Part 84
A. I didn't take any. I had nothing to take any means with. There were six gentlemen in citizens' clothes--most of them civilians--all civilians I think. The next day when I first heard that, Captain Aull was the first party who came in. He announced that the troops had got out of the round-house. There were two parties from East Liberty who had come into the room to ask me to retain the Eighteenth regiment there, and I looked at them in astonishment when I had ordered them to come in to the relief of General Brinton. While I was talking to those citizens, Captain Aull came in, and he overheard the conversation. He stepped up and told me he had driven through Brinton's troops, and they were marching out. I was relieved from a great deal of anxiety, so I sat down and immediately told Aull--having no other, I think--sat down and dictated a dispatch, which appears here on page 11, addressed to Brinton, signed by me, dated July 22, 1877:
PITTSBURGH, _July 22, 1877_.
Major General R. M. BRINTON:
Remain in position at stock-yards, or thereabouts, securing yourself, and await further orders. Congratulate you on your manoeuver of this morning. Consult with Colonel Guthrie, and govern yourself accordingly. From information received here, it appears Eighteenth regiment is sufficient to protect stock-yards, and will not excite special prejudices of the mob. There is an old fort in the vicinity, which is suggested as a good place to hold. It can be shown to you by parties familiar with the neighborhood.
Keep your channels of subsistence well open, and await further orders. There may be some developments, which, of course, will require you to act on your own responsibility. If any troops arrive at East Liberty, assume command of them. Report their arrival here, if possible. Norris will be on the ground shortly, and explain the situation here. Act after consultation with him.
JAMES W. LATTA, _Adjutant General_.
At the same time, Norris being a staff officer--it is not customary to give a staff officer written instructions--I started him off to talk with Brinton. Brinton appears to have given this order sometime about the 31st of July, seven or eight days afterwards. Norris got hold of me, and told me the purport of the order, and told me what the directions were, and he moved about a mile beyond Sharpsburg bridge and stayed there. I started off to try to make a junction with the troops at Walls, which I did not know at that time had gone to Blairsville.
Q. Did you have any consultation with the officers on Sunday?
A. I saw no citizens of Pittsburgh on Sunday, except Mr. Bennett. Whether we called to see him or not, I don't know. I was in the room just as Norris had returned to the Monongahela house. Bennett and Cassatt were sitting upon one bed, and Norris and some other gentleman on the other, and Norris was giving a description of his ride to Brinton, and I was introduced to Mr. Bennett, and shook hands with him, and overheard part of their conversation, which was to the effect that Mr. Bennett was trying to persuade Cassatt to make some compromise with the men, which Cassatt refused to do.
Q. He was the only one?
A. I think so; the only one I saw. I was going to say, I remained there until nine o'clock at night, and then I had got dispatches from every part of the country, that showed everything was in a general uprising, and I made up my mind I must get to Harrisburg, and Phillips told me there was no way to get over the Pennsylvania, and we went to Beaver, believing the Erie route to be the most practicable. At Beaver I telegraphed to Scott to get a special train. Scott intimated their road was open, and I hired a carriage and drove back to Allegheny City, and came back here.
By Mr. Engelbert:
Q. Do you know what became of the ammunition in the Union depot?
A. Before I left the Union depot I spent about nearly an hour in arranging a plan to get it saved. I left it in charge of Captain Breck. The plan we had arranged was to--that was just about the time the milkmen were going back to their places in the country--to get empty milk cans and open the boxes and pour the ammunition into the cans and take the ammunition out. I am told that he got five or six cans loaded, and was on his way to hunt transportation, when the fire got hold of the thing, and the ammunition was destroyed.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. Did the mayor, in that interview, express any intention or desire to suppress this--making any attempt to control it?
A. No, sir; simply said the matter was beyond his control, and he could not do anything, and he was tolerably mad.
Q. Did he say he had in the first place?
A. No, sir; I didn't ask him anything about that.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Who explained the movements of the troops, as they advanced out to Twenty-eighth street?
