Part 21 (1/2)

Cooley asked Michel whether Rowan had said that ”the workers should form one great industrial union and declare the final and universal strike; that is, that they should remain within the industrial inst.i.tutions and lock the employers out for good as owners?”

”I never heard him mention anything about locking anyone out; I think he wanted to lock them in and make them do some of the work!” answered Michel.

”You haven't any particular interest in this case, have you?” asked Cooley with a sneer.

”Yes, I have!” replied Michel with emphasis.

When asked what this particular interest was, Michel caused consternation among the ranks of the prosecution by replying:

”The reason I have that interest is this; I have two sons and two daughters. I want to see the best form of organization so that the boys can go out and make a decent living; I don't want my girls to become prost.i.tutes upon the streets and my boys vagabonds upon the highways!”

Harry Feinberg, one of the free speech prisoners named on the first information with Watson and Tracy, was then placed on the stand and questioned as to the beating he had received at the hands of deputies, as to the condition of Frank Henig after McRae's attack, and upon matters connected with various street meetings at which he had been the speaker. Mention of the name of George Reese brought forth an argument from the prosecution that it had not been shown that Reese was a detective. After an acrimonious discussion Vanderveer suddenly declared:

”Just to settle this thing and settle it for now and all the time, I will ask a subpoena forthwith for Philip K. Ahern and show who Reese is working for.”

The subpoena was issued and a recess taken to allow it to be served. As Vanderveer stepped into the hall, detective Malcolm McLaren said to him, ”You can't subpoenae the head of the Pinkerton Detective Agency!”

”I have subpoenaed him,” responded Vanderveer shortly as he hurried to the witness room.

While awaiting the arrival of this witness, Feinberg was questioned further, and was then taken from the stand to allow the examination of two Everett witnesses, Mrs. L. H. Johnson and P. S. Johnson, the latter witness being withdrawn when Ahern put in an appearance.

Vanderveer was very brief, but to the point, in the examination of the local head of the Pinkerton Agency.

”Mr. Ahern, on the fifth day of November you had in your employ a man named George Reese?”

”Yes sir.”

”For whom was he working, thru you, at that time?”

”For Snohomish County.”

”That's all!” said Vanderveer triumphantly.

Cooley did not seem inclined to cross-examine the witness at any length and Vanderveer in another straightforward question brought out the fact that Reese was a Pinkerton employe during the Longsh.o.r.emen's strike--this being the time that Reese also was seated as a delegate to the Seattle Trades Council of the A. F. of L.

A portion of the testimony of Mrs. L. H. Johnson was nearly as important as that concerning Reese. She recited a conversation with Sheriff McRae as follows:

”McRae said he would stop the I. W. W. from coming to Everett if he had to call out the soldiers. And I told him the soldiers wouldn't come out on an occasion like this, they were nothing but Industrial Workers of the World and they had a right to speak and get people to join their union if they wanted to. And he said he had the backing of the millmen to keep them out of the city, and he was going to do it if he had to call the soldiers out and shoot them down when they landed there, when they came off the dock.”

[Ill.u.s.tration: Cutting off top of tree to fit block for flying machine.]

This clearly indicated the bloodthirsty designs of the millmen and the sheriff at a time long before November 5th.

G. W. Carr, Wilfred Des Pres, and J. M. Norland testified to the breaking up of peaceably conducted I. W. W. meetings, Des Pres also telling of rifles having been transported from the Pacific Hardware Company to the dock on November 5th. All three were Everett citizens.

Black asked Norland if he knew what sabotage was, to which Norland replied:

”Everybody that follows the labor movement knows what sabotage is.”

There was a sensation in court at this question for it was the first and only time that any of the prosecution counsel correctly p.r.o.nounced the word sabotage!