Report of the Committee Appointed to Investigate the Railroad Riots in July, 1877: Read in the Senate and House of Representatives May 23, 1878Pennsylvania. General Assembly. Committee Appointed to Investigate the Railroad Riots in July, 1877
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Report of the Committee Appointed to Investigate the Railroad Riots in July, 1877: Read in the Senate and House of Representatives May 23, 1878
Pennsylvania. General Assembly. Committee Appointed to Investigate the Railroad Riots in July, 1877
A. Those crews were not suspended, but that many men, and a great many
more, because the business had gone down, were suspended, and we were
choosing the married men and the old men. The old men and the married
men were chosen, in preference to the single men.
By Mr. Larrabee:
Q. But by suspension do you mean discharge, or do you mean suspension
temporarily?
A. They were given to understand that there was no more work.
By Mr. Dewees:
Q. This was one of the causes, this doubling up, as I understood you to
say, that created the dissatisfaction here at this point?
A. That is what they say.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. Did you not only reduce your crews, so far as the conductors and
brakemen and flagmen were concerned, one half of a train, if it was
sent out as a double-header?
A. One half of the trains we were running single between Pittsburgh and
Derry.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. Were any of the discharged men among the crowd at Twenty-eighth
street or at Torren's station that morning?
A. Yes; I saw quite a number of men who had been discharged for cause
as well as suspended on account of the reduction.
Q. You deemed it unsafe from that time on to start your trains, from
the time you visited Twenty-eighth street and Torren's station that
morning?
A. The sheriff and General Pearson--the sheriff ordered the crowd to
disperse and General Pearson, in fact, made a calm and warning speech,
and told them what his orders were, that the military had been ordered
out and what the consequences would be, and coaxed and pleaded with
them to disperse before the military came up that had been ordered out.
Q. What time did the military come up?
A. In regard to the time of any of those occurrences, from Thursday
until it was all over I was not in bed, and it is kind of cloudy in my
mind as to the different hours; but as to the hour, I should say that
this was about twelve or one o'clock, Friday.
By Senator Yutzy:
Q. When the military came at the crowd?
A. Yes.
By Mr. Lindsey:
Q. How many companies came on the ground at that time?
A. First one company--they were very straggling.
Q. Who commanded the first company that came?
A. I do not know.
Q. It was under the general direction of General Pearson?
A. Yes.
Q. At what point were they stationed?
A. That I cannot tell. On Friday--I cannot tell. I do not remember if
there were any soldiers at Twenty-eighth street. I cannot tell. Friday
night the Pittsburgh troops were brought out.
Q. What time did the first burning or destruction of property by fire
commence?
A. Friday night the troops were stationed at Torrens.
Q. What time did the first burning commence?
A. I do not know that--I cannot say.
Q. Do you know where it commenced?
A. Only from hearsay. A great deal occurred between Friday night and
Saturday night.
By Mr. Engelbert:
Q. When the sheriff and General Pearson went to the mob, was the mayor
of the city, at that time, acting in conjunction with them?
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