A. General Pearson. He showed his plans to me before he started.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. Do you know whether the command was given to fire that day, by any of the officers?
A. I do not know anything about it.
Q. Do you know whether General Pearson was there at the time the firing took place?
A. I do not know.
Q. Do you know how General Pearson was dressed on that day?
A. Yes, sir; he left me with a blouse on. Major general's shoulder-straps and fatigue cap, and my impression is he had one of these old fashioned blouses, with the braid in front, and a sword and belt. Whether the belt was outside of the blouse or inside, I cannot recollect. He had a fatigue uniform of the United States army, excepting that braid, if that was there. It is not now a part of the uniform.
Q. What time did he leave you with that uniform on?
A. He left me with that uniform on, about three o'clock, and returned again with it on at night.
Q. Did he have it on at night?
A. Yes, sir.
By Mr. Engelbert:
Q. You saw him before the firing, and after the firing with the same uniform on?
A. Yes, sir; with the same uniform.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. After you returned to Harrisburg, who directed the troops from that time until the arrival of the Governor in the State?
A. There was very little direction done. In the meantime he had been advised of my movements, and he had in the meantime been directing himself. After the Pittsburgh collision, he commenced to move the troops, and we got into the same channel. Pretty much all the orders were alike.
Q. Do you know anything about a collision that occurred at Reading, with General Reeder's troops?
A. Only as it is officially reported by General Reeder and Bolton. It was reported here immediately, I saw it the next day.
Q. What time did General Huidekoper get to Pittsburgh?
A. He got to Pittsburgh from Chicago, a little before daylight on Sunday morning.
Q. Did you have any consultation with him after his arrival?
A. We had a plan of battle arranged there. Huidekoper started on its accomplishment. We chartered a steamboat, and we managed to smuggle several boxes of ammunition from the hotel, and he went to Rochester, believing his troops were coming down. He ought to have been in Pittsburgh by noon, but the troops were stopped by the riot.
Q. They were stopped by reports at Greenfield?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Who was the colonel commanding these troops that were on their way?
A. I think they were in charge of a major on the Allegheny Valley road. They were in charge of Lieutenant Colonel Magee.
Q. They were not in charge of Colonel Carpenter?
A. Possibly so. I don't know that. Magee--I had communications with him.
Q. Do you know why they stopped at Greenfield?
A. No, sir.
Q. Did you ever try to ascertain the causes?
A. No, sir; that matter was altogether in the hands of General Huidekoper; he was division commander.
Q. Did Huidekoper report to you any reasons for it?
A. No, sir; not unless there is something in this report here. I think if he had I would have recollected it.
Q. Was it reported to you by anybody that there was no cause for the stopping of the troops there, excepting that the colonel commanding the troops was afraid to go on?
A. I never heard. I don't think I ever heard that before. There was plenty of ammunition; there was five thousand rounds of ammunition at Greenfield at the time.
Q. Plenty of ammunition in Greenfield?
A. I didn't know it then because it was in Huidekoper's division. I learned afterwards it was at Greenfield.
Q. They should have arrived, you say, at Rochester, at what time?
A. If the trains had been on time they ought to have been in Pittsburgh at twelve o'clock.
Q. Sunday?
A. Sunday, yes, sir.
Q. They never got any further than Greenfield?
A. Not within fifty or sixty miles. Huidekoper left Rochester and went out west to meet the Governor. He gave up all hopes of getting near about noon.
Q. Were any steps taken by the commander-in-chief to ascertain the cause of that delay?
A. No, sir; we assumed it was because they could not get the hands to run them. That was the report from every place, and it seemed to be generally confirmed. I was just going to say, in looking at this matter, it ought to be looked at in an exceptional light. It is a thoroughly new thing. The soldiers ought not to be reflected on as severely as the people have. There is as much courage in the National Guard as there is anywhere, and it ought not to be judged of in the light of a regular warfare nor by such rules.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. You found after you had organized the troops, and had them out a few times that they were just as good as any soldiers?
A. Just as good as any soldiers you bring from any quarter of the globe.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. It was reported that some Philadelphia troops were captured across the Susquehanna here by a squad of rioters from Harrisburg, and tramps, and brought into the city. I wish you would state what you know about that, and who the troops were?
A. I only know if as you do. I didn't see it, and know nothing of it.
By Senator Reyburn:
Q. But was the thing not officially reported?
A. Nothing official reported to me. I believe the officer in charge of those troops is now undergoing trial by court martial in Philadelphia.
Q. Do you know who it is?
A. I only know from hearsay.
Q. Do you know of any troops that were ordered to Pittsburgh returning without orders?
A. I heard so, yes, sir; that there were troops that did return.
Q. Do you know it officially?
A. No.
Q. Of your own knowledge?
A. I don't think any troops did return, as bodies, to Philadelphia. Scattered, straggling men did, but no body of troops returned to Philadelphia. I do not think that the straggling in the National Guard was equal to what it is sometimes.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Do you approve of General Brown's course, in disbanding his regiments at Pittsburgh?
A. If it be a fact that General Brown did give these troops directions to leave, it was a most outrageous breach of everything a good soldier ought to have done. I believe those troops there could have held that place until now.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. I understand you to say that it is your judgment that those troops might have held that place?
A. I think so.
Q. Do you know anything as to the reasons that induced General Brown to disband those two regiments?
A. Haven't the most distant idea. I don't even know that it is a fact, except as I have seen it alleged in the newspapers.
Q. Are you well acquainted with General Brown?
A. I have known him five or six years. He has a very fine record in the army. He used to be adjutant in our corps.
Q. Stood well, up to this time, in the National Guard?
A. Excellently well.
Q. Do you know that he was at that time laboring under any physical or mental disability?
A. No, I do not, except that he struck me as being most terribly fussy, and ... a whole lot of information that it was not worth while bothering with.
Q. Did he strike you at that time as laboring under any mental disability?
A. No; I would not at all have considered that.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Did he show unusual excitement--nervousness?
A. Brown is a terribly talkative fellow, and he talked in his usual strain; I should not have set him down as anywise wrong.
* * * * *
C. N. Farr, recalled:
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. I wish you would state whether you were present when General Latta received a dispatch from General Brinton, on Saturday evening?
A. Yes, sir; I was.
Q. Of the 21st. State as nearly as you can what the import of that dispatch was?
A. I cannot remember it sufficiently to give any of the language, except the general impression left upon my mind that General Pearson had left me, and that he had had no communications, and didn't understand the situation, and stated the condition of his troops, and how particularly he stated that I can't remember, except that the impression left upon my mind was that the troops were in danger of demoralization. There was a certain amount of unreliability, and that was intensified from the fact that we knew or understood, at that time, that the Pittsburgh division had gone to pieces, and up to that time we had considered that there would be no difficulty in General Brinton's holding his position until morning; that he had sufficient force, and was well armed and ammunitioned; but the dispatch created the impression that his troops were somewhat infected with that feeling of sympathy, or disinclined to take vigorous operations, and I understood that to be the reason why no more vigorous measure were taken.
* * * * *
General James W. Latta, recalled:
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. In relation to General Brown--whose duty would it be to investigate the conduct of General Brown there at that time?
A. General Pearson's duty first; and if he did not investigate it himself, he ought to have reported the fact officially here. There was no official report that reached my department of General Brown's having, on that night, asked any troops to withdraw.
Q. Was General Pearson relieved of his command for any time after the troubles on the 21st there?
A. He remained temporarily withdrawn from his command until we started off to Scranton. When the Governor came into Pittsburgh that night, he found nobody but Brown, and placed Brown in temporary command of the troops that had been gotten together in the city.
Q. How long did Brown keep that position?
A. I should think from the 24th or 25th of July until the 1st day of August.
Q. No report has ever reached you officially that he did dismiss his troops?
A. No, sir; I never heard anything of it directly, except what Captain Bingham told me that morning, and I did not know but that Captain Bingham might have been misinformed--he might not have been in direct communication with his general. I did not pay much attention.
Q. Did any report reach you from Colonel Gray or Colonel Howard?
A. I saw Colonel Gray's report in the newspaper. Colonel Howard I don't think ever said anything to me about it.
Q. Does Colonel Gray or Colonel Howard mention the fact in their official report?
A. They don't come to me, sir.
Q. To whom do they report officially?
A. To General Pearson.
Q. Those don't come to you at all?
A. No, sir.
At this point, the committee adjourned until to-morrow morning, at nine o'clock.
HARRISBURG, _March 12, 1878_.
The committee met, pursuant to adjournment, at ten o'clock, A.M., in Senate committee room No. 6. All members present except Mr. Larrabee.
* * * * *
Honorable A. J. Herr _sworn_:
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. It is made the duty of this committee, under the resolution by which they were appointed, to examine into the conduct of the militia of the State. Will you please state what knowledge you have of misbehavior on the part of the officers?
A. My personal knowledge is not very extensive, but the information that I received from credible citizens of Harrisburg, is clear and pointed. Shall I give you what I saw first?
Q. Yes.
A. One day during the riots--what day I can't recollect--but one day during the riots, I happened to be on the pavement in front of the court-*house in the city of Harrisburg, and I saw a large crowd, men and half grown boys, coming up from the depot, going towards the bridge that spans the Susquehanna river. The impression prevailed amongst the citizens that this crowd was going over the bridge to make an attack upon some soldiers that were said to be there. After a time--maybe half an hour or thereabouts--the greater part of that same crowd came back from the bridge. Then I saw in the center as it were of some few men and some half grown boys, soldiers, and these half grown boys, or some of them, were carrying the guns of the soldiers, and they were fraternizing with the young boys round about the soldiers. The soldiers, themselves, all seemed to be in good humor, seemed to know each other, and passed along very nicely and quietly, and the point of the whole thing was, that these soldiers had in this way allowed these few half grown boys either to take the guns, or they had delivered the guns up, and so they passed on down the street, these soldiers, with these few boys surrounding them, and I lost sight of them. I was then afterwards told, that the soldiers had sent word over to some of the people in town that they wanted to come to Harrisburg, and that they wanted these people to come over and escort them into Harrisburg. And then I was told further, that these parties had provided accommodations for these soldiers--these last two things I do not know, only that the rumors were upon the street, and at that time prevailing. And the feeling in my own breast, as well as throughout the citizens, was one of humiliation, that these soldiers would either give up their arms to these half grown boys, or send word to them that they wanted them to come and take them over to Harrisburg, or that they allowed them to take their arms. That is what I saw, and all I saw.
Q. How many of the soldiers were there?
A. That I cannot tell, because you know how difficult it is in a moving crowd to tell just about how many. I should suppose, maybe, there were six or seven or eight, or thereabouts. I am not accurate in regard to that, but there was a goodly squad.
Q. Were there any officers among them?
A. That I can't tell. You know I couldn't see very well, in the first place.
Q. Did you notice whether they were uniformed or not?
A. Oh, yes.
Q. No officers then?
A. That I could not say. I did hear that there was either a lieutenant or captain, but I am not positive in regard to that, but those were the general facts that I witnessed.
Q. How large was the crowd of half grown boys around them?
A. I should suppose, maybe, there were ten or twelve, that is, of the immediate crowd, that also was looking on, were attached to the body of men that were bringing the soldiers over. You might say that, perhaps, there were ten or twelve; but the crowd outside of the immediate circle of young fellows that had the guns was larger, and for the most part I guess they were spectators.
Q. When they went over the bridge in going out, how large a crowd was there?
A. It was a pretty large crowd, perhaps it numbered--I really don't know, but should suppose that that crowd may have numbered two hundred or thereabouts, but they didn't all go across the bridge, because I was told that the bridge-keeper kept them back, and would not let them all go, but I suppose the van of the crowd got over before they closed the gates.
Q. What is the bridge-keepers name--give it in full if you can?
A. That I can't tell; but I will get it and hand it to you, or to one of the gentlemen. I might get it in the Senate chamber. I guess, maybe, Mr. Childs could tell it.
Q. Which bridge was it, the covered bridge?
A. Yes, sir; that was about all I saw then. Shortly after, or some time after that, a gentleman by the name of Major Mumma--Major David Mumma----
Q. Do you know what those boys did with that squad?
A. I said that I heard that they took them down to some hotel and provided meals for them, and furnished them, I was also told, with means to get away. That I only heard.
Q. Do you know what hotel it was?
A. My recollection is it was some hotel--Boyer's hotel, on the railroad. I may be mistaken in regard to that. Some of the hotels down in that neighborhood. I was going to say that Major David Mumma, of this city, told me, and I have no doubt it is true, but he can give it you first hand, that he had occasion to go out to his farm, and to reach that farm he had to pass a little town by the name of Progress, and there he found a number of soldiers, and, I understood him to say, the officers with their epaulets torn off, and their buttons cut off, and very much excited and alarmed; and that they told him they had come, I don't know where, over the mountains and through the valleys, and all that sort of thing, and there they were.
Q. These are the ones you alluded to?
A. Partly.
Q. Where were they found?
A. In a little tavern in the little town by the name of Progress, near here. I would rather you would get the full statement direct from the major in regard to that. I can repeat what he said, but you can get it first hand.
Q. This was the party that was captured by the boys?
A. No, no. I just told you what I saw. Now I am only referring to what Major Mumma and other citizens told me about a squad of soldiers, and they characterized them as officers, epaulets cut off and buttons cut off, in a little tavern in a little town called Progress, near this city, and he described their alarm, and what he did to get them safe to the arsenal.
By Mr. Means:
Q. Did it appear to you that the boys had taken these soldiers prisoners? Did they treat them as prisoners, escort them in unarmed?
A. You could hardly use the word prisoners, because the prisoners seemed to be so willing. They were rather captives.
Q. A prisoner generally makes a show to go willingly?
A. It would only be an opinion as to whether the boys--my own opinion is, that the boys did not capture them in the sense of these men resisting, and finally conquered them, but rather think that I believe what I was told afterwards is true--that is, that the soldiers had, some way or other, sent word here, and those fellows had gone over there.
Q. They wanted the boys to capture them?
A. I rather think so from what I was told.
Q. Did the soldiers carry arms?
A. No; the boys were carrying the arms.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. This crowd, when they started out--you could tell something by the way in which they started, whether they were moving toward an objective point?
A. Oh, yes, sir.
Q. That they appeared to be moving towards----
A. Yes, sir; just for instance, as you would stand by, and see a large crowd passing, and you would wonder where they were going, and you would keep looking to see that they were all directing themselves to one point, and you would then say, well, they are going there. Then I think that there is a Captain McAllister, who is living in Rockville, a few miles over here on the Susquehanna, he can tell you some very amusing things, and I don't know but a little humiliating, too. I could not distinctly recollect all it was that he said, because it was rather a humorous description he gave of their fright, &c.
Q. Is he a member of the National Guard?
A. No.
By Mr. Engelbert:
Q. The old gentleman?
A. No; it is the old squire, Jim--that is it, Captain James McAllister.
Q. Rockville, did you say?
A. In that neighborhood.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Do you know anything about the movements of the troops about the arsenal or anywheres about this town?
A. No; I can't say. There was so much said. I think that Sheriff Jennings and Mayor Patterson could give you a good deal of information about the movement--the incipient movements of the troops here. Both of those gentlemen could give you a good deal of information.