Chapter D: C. Larrabee, (9)

A. He was killed on Saturday morning, by the Philadelphia soldiers, and, probably, I had better not name him. He amused himself up to Saturday morning annoying everybody, and was shot on Saturday morning. I became satisfied, that no force I had or could convene could hold that crowd there then, or the crowd that would likely be there in the morning. So I telegraphed to the Governor.

Q. What time was that?

A. It was after midnight. I suppose, about two o'clock.

Q. Friday morning?

A. Yes; I suppose so. I cannot give the exact time.

By Senator Reyburn:

Q. It was during that night?

A. Yes; about two o'clock. I telegraphed to the Secretary of the Commonwealth and to the Adjutant General.

By Mr. Lindsey:

Q. Have you copies of those telegrams?

A. I think I have in my safe.

Q. I wish you would give us copies of them?

A. I will do so. I received an answer sometime after that that he had ordered General Pearson to call out one regiment of volunteers to assist in putting down the riot.

By Senator Yutzy:

Q. Who was this from?

A. I think from Secretary Quay or the Adjutant General. General Pearson then was ordered to call out the regiment here--the Duquesne Greys. They were called out to be in readiness at a certain hour in the morning. Afterwards I walked down to the city hall, and found about thirty men there, and a number of them were trying to get home as fast as they could. About thirty of them I saw in uniform at the city hall. During the forenoon of Friday, I went with General Pearson and some others, out through the mob or crowd at Twenty-eighth street, and along the line up to Twenty-eighth street, and up to Torrens station. There was a large crowd also, and very boisterous, and apparently very determined. I talked to them, and urged them to disperse, but they hooted and jeered. They did not use quite so bad language, but there was plenty of it, as they had done the night before. They told me they would wade in blood to their knees before they would disperse, and that it was blood or bread with them. I also read a proclamation to them, purporting to come from the Governor, and they hooted and jeered at that, and said they did not care, that they were going to stop those trains and had stopped them. It was then about eleven o'clock, and they said at that hour the railroads over the whole country are stopped. General Pearson attempted to address them, but they hooted and jeered at him. I believe he offered to buy a car load of bread and bring it out to them if they would disperse, but they said it was blood or bread with them, and they would not disperse. One young man that appeared to act as spokesman of the crowd while General Pearson was talking to them--I went to him, and asked him why he was acting in the way he was, and why this crowd was here. I am going to give you his answer: He said the Pennsylvania Railroad Company has two ends, one in Philadelphia and one in Pittsburgh. We have determined on a strike, and in Philadelphia they have a strong police force, and they are with the railroad, but in Pittsburgh they have a weak force, and it is a mining and manufacturing district, and we can get all the help we want from the laboring elements, and we have determined to make the strike here. I said to him: "Are you a railroader?" he said "No. I am a laboring man and not a railroader." I then asked him his name. He said: "It might be John Smith and might be John Jones, but I am not here to tell you what it is." I said: "Where do you live?" He said "In the eastern part of the State." I advised him to go home, and not engage in this bad business, but he said he intended to see it through or leave his corpse here. I might say, at East Liberty I warned them to disperse, the crowd, and when they refused to disperse, I warned the women and children to disperse--that the military would be there in a short time, and probably somebody would be hurt. I warned all having no part in the riot to get out of the road. The women answered me that they were there to urge the men on to do what they wanted. Who the women were I do not know, but they answered me in that way. That was in the forenoon of Friday. About noon there was a request sent to me to send some of my deputies with the railroad officials. I understood they were going to try to move the trains on Friday afternoon. I detached Major Boyce, and told him to take as many of my deputies as were necessary, and go down to Union depot. He started after a while, and came back, and it was reported to me that they had decided not to move any trains that afternoon. Consequently, he was not needed, he said. On Saturday--the forenoon of Saturday--I was called on by James Richardson, a constable--I do not know in what ward he is constable--I generally see him here in the Second ward--he is an old constable for many years in the city--he called on me and said that he had some warrants to arrest some parties who were leaders of the riot, issued by Judge Ewing, president judge of our court of common pleas No. 2, and that he wished me to go with him and take what assistance I could, to assist him in arresting some of the leaders of the mob. I immediately detailed ten of my deputies to go out and try to raise a _posse_. They started out and reported to me about one o'clock, and they had some eight or ten men with them.

Q. On Saturday?

A. Yes; some of them appeared willing to go provided they were paid in advance, and others were willing to go--that is, appeared willing to go--under any consideration. We started and went down as far as Union depot, and I think by the time I got there with this _posse_ my deputies had got up; they had all forsaken me and escaped except about six. We met Mr. Pitcairn there, and some of the other railroad officers. They told me they wished me to assist Mr. Richardson in arresting those parties, and that a division or a regiment, I do not know which they called it, of soldiers from Philadelphia would protect me. I went up with Mr. Richardson and Mr. Pitcairn, and another gentleman whom I saw giving his testimony here the other day; I do not know his name. We went up to Twenty-eighth street, and Mr. Pitcairn told me when we got to Twenty-eighth street, that he could not see the parties for whom the warrants were issued. I replied to him, that then my duty in that respect was ended. If he could not point them out that I could not arrest them; that I did not know them. I had seen the list of names, and I did not know any of them. I passed through the crowd, and they hooted and jeered at me for a mile, I suppose, but they offered me no violence. I went clear through the crowd and came and turned back through a portion of it. The military were bringing up a Gatling gun and placing it in position. I came back to the side of the Gatling gun. The military were formed into what I would call three sides of a hollow square. Shortly after that, or previous to that I might say, as we passed up, General Pearson was at my side, and a man who appeared to be a kind of leader of the crowd was on our right. He was very noisy and very boisterous, and God damning Pearson for bringing out his double-headers, and General Pearson just pointed at him and said, "That man will cause trouble after a little, I am afraid." The man saw him pointing. In some little time he came me--he forced himself through the lines of the military and came to me--and said, what had I against him? I said I had nothing against him, so long as he behaved himself. He asked what General Pearson had against him. I said I did not know. I did not hear him say anything against him. He said he was a friend of Pearson's, and had nothing against him, but that he was God damned if he was going to be pointed out that way in the crowd, that he had friends enough there to wipe us both out. I told him to get out. He said he would not go. I put my hands on his shoulders, and he was then thrown through to the crowd by one of the officers, He there became very noisy.

The military came up through the crowd in front with arms apart, and the crowd stood still, refusing to get back. The soldiers were then ordered to charge bayonets. Then somebody cried out in the crowd to hold their position. They came up at a charge bayonets; but a number of their guns were seized by the mob, as you might call it, and at this time, any number of stones were thrown. I saw one soldier get struck with a piece of coal on the forehead, just peeling his forehead, and he fell to his knees. About the same time there were three or four pistol shots fired from the crowd into the ranks of the soldiers, and, as I said before, any quantity of stones and clubs were thrown. Then the firing commenced by the soldiers, and it ran along around two sides of the square. It was a kind of running fire without an order to fire. It put me in mind of a pack of shooting crackers, when you set one end on fire one report would follow another. Some parties were killed and a great many ran away. I waited some half hour or more there. The soldiers then retired towards the round-house, and I returned to my home.

By Mr. Lindsey:

Q. What time did this firing occur?

A. In the afternoon about I should judge between four and five o'clock. I think it was near five o'clock.

Q. Did you remain home during the night?

A. I did not. I came down to my office, and remained there.

Q. Go on and relate your movements during the balance of the night, and Sunday and Sunday night.

A. All that night, and Sunday and Sunday night, I remained in the court-house here. I was useless and powerless, and they were hunting me to murder me. On Monday morning, I went to my office door, and a drunken creature was leaning there, with a revolver in his right hand, hunting for the sheriff. I asked him what he wanted with him. He said, I want to see him. I said you can take a good look at him now, and, with that, I took him by the collar, and kicked him down the steps. I have not seen him since. I might have stated, that on Thursday night, (the first night I went out into the crowd,) there were shots fired when General Pearson and I went out there first. I do not know whether they were fired at any person in particular. I think that they were intended to alarm more than anything else.

Q. When Mr. Scott came to your house, on Thursday night, to inform you of the riotous proceedings, did he advise you to consult with your counsel before going out?

A. No; he said it probably would be necessary, before I got through, to see my counsel. I told him that I could not see him then, that he had returned to his home, in the Nineteenth ward, Pittsburgh, and it would be impossible for me to see him at that hour of the night. I told him I would see him at an early hour in the morning.

Q. Did he tell you why it would be necessary?

A. No; I do not think he did, particularly--not to my recollection. He said if I became satisfied, in my own mind, that I had not sufficient force to remove the crowd, that it would be my duty to call on the Governor for aid, and he wished me to be satisfied in my own mind.

Q. How many of your deputies did you take with you that night?

A. Only one--Mr. Haymaker.

Q. Did you call for any posse that night?

A. Not that night.

Q. You did not call for any posse before telegraphing to the Governor?

A. No; I did not. I will say this here, that although I was called on that night, I was aware pretty generally what was going on in regard to the strike previous to that. It could be heard on the street--parties were saying--the strike before this had occurred in other parts of the United States--and they would say it will be here--it will be here in a day or two. I could hear the remarks passed. Not only that, but every avenue of the city, for a week before, had been crowded. There was a very considerable travel by strangers coming to the city. The city was full of strangers at the time. There was no railroad or wagon road but what you could find on it a class of people traveling that you had never seen or heard of at all before, and they were coming into the city. The city was full of them. This I have not heard any other person remark but myself, but it is the fact of the case. On all the railroad trains you could see men coming in, riding on the tenders, or on the cow-catchers, or any way at all--on the steps, or any way.

Q. What days?

A. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I will give another little fact. This morning a lady came to my office, asking me to solicit transportation for her over the Pennsylvania railroad to Philadelphia. She wished to get a pass. I asked her why, and she said that she had a son living in Chester county who had come here and mixed himself in with the riots, and had laid out and slept out until he had got a cold, and that he now was dying with consumption, and she was poor, and wished me to solicit the Pennsylvania railroad company to give her a pass to go and see him before he died. She lives here, and her son is married and lives in Chester county. She lives nearly across the street from where I do. But I didn't know she had this son, though.

Q. As soon as you returned on Thursday night from Twenty-eighth street, you telegraphed to the Governor?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Had you become satisfied, then, that it was necessary to call out the troops?

A. Yes, sir; I had. The riot had assumed--although there had been no actual outbreak, except the striking of Mr. Watt--had assumed such proportions then, that it would have been folly for me to attempt in this city to have got a posse to remove the crowd. I might, if I had had time, have got the rural districts of this county to assist me--I might have got a force there, but then it would have been a worse slaughter than what it was. But in this city it would have been folly for me to try it. I knew the feeling of the people.

Q. Did you make any effort on Friday forenoon to raise a posse?

A. I did not. I viewed it in this way. That, when I had called on the State authorities, and the State authorities had responded, that that relieved me of that responsibility of calling a posse. In fact, I considered the idea of a sheriff of any county calling out a posse almost as an obsolete piece of law to-day. The time was, when the military were under the control of the sheriff, but it is not so now.

Q. Do you know what the law is in regard to calling out the militia to suppress a riot?

A. I have read the acts of assembly.

Q. You knew what they were?

A. Yes.

Q. You knew what was necessary for you, as sheriff, to do before calling the militia?

A. Well, any citizen can call on the Governor for aid--any responsible party.

Q. But you knew what was necessary for you to do as sheriff?

A. I think I did. I might have been mistaken.

Q. You thought that you laid sufficient ground for calling on the Governor, did you?

A. Yes; this riot had assumed such proportions at that time--it had gone so far, and such a crowd was there, of all the rough elements of society, that no posse, raised inside of three or four days--and then it would have had to be collected from all parts of the county--could have removed it.

Q. How large was the crowd that night?

A. Well, I cannot tell you that, because the cars not loaded with freight, as I said before, were all occupied. Some had four or five in, and some ten or twelve in. I cannot tell how many cars were full. At Twenty-eighth street, I judge that a thousand persons were there at that time, and all along, from Union depot to Twenty-eighth street, they were scattered.

By Mr. Larrabee:

Q. Those cars you saw the men in, were they regular freight cars or caboose cars?

A. I saw them in both. One thing other I wish to impress on the committee, and that is this: I see that other evidence--by reading it in the papers--places those warrants for the arrest of those parties on Saturday, in my hands. It is not the case. They were in the hands of James Richardson, the constable, and I was only acting as a guard to assist him.

By Senator Yutzy:

Q. Was he not appointed as one of your deputies?

A. No; I told him I would go myself, and give him some of my men to assist him. I took thirteen of my regular deputies and myself to assist him, and some other men not regularly connected with the office. The names of some of them I cannot recollect.

By Senator Reyburn:

Q. Would it then have been possible to have arrested those men?

A. No, sir; not unless the military had done it. Probably, General Brinton might have been able, but I do not know. There was about a mile of a solid packed mob.

By Mr. Lindsey:

Q. On Saturday?

A. Yes; the day we had the warrants.

By Senator Reyburn:

Q. Friday?

A. On Friday there was a large crowd. It was continually increasing. It increased from Thursday, and kept on increasing all the time, on Friday and Saturday.

Q. Were they all taking a part?

A. No; a portion were lookers on, but the sympathy appeared to be all with the strikers. But I must say, that I did not see many of those strikers. After we had gone out to Torrens station, I asked Mr. Pitcairn how many men he knew in those two crowds, at Twenty-eighth street and Torrens station, as belonging to the road. After studying awhile, he said: "Well, really, I think I only know four."

By Mr. Lindsey:

Q. You say the sympathy of all those gathered around was with the strikers?

A. It appeared to be.

Q. How extensive was that sympathy--to what extent was it carried among the people?

A. It was very extensive. In fact, I do hardly know any person whose sympathy was not with them. It went so far that on Saturday night, after the firing, parties were coming to my house and telling my family that they would be murdered or burned out before morning. My wife became alarmed, and in the street where I lived she could not get protection in any house. They would not let her in.

Q. Why?

A. Because they blamed me for being at the head of the soldiers, and for causing the killing of innocent parties. That was the reason they gave her--that they did not think they would be safe in letting her in.

Q. What street is that?

A. Washington street, Pittsburgh.

By Senator Reyburn:

Q. On Thursday or Friday was this crowd boisterous or destroying things?

A. They were not destroying things. On Friday they were stopping all the trains coming in--stopping trains, and then hooking on locomotives and running the cattle cars, for instance, to Torrens station, and letting the cattle out in the field. In fact, Mr. Pitcairn will remember that we were ordered out of the locomotive that we were on, to let them run cattle out.

By Mr. Lindsey:

Q. Not on Thursday and Friday, but after the firing occurred, how was the sympathy?

A. I think the sympathy was with the strikers from the first. I feel satisfied it was. But I am only giving you my own opinion.

By Senator Reyburn:

Q. But you give that opinion, having formed it after intercourse with the people, and after being in the crowd?

A. Yes; I talked with a great many of them, and they appeared to think it was a hardship to reduce the wages and the numbers of the men, and also, once in a while, they would bring in this freight discrimination question.

Q. If you had had the warrants on Thursday night, could you have arrested those parties?

A. If I had had a posse of two hundred or two hundred and fifty I probably could have arrested them, but probably there would have been somebody killed. I believe on Thursday morning if I had had the number of police that Mayor McCarthy had, I could have arrested the leaders, and put in prison the disorderly parties, and that then the trouble would not have assumed the proportions it did. That is only my own idea of it.

By Senator Reyburn:

Q. Could it have been done on Thursday?

A. As I said before, I was out of Pittsburgh part of Thursday. I was called away on business.

Q. But from the time you became acquainted with the difficulty first?

A. On Thursday morning I saw the crowd gathering around, and I think then if I had had a force and had been called on to anything with the force that Mayor McCarthy had, I think I could have done some good, but on Thursday night at one o'clock, I do not think it could have been done.

Q. When those messages were brought in and read to the crowd as coming from other parties, were there any messages sent out to them in reply?

A. Not to my knowledge.

Q. No responses were made to them?

A. There was considerable cheering.

Q. But were any answers sent?

A. No.

Q. Did those messages come in answer to messages that had been sent out?

A. I cannot answer that. I have given you about the purport of the messages. Probably if General Pearson shall be called he might recollect the purport a little distincter than I have.

By Senator Yutzy:

Q. Were those telegrams?

A. I think not. I didn't so understand it.

By Senator Reyburn:

Q. There appeared to be an organization?

A. It looked to me in that light very much.

By Senator Yutzy:

Q. You stated one was from Wilkes-Barre?

A. Yes, and one from the Monongahela valley, and there was also one from Mansfield--that the coal miners there would be in in the morning.

By Mr. Lindsey:

Q. Had you knowledge of any organization prior to this time?

A. Nothing that I could assert with any distinctness--nothing only rumor--while I firmly believe there was. Now I will give you another fact or instance to corroborate my theory: Some five weeks after the riot I was in St. Paul, and the mayor of St. Paul had gathered up thirteen tramps in a cave on the bank of the Mississippi river. I was at the hearing, and each one had a traveling sack or satchel, and they examined these satchels and there were goods like silk handkerchiefs, and so forth, in them. The mayor asked them where they got them, and they said, at Pittsburgh at the time of the riot, "How did you know there was going to be a riot there." "Oh! we knew it, and we were there." If you will telegraph to the mayor at St. Paul he will substantiate the fact.

Q. In regard to the extent of this sympathy with the strikers that you spoke of, I would like you to explain a little more upon that subject as to the extent of it, and as to what classes of people sympathized with the strikers?

A. The whole laboring class, so far as I know, were with the strikers in their sympathy.

Q. The entire laboring class?

A. Yes; I think so. Do not understand me to say that they were in sympathy with the riot. They were in sympathy with the men on account of their wages being reduced.

By Mr. Yutzy:

Q. With the railroad strikers?

A. Yes.

By Mr. Lindsey:

Q. But they were not opposed to the railroad company?

A. I do not know that, but it was just this way that the railroad men had their sympathy. Then there was another sympathy of the merchants to a certain extent with these men. They believed they were not paid right, and that the railroad company were not doing----

Q. Among what class of merchants?

A. Our better class.

Q. The entire classes?

A. No; but a portion of them.

By Senator Yutzy:

Q. Was it sympathy with the strikers, or only prejudice against the railroad company?

A. I think they had sympathy and prejudice both.

Q. Do you think that any responsible portion of the people of Pittsburgh, whether laboring men or others, sympathized with the rioters after the difficulty had become a riot?

A. No; I think not. I would say here, that the responsible portion of the people of Pittsburgh were not in sympathy with the riot, but I would say, further, that it took a certain amount of riot to bring them to their senses. Something has been said in regard to seeing my solicitor. On Friday morning, I did see him at an early hour, and stated to him all I had done, and what I had done, and he advised me that I had done just exactly what he would have advised me to do. He stayed with me nearly all day Friday and Saturday. Before going up to Union depot in company with him, I walked down the street, looking for a posse to go along, and among other places we dropped in, was Air. Hampton's office. They two consulted, and both decided that I had acted in the right way. I am only satisfying you in regard to that. Those gentlemen, both, can be had at any time.

The following are the telegrams referred to in the foregoing testimony of Sheriff Fife:

PITTSBURGH, _July 19, '77_.

To Hon. JOHN LATTA,
_Lieutenant Governor of Penn'a._:

I have forwarded the following dispatch to his Excellency Governor
Hartranft, at Harrisburg. Learning that he is absent from the
State, I forward it also to you for such action as you may deem
your duty and powers render proper.

Signed

R. H. FIFE,
_Sheriff of Allegheny county_.

* * * * *

Following is the dispatch above alluded to:

PITTSBURGH, _July 19, 1878_.

HON. JOHN F. HARTRANFT,
_Governor of Pennsylvania,
Harrisburg_:

A tumult, riot, and mob exist on the Pennsylvania railroad at East
Liberty and in the Twelfth ward of Pittsburgh. Large assemblages of
people are upon the railroad, and the movement of freight trains,
either east or west, is prevented by intimidation and violence,
molesting and obstructing the engineers and other employés of the
railroad company in the discharge of their duties. As the sheriff
of the county, I have endeavored to suppress the riot, and have not
adequate means at my command to do so, and I, therefore, request
you to exercise your authority in calling out the military to
suppress the same.

R. H. FIFE, (Copy.)
_Sheriff of Allegheny county_.

* * * * *

BEAVER, PA., _July 20, 3:35, A.M._

R. H. FIFE,
_Sheriff_:

Your telegram received. I have telegraphed the Adjutant General.

M. S. QUAY,
_Secretary Commonwealth_.

* * * * *

HARRISBURG, _July 20, 2:11, A.M._

R. H. FIFE,
_Sheriff Allegheny county Pa._:

Gen. Latta will be here in an hour, and means taken to assist you
if necessary.