and men were detailed from the three regiments to assist in hauling the guns. I sent a detail for that purpose. After we got in to the neighborhood of Twenty-eighth street--I do not know in the meantime what had become of the Second brigade--I was facing west on the railroad track seventy-five yards below the crossing on Twenty-eighth street, and the rear of my command was towards the hill.
Q. Facing toward the hill?
A. No; I was facing toward the Allegheny river, forming a straight line. Some little time after I was there, the crowd of rioters formed in front of us, and also on my left flank, and, as I was in a straight line, I withdrew my left flank, so as to connect and form an angle with the balance of the brigade, to keep the rioters from coming in behind us. General Mathews approved of the partial change of front. At that time, there was an enormous crowd of people on the hill back of us, and in front of us, and there was a good deal of noise and confusion. After we had been there some little time, there was some firing of pistol shots; and stones, and brickbats, and clubs, and every thing of that sort were fired at us, and, presently firing began among the troops on my right, and also on the other side. The brigade at one time formed three sides of a hollow square. The firing by the people began, as I saw, from the hill. That was the first I saw. That was, the firing at the troops. After some little firing on their part, the troops began the return fire. My men I didn't permit to fire until on Saturday afternoon, as I had received no orders to fire, and didn't see the immediate occasion for firing. I restrained my men from firing. Then, after this general firing on the right, a great many people on the hill were killed, and some of the rioters in front on twenty-eighth street were also killed. In the mean time, we were all surrounded, where I was, by the rioters.
Q. Did you hear any command given to fire?
A. No; I did not. There was no command to fire. I got no command to fire.
Q. Were there any shots fired by the mob before there was any firing by the militia?
A. Yes; a great many.
Q. Pistol shots?
A. Mostly pistol shots, and, I think, there were two or three gun shots from the side hill fired at us.
Q. What other demonstrations were made by the crowd, before the firing took place on the soldiers?
A. I was some distance from what you call the right of the brigade, on Twenty-eighth street. I had my hands pretty full where I was, and didn't pay much attention to what was going on there. In front of me some rioters showed pistols, and wanted to go through my lines. I refused to let them. They threatened what they would do with me and my men, and also tried to seduce the men from the lines. They were saying we are all workingmen, and you won't fire on workingmen. In this way they endeavored to break up the morals and discipline of the command. I drove them away without using violence, so far as I could, and kept them at a distance of from three or four yards.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. What was the general conduct of the whole command?
A. Do you mean of the brigade?
Q. Your men?
A. It was very good. For raw troops, it was excellent. I have seen troops in the field that didn't behave nearly as well as the men in my command. Most of them are boys, and, like young colts, were a little skittish at the first fire; but finding they didn't get killed, they stood to their work very handsomely.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Had any of your command ever seen actual service during the late war?
A. Yes; I have seen service, and some of my officers and some of the men.
Q. What proportion of them?
A. I should say ten per cent. on an average. Perhaps more.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. What was the general conduct of the division as a whole?
A. I cannot speak of that because I didn't see the Second brigade, and didn't know where it was; but the general conduct of the troops was excellent.
Q. From the commencement of the trouble?
A. Yes; in my judgment there was as good discipline, and order, and soldierly behavior on the part of the officers and men, as there would be in an army in the field, and much better than I have seen at times, in case of disaster. I was in the field about two years, and served under Generals McClellan, and Burnside, and Hooper, and Mead. I joined the army at Antietam, and served in the Pennsylvania Reserves at Fredericksburg, with the Third division, under General Reynolds, and was at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. In what capacity did you serve in the army?
A. First as orderly sergeant, and I was then made first lieutenant and captain. I was on General Doubleday's staff part of the time. After this general firing had taken place on Saturday afternoon, we were moved down into the round-house. Some reason was given that we were sent to guard the property. We went into the round-house about dusk, and a little later--between seven and eight o'clock--I was following Colonel Benson, and was given that part of the house to guard opposite Liberty street, about seventy-eight feet long, and was instructed to put out sentries along the line and inside the house to guard the windows, with orders to keep the mob outside back from the windows, and observe their operations, and not to fire without orders. There was great confusion and tumult outside, and a great deal of yelling and screaming, and some firing, and we could scarcely show ourselves at the windows until the mob outside began to throw bricks and direct pistol shots at us, but my men, owing to the orders I had given, didn't fire at all. Occasionally I went to see if the sentinels were on duty and obeying orders. About one o'clock I was lying on a board, when I heard a sentinel call for the sergeant of the guard on this line of Twenty-eighth street, and I immediately went over, taking a posse with me, to learn the cause of the alarm, when I found a large crowd around a field piece, apparently loading it, and preparing to fire. I immediately sent my adjutant to notify General Mathews--to notify him of the fact, and request his attendance. While my adjutant was going for General Mathews, he met General Brinton, and brought him, and General Mathews turned up at the same time. We held a council. The piece was ready to be discharged, and was pointed toward where I was told the Second brigade was. Then it was determined to disperse the mob. I cannot say now whether any intimation was given to them at the time to leave or we should fire--I am not positive--but I think there was.
Q. Warning you mean?
A. Yes. I am not positive; but they had a light, and were about ready to fire, when, by General Brinton's or Mathew's orders, I drew some men up inside of the windows, and we opened fire on them. They immediately dispersed, a number being killed and wounded. After an interval they came up again, and we let them come up; but as soon as they came up to the piece, and attempted to fire, we ordered them back, and when they didn't go back, we opened fire. After that time notice was always given. I suggested the propriety of going out for the piece and bringing it in, and volunteered to go with my men and bring it in and spike it; but our commanders thought it was not worth while, as we had it covered. After the crowd had withdrawn from the piece, they got back of board-piles and small houses, and kept firing at us all night. One man fired an explosive bullet. Every now and then it would come in over the heads of the men and strike something large--such as the stack of a locomotive--and immediately explode. A number of them had muskets and rifles. In the meantime some cars out on the right of us had been fired, and a number of these burning cars were sent down towards the buildings where we were, and lodged against some building not filled with troops, and in a little while the flames rushed through the window of the first floor and struck the ceiling of the second floor, and in the course of half an hour or so everything was on fire, and about six o'clock everything was on fire all around us, and cinders were falling as long as my hand--large cinders from this building--and the roof of this outside building was entirely on fire, and it had communicated to the roof of the round-house, so that we were enveloped with a great deal of smoke, and in danger of being enveloped entirely in flames.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. How far was this cannon stationed from the position you held?
A. About as far as from here across the street--about eighty feet.
Q. In what direction?
A. It was facing about the direction of the grain elevator--in that direction.
Q. Down the track?
A. Not exactly, but sort of angularly, so as to strike the machine shops. It was on Liberty street.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Below you then?
A. Yes; but right opposite to us. After we were almost smothered in smoke, and these heavy cinders were falling, we fell in for the purpose of marching out--where, of course, I had no means of knowing--it was not proper for me to inquire. In the meantime we took the ammunition out of two or three guns there and dampened them with water so that it could not be used against us. We turned out the first street and went towards the Allegheny river and then we struck for Penn street, I think, and as soon as we struck that street and got opposite those men, who were firing all night, they turned about face and fired into our flanks. The firing began as soon as we got on Penn street, and they kept firing into our flanks all the time until we got to the arsenal.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. Where did the firing come from?
A. From door-ways, and alley-ways, and second story windows, and doors of houses, and telegraph poles, and from every place where a man could get behind--where he could fire without being in any danger. I saw men standing along the side-walks with large navy revolvers in their coat tails waiting for us to get past a sufficient distance to fire into us.
Q. For what distance was the firing kept up?
A. I can only give an estimate. I should say a mile.
Q. Firing out of houses--was there much of that?
A. A great deal of that? I saw repeated cases where a man's arm would be out of a window firing at us; and generally when we would pass a corner there would be a crowd there apparently peaceable, but when we got past they would immediately fire into us.
Q. How many men were wounded in going out?
A. I don't know. I do not remember the number of men wounded.
Q. Was there any jeering of citizens from the houses as you passed along?
A. A great deal.
Q. And participated in by women?
A. I think I heard several women abusing us and a number of men stating, that we had killed their brothers and sons and so on, and that they would kill us.
Q. When you arrived at the arsenal, did you go into the grounds?
A. No.
Q. You do not know what took place?
A. Not of my own knowledge.
Q. What was the conduct of the troops there under General Brinton, taking them all, during Saturday in the round-house?
A. In my judgment, it was excellent, and, as we marched out of the round-house in the morning, I think the men all kept perfect order. The men were dressed in regular files, and no officer, that I saw, was not in his proper place. There was no confusion among the troops until as we got near the arsenal, when there was a movement made, coming from the right, to close up on a double quick, and that brought the Second brigade in the rear up on us, and that sort of huddled up the First brigade, and made some confusion there.
Q. Where was that?
A. Somewhere in the neighborhood of the arsenal--probably two squares from the arsenal. That confusion lasted two or three minutes, probably, and the Second brigade was just put on the right, and order was immediately restored. At one time there was a little difficulty about drawing the Gatling guns, and I know I assisted myself in pulling a gun some distance with my men.
Q. Was there any demoralization during the night in the round-house?
A. Not a particle--so far as I saw--not a particle.
Q. The discipline was good at the time you were in the round-house?
A. Yes; I had sentinels on front, and they observed their duty perfectly, and my whole command was in excellent condition.
By Senator Yutzy: