Area History: Chapter XIV - XVI, History of Schuylkill County, Pa: W. W. Munsell, 1881 History of Schuylkill County, PA: Chapter XIV - XVI Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by R. Steffey. Typing and editing by Jo Garzelloni and Carole Carr. USGENWEB NOTICE: Printing this file by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files to other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIOR to uploading to any other sites. We encourage links to the state and county table of contents. ____________________________________________________________ HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, PA with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. New York: W. W. Munsell & Co., 36 Vesey Street, 1881 Press of George Macnamara, 36 Vesey Street, N.Y. ____________________________________________________________ ___________________ CHAPTER XIV ___________________ LABOR TROUBLES THE CRIMES AND SUPPRESSION OF THE MOLLIE MAGUIRES _____________ During the last half century the question of capital and labor, and the just relation which they should sustain to each other, has engrossed the attention of political economists in this country with constantly increasing interest. The limits and scope of this work will not permit a discussion of this question here, but it is proper to make a brief allusion to certain changes which have transpired in this region, and to certain other changes which have kept pace with them, if they have not sustained to each other the relation of effect to cause. Fifty years since, public sentiment here was so strongly opposed to everything that bore any resemblance to a monopoly that capitalists sought in vain to obtain chartered privileges which could come in competition with individual industry and enterprise. Gradually, however, the people yielded their opposi- tion, till the present condition of things has come to exist among capitalists; and along with this has come the growth of labor associations, the members of which have sought, by concert of action, to protect themselves against what they deemed the exactions of combined monopolists. That lawlessness, and even crime, should be the result is no matter of surprise. The first recorded strike (then termed a turnout) in this county was inaugurated July 9th, 1842. About 1,500 men mostly miners, refused to work. They were joined by many idle and vicious men, and they forcibly prevented others, who were dis- posed to do so, from pursuing their labor. Some riots ensued, but the authorities acted promptly, order was restored, and work resumed in two or three weeks. It is noteworthy that one of the colliers, who was approached by a committee with an offer of mediation, declined to hold any communication with them; and "wisely told them that when he wanted guardians to take charge of his business he would get the court to appoint them." _______________end page 97.________________ page 98 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. _____________________________________________________________ A turnout occurred among the labors on the Schuylkill Valley Railroad about the middle of December, 1844, which assumed such formidable dimensions that four companies of the volunteer mili- tia were called out to suppress the riotous proceedings. After that time strikes were of comparatively frequent occurrence. No one could question the right of laborers to refuse to work for the wages offered; but the practice which prevailed among them of seeking, by lawless violence, to deter others from the labor which they were disposed to engage in was indefensible. One of the judges of the court, in a charge to a jury at that time, stated that endeavoring to prevent, by coercion, people from work, in order to obtain higher wages was seeking the accomplish- ment of a lawful desire by unlawful means; and that it would subject the perpetrators to the penalties of the law. It must not be forgotten that, though labor strikes were hardly known in this region fifty years since, and though the frequency of their occurrence and their formidable character have grown as capital has become more and more concentrated, and capitalists have sought by combination to interfere with the law of supply and demand, yet they did not have origin here, and have never been participated in to any extent by native citizens. In England and Ireland a condition of things which tended to the development and maintenance of labor unions has long existed, but the severe laws and the limitation of the elective franchisee there prevented them from assuming the formidable character that they have exhibited here, where partisan greed and a more lenient administration of justice have tended to give them a measure of impunity. The great strike which swept over the country in 1877, with its riots and fearful destruction of property, was inaugu- rated and maintained mainly by men of foreign birth, who had learned in their native country to regard their wealthy employers and landlords as their natural enemies. THE WORKINGMEN'S BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION, which during several years exercised a very potent influence through the anthracite coal regions, had its origin in Schuylkill county. In July, 1868, the miners of Girard colliery, Girard- ville, struck for an application to them of the eight-hour law which the Legislature had passed the preceding session. To give their strike a formidable appearance they conferred with the men of some neighboring collieries, and induced them to join in the demonstration. The readiness with which these miners joined in the movement, the really formidable character which it assumed, and some hints which he received from the miners at Hyde Park, who refused to participate in the strike, induced John Parker, a shrewd and intelligent English miner and blacksmith, to undertake the task of harmonizing the discordant elements that existed in the anthracite regions, and arraying them against millions of organized capital and hundreds of shrewd and courageous capital- ists and employers. The "Workingmen's Benevolent Association of Hyde Park" was made the basis of the new movement, which spread rapidly through the counties of Schuylkill, Carbon, Northumber- land, Columbia and Dauphin and the lower part of Luzerne. Space will not permit a detailed account of the machinery of this organization, or a minute history of its career, in the course of which it exercised an influence which affected and al- most controlled operations in the anthracite coal regions, and secondarily made itself felt throughout the country. The name was changed to "The Miners' and Laborers' Benevolent Association." The long strike was inaugurated in January, 1875, and with its termination in June of the same year the association collapsed. ORIGIN OF THE MOLLIE MAGUIRES The ruffianism which prevailed here during many years under the name of Mollie Maguireism was transplanted her from Ireland; but it never could have acquired the fearful character which it came to possess here had it not found a condition of things favorable to its development. One historian speaks as follows of the Irish, who constitute the larger portion of the population in the miners' villages and "patches" of the coal regions: "Coming here fresh from the contract with the landlord and the land agent in Ireland, with no surrounding influence to teach them their error, they transfer a prejudice which has grown with their growth and strengthened with their strength to the coal operators and the boss, from whom direction they work. Taught from infancy to believe that as against them capital is never used except as an instrument of oppression, under the influence sometimes of real wrongs, but more frequently under a mistaken belief of an encroachment upon their rights, a spirit of resist- ance is aroused, which wicked and designing wretches have so used and controlled as to render the undetected commission of horrid crimes not only easy but to a certain extent sympathized with." He might have added that the constantly increasing centrali- zation of capital here does not tend to diminish the prejudices which they imbibed in their native land. At about the commencement of the present century the Ribbon Society was organized in some of the counties in Ireland, among the tenantry, for the maintenance of what they looked upon as rights, against what they regarded as the oppressions of their landlords. In carrying out the objects of their organization they were guilty of many crimes, which rendered them a terror in some localities. About the year 1843 the Mollie Maguires were organized as auxiliaries to the Ribbonmen; or, perhaps, some of the more ferocious and desperate of the order took that name. It is said by some that the name adopted was that of a woman who manifested extraordinary ferocity in resisting with her own hands the agents of the English landlord. Other asserts that the society was so named because it was organized at the house of a woman of that name; while another tradition relates that the name was acquired because of the female apparel in which some of the members disguised themselves to check, beat, or otherwise mal- treat the "process servers," ________________end page 98.___________________ page 99 ORGANIZATION AND CRIMES OF THE MOLLIE MAGUIRES. _______________________________________________________________ "grippers," "keepers" or "drivers," as agents of the landlords were termed. With such ferocity did they resist the legal offi- cers who went among them, and such terror did they consequently inspire, that it came to be almost impossible to induce an offi- cer to undertake the service of a process. It is not believed that any connection existed between the Ribbonmen and Mollie Maguires in Ireland and the Mollies in this country. It is true that their methods of committing crime and of warning their intended victims were the same, or nearly so. The practices which the immigrants had learned among the tenantry of Ireland in their resistance to the agents of the hated foreign landlords were adopted here with only such changes as changed circumstances seemed to require. By reason of the less repres- sive character of the laws here, and the political influence which the Mollies were able to wield their crimes in this country came to be far more frequent and atrocious than they had been in Ireland, and here they sought by inspiring terror to control in their own interest the policy of their employers. In extenuation of their crimes in Ireland it may be said that they were, or that they believed themselves to be, the victims of oppression; and that the law not only failed to protect them, but that it was the instrument by which they were oppressed. Here, however, no extenuation of their crimes can be found. Dewees says of them: "The Mollie Maguire of the coal region comes into existence without cause or pretense of a cause in the pastor present histo- ry of this country. Standing the equal before the law of any man or set of men in the land, his rights guarded and even his preju- dices respected, he becomes with fiendish malice and in cold blood an incendiary and assassin; a curse to the land that has welcomed him with open arms, and a blot, a stain and a disgrace upon the character of his countrymen and the name of the land of his nativity." ANCIENT ORDER OF HIBERNIANS. In this country no association was ever organized under the name Mollie Maguire. The Ancient Order of Hibernians, a benevo- lent and highly respectable association, which had a large mem- bership in United States, in Canada and Great Britain, and was in Pennsylvania as well as some other States incorporated by law, came to be controlled in the coal region by the desperate outlaws who constituted what were termed Mollie Magurires here, and who stamped their character on the order in the coal regions. It does not appear that there was in the constitution of this order anything criminal, but the evidence is too strong to admit of a reasonable doubt that the divisions of the order throughout the United States were assessed to raise funds for defending the criminal here. Charitable people seek to excuse this action of the national delegates, and to believe that the members of the order elsewhere had no sympathy with the acts of these outlaws. To such it must be a source of regret that the order elsewhere has not repudiated and denounced those who so deeply disgraced them here. It has been truly said that no other organization in the United States would have failed to denounce such action on the part of its members in any locality or region. As early as 1848 it was known that an element of lawlessness was in this region, and even at that time it assumed the name by which it was afterward distinguished. Warnings in coarse, vulgar terms, illustrated with rude sketches of coffins, pistols, etc., and threatening vengeance, were occasionally received by those who had desired to intimidate them. These notices frequently bore the signature "One if Mollie's Children"; a fact which shows that within five years of the adoption of the name in Ireland it had been brought to this region. About the year 1854 vague rumors were heard of the existence of a laborers' organization, called in some portions of the anthracite region "Black Spots," and in others "Buck Shots," but these attracted only slight and tran- sient attention. About the year 1862, or soon after the breaking out of the rebellion, the suddenly increased demand for coal brought a correspondingly increased demand for laborers on the mines here, and this at a time when thousands were absent in the army. In answer to this demand came a large influx of foreigners, among whom might be found the worst elements of a floating population. It soon became evident that a lawless organization existed here, and when, in 1862, an enrollment for the purpose of a draft was ordered, its formidable and dangerous character was made evident. Assaults, arson and murders were committed, and the officers of the law were powerless to apprehend or punish the perpetrators. Coal operators were warned at the peril of their lives, not to work. Murders and incendiarism became more frequent and bold; open riots, of the character of which no attempt at concealment was made, occurred; and terror was inspired throughout the mining region. Opposition to enrollments and drafts on the part of the lawless foreigners that had come hither was believed at first to inspire much of the lawlessness and crime that prevailed during the war, and to have led to the extensive organization which it came to be evident existed; but when, after the close of the war, crime seemed to be more rampant, and the impossibility of con- victing criminals was more and more apparent, people awoke to the fact that an organization existed among them of which they only knew the name and the dangerous character, more dangerous than they had hitherto suspected. CRIMES OF THE MOLLIE MAGUIRES. Although the limits of this article will not permit a detail of the crimes which were committed, a few of the outrages that were perpetrated during the first years of the Mollies' career may be mentioned. On the fifth of May, 1862, the miners at Heckscherville struck and stopped the pumps in the mines. The sheriff, after some delay, assisted by a posse, started them; but the posse was soon overpowered and they were again _________________end page 99.__________________ page 100 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. ______________________________________________________________ stopped. He then telegraphed for assistance and 200 troops were sent from Philadelphia, and order for the time was restored. In October some riotous demonstrations took place in Cass township. These were then believed to be instigated by rebel sympathizers who adroitly influenced those who feared the enroll- ment and the draft. A riot occurred at the Phoenix colliery on the 13th of Decem- ber, 1862, in which several men were severely beaten and some shots fired, without fatally injuring any one. This and the riots in Cass township were among the first open demonstrations of the Mollies. Outrages continued in the township of Cass, and in February, 1863, a mob there attempted to dictate concerning the sale of a colliery. They resorted to violence, but the sight of a pistol in the hands of a determined man induced them to desist. Through the years 1863-65 outrages and murders continued and increased in frequency. In August, 1865, a mine superin- tendent in Foster township was murdered as he was going toward his colliery after breakfast. His assassins, three in number, walked away and no trace of them was ever obtained. In April, 1866, an attempt to murder in open day was made in Mahanoy town- ship. The would-be murderer was shot and his confederate arrest- ed; and though both were strangers bail was at once furnished. A few days afterward five armed men appeared, exhumed the body of the assassin and took it away. On the 10th of January, 1866, an atrocious murder was committed within two miles of Pottsville, on a much traveled highway leading to Minersville, about 7 in the evening. The money and other valuables on the person of the murdered man-Mr. Dunne, a mine superintendent-were untouched, and revenge was supposed to be the motive for the act. The assassins, five in number, walked away and were not apprehended. At first revenge appeared to be the principal emotive which prompted the outrages that were committed, but after a time robberies came to be frequent. Doubtless some of these were committed by those who had no connection with the Mollie Ma- guires; but it was known that many of the robbers were shielded and protected by the order. In February, 1867, the office of the Boston Run colliery was entered in open day by four men and $4,500 taken, with which the robbers made off. According to the Miners' Journal of March 30th, 1867, four- teen murders were committed in Schuylkill county in 1863, four- teen in 1864, twelve in 1865, five in 1866, and five up to March 30th, 1867. From this time till the close of the year 1867 occasional outrages and several murders were committed; but during the years 1868-71 there was no murder that attracted attention to the Mollie Maguires. A sense of greater security began to be felt, and the recollection of past horrors became in a measure faint. It is believed by some that this temporary suspension of crime was caused by the narrow escape of some of their members from conviction in a neighboring county. This feeling if security was interrupted in December, 1871, by a bold and atrocious murder in Carbon county, and the fiendish spirit which had slumbered for a time awoke. The number of murders committed in this county from that time till the power of the Mollies was broken cannot now be easily ascertained, nor can the cases of riot, arson and deadly assault. CONDITION OF THE MINING REGION It will be remembered that during many years a gradual con- centration of capital had been going on, that individual inter- ests had become merged in those of large companies, and that transportation lines throughout the anthracite coal region had made successful efforts to acquire control of the mining interest and the coal trade. In Schuylkill county this trade came to be controlled by the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company, of which Franklin B. Gowen was president. Under the title of the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company it came to own very large tracts of the choicest mineral lands in the county, and, by the absorption of the Schuylkill navigation and most of the railroad lines in the county, to control the transportation of all freight as well as the production of coal. It was there- fore a matter of vital importance to this company to check the growth and break the power of an organization that jeopardized the interests of a region that was thus controlled by it. Mr. Gowen saw this, and sought by every means in his power the accom- plishment of this object. The law was powerless for the punish- ment or prevention of crime that was committed in open day; for the criminals were protected by an organization of which nothing beyond the name could be learned. Thus far detectives had failed to obtain any clue to the secret workings of this order, and its members openly boasted of their ability to control, in defiance of the law, the interests of the region by the terror they in- spired and their political influence. Under these circumstances Mr. Gowen applied to a detective bureau called, from its founder and conductor, the Pinkerton agency. To the conductor he said: "What we want, and what everybody wants, is to get within this apparently impenetrable ring; turn to the light hidden aside of this dark and cruel body; to probe to its core this festering sore upon the body politic, which is rapidly gnawing into the vitals and sapping the life of the community. Crime must be punished in the mountains of Pennsylvania as it is in the agri- cultural counties and in all well regulated countries. We want to work our mines in peace, to run our passenger and freight trains without fear of the sudden loss of life and property through the malicious acts of the Mollie Maguires; we want people to sleep unthreatened, unmolested in their beds, undisturbed by horrid dreams of midnight prowlers and cowardly assassins. We want the laboring men, of whatever creeds or nationalities, protected in their right to work to secure sustenance for their wives and little ones unawed by outside influence. We want the miner to go forth cheerfully to the slope or the shaft, for labor in the breast or in the gangway, wherever it may seem to him for the best, void of the fear in his heart, when he parts from his wife at the cottage gate in the morning, that it may be their last farewell on earth _____________end page 100._______________ page 101 DETECTIVE McPARLAN. _____________________________________________________________ and by evening his bullet-riddled corpse may be taken back to his home, the only evidence that he has encountered the murderer-the agent of those who would compel him to refuse all employment unless the regulations of the order were complied with. The state cannot attain these things; she has repeatedly tried, and tried in vain. You can do it. I have seen you tested on other occasions and in other matters, and know your ability to conduct the business. We are willing to supply everything in our power to make your task a success." MCPARLAN THE DETECTIVE. Mr. Pinkerton undertook the work on condition that there should be no confidants beyond himself, his agent in Philadelphia and the detective; and that all required support should be ren- dered the detective. Mr. Pinkerton selected for the work a man named James McParlan-an Irishman-whom he thus described. "Of medium height, a slim but wiry figure, well knit togeth- er; a clear hazel eye; hair of an auburn color and bordering upon the style denominated as sandy; a forehead high, full, and well rounded forward; florid complexion, regular features, with beard and moustache a little darker than his hair, there was no mistak- ing McParlan's place of nativity, even had not his slight accent betrayed his Celtic origin. He was, in fact, a fine specimen of the better class of immigrants in this country. He was passably educated, had beheld and brushed against the people of a consid- erable portion of the new world during the short time he had been in it, and earned a reputation for honesty, a peculiar tact, and shrewdness, skill, and perseverance in performing his numerous and difficult duties, and worked himself into the position of a firm favorite with those of my employes intimately associated with him." Mr. McParlan assumed the name of James McKenna and the char- acter of a miner, and entered on his work late in October, 1873. Says Martin: "He was ordered to enter the haunts of the Mollie Maguires, mingle among them, join their order, become possessed of their secrets, collect evidence which would secure the arrest and conviction of the perpetrators of past murders, and give such warning as would enable the authorities to prevent the commission of new crimes. In short, he was to undermine the foundations of the Mollie Maguire structure so successfully, yet so secretly, that it would be an easy matter for the authorities to break up the order and punish its members guilty of crime." He first came into the county at Port Clinton; then visited Auburn, Pine Grove, Schuylkill Haven, Tremont, Mahanoy City, New Town, Swatara, Middle Creek, Rausch's Creek, Donaldson, Tower City and other places, making investigations which convinced him that the existence of the order of Mollie Maguires was a reality, and also that "if every member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians was not a Mollie Maguire, every Mollie Maguire was a member of the Hibernian order." After visiting Philadelphia he returned, and for a time made his headquarters at Pottsville, where he became very popular as a good-hearted, roystering, reckless devil. He "literally sung, danced, fought and drunk himself into popularity with the rough men among whom he mingled." He here made the acquaintance of Pat Dormer, a Mollie and one of the county commissioners. He succeed- ed in passing himself on Dormer as a member of the order and a fugitive from justice, and was by him introduced and recommended to the body master of the Shenandoah division. He went to Shen- andoah in February, 1874, and finding it the stronghold of the Mollies he made it his headquarters during his entire career in the coal regions. At first he engaged as a miner, but finding that work interfered with his detective operations he abandoned it, and accounted for his ability to live without by saying that he was a governent pensioner and by pretending to some that he was a "shover of the queer," or passer of counterfeit money. He repeated to the body master (Michael or "Muff" Lawlor) the story that he was a fugitive from justice and that he dared not write to his body master at Buffalo for a card, and proposed to be initiated again. This was assented to, and the initiation again. This was assented to, and the initiation took place April 14th, 1874. The ceremony of initiation was simple, consisting of an explanation of the principles of the order; in which it may be observed there was nothing objectionable, and an obligation of secrecy, mutual friendship, and obedience to the rules of the order and to superior officers "in everything lawful and not otherwise." This was followed by instruction in the secret work, or "goods," which consisted of signs of recognition, toasts for the same purpose, passwords, and night words. McPARLAN'S CAREER AS A MOLLIE. McParlan thus became what he had before professed to be, a full fledged Mollie Maguire. He found that there was no such distinct order in America as the Mollie Maguires, but that in the coal regions vicious men had taken possession of the Ancient Order of Hibernians for the accomplishment of their fiendish purposes. This society was chartered by the Legislature, and in its written constitution not only was nothing reprehensible to be found, but, on the contrary, it inculcated pure principles of benevolence and morality. So thoroughly had the Mollies taken possession of it in the coal regions, however, that the avowed objects of it were wholly disregarded; not even a pretense being made of catting them out. The following synopsis of the organi- zation appears from the testimony of McParlan in the Mollie trails: "The society has an existence in Great Britain as well as America, the whole being under the control of what is known as the "Board of Erin," selected from members in England, Ireland and Scotland; and from whom, every three months, and signs and passwords are obtained. "The national officers of the United States, with headquar- ters at New York, consists of national delegate, national secre- tary, national treasurer and president of the board of the city and county of New York. These officers are selected by the state officers. "The county officers consist of county delegate, county trea- surer, and county secretary. These officers are elected at county conventions consisting of officers of the divisions. "The officers of the several divisions consist of division master or body master, secretary and treasurer. These officers are elected by the members of the divisions respectively. ____________end page 101._______________ page 102 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. ______________________________________________________________ "The requirement for membership is that the applicant be an Irishman, or the son of an Irishman, professing the Roman Catho- lic faith." It is not believed that the order generally had the bad char- acter which it assumed here; but why the crimes of its members in the coal regions were not promptly repudiated elsewhere, and why money was raised for the defense of these criminals by assess- ments on the divisions through the United States, is an unex- plained mystery. There are some things which tend to fasten suspicion on the order generally. As Dewees says: Their "pass words and toasts imply a general habit of drink- ing, quarreling and suspicious night journeyings. From no quar- ter does there appear evidence of any acts of benevolence accom- plished in pursuance of the avowed object of their organization." The method of accomplishing the wicked designs of the Mollie Maguires which McParlan found practiced while he continued among them, cannot be better described than in the language of Martin: "Among the Mollie Maguires there is a thoroughly arranged system for the commission of crimes. A member having made com- plaint of certain parties who have offended him, or who are considered dangerous to the order, the matter is referred to the body master or a meeting of the division, or to a meeting of the body masters of all the divisions and other leading men of the order, called by the county delegate. The body master or the meeting decides whether any action shall be taken in the prem- ises, and what shall be the nature of the punishment. In case punishment is decided upon application is made either to the county delegate or to the body master of another division for men to commit the outrage, the men furnished being always unknown to the victim or victims. A solemn promise is given that the favor will be returned by the division needing the service, whenever called upon by the other. The appoints the men or they are selected by lot. A member refusing to obey the orders of his body master on such an occasion is expelled from the order. The men, having been selected, are dispatched to the headquarters of the division needing them, and are placed upon the track of their victims as soon as possible. They are required either to kill or brutally beat the persons pointed out to them, or to burn certain houses or mining structures. The person committing the crime is in nine cases out of ten a stranger to his victim, and is actuat- ed by no personal ill will to him. He simply obeys the orders of his society, and murders or burns in cold blood and with a delib- eration that is appalling. Murder is the most common form of punishment with the Mollies. 'Dead men tell no tales' is the principle of the order. It is enough for a man to incur the dislike of an influential member of the order to forfeit his life. The murder is generally committed in some lonely place, and with all the aggravated features of assassination. Though the conduct of the murderers is in the highest degree cowardly they are regarded as heroes by the Mollies, and large rewards have been paid by the society for the killing of obnoxious individu- als. Should a member commit a murder or a robbery on his own account the act is endorsed by the society, and its whole influ- ence in used to screen and protect the criminal. When a member is arrested for a crime the others are assessed in a certain sum for the purpose of raising money to employ counsel to defend him. The next step is to find witnesses enough to establish an alibi. Perjury in such a cause being counted a virtue by the Mollies, the witnesses are always forthcoming. Evidence of any kind that is wanted can be promptly furnished by the order." Space will not permit a detailed account of McParlan's career among the Mollies, or of the crimes committed by them during the time he was among them. The latter constitute one of the blackest pages of criminal history in this county. The former exhibits a remarkable degree of industry, perseverance, and determination on his part, in the midst of surroundings that would appall a man of ordinary courage; and affords a narrative of thrilling adventure rivaling in interest the creations of the romancer's fancy. Of the morality of the course which McParlan pursued every one must judge for himself. From the time when he entered on it he acted a lie, and in his intercourse with the Mollies his words were little besides lies. If the Jesuitical maxim "the end justifies the means" is ever applicable, it certainly was in his case but possibly those who hold to the immutability of principle may find much in his career to censure. He assumed the character of one of the worst of Mollies, acquired their confidence and was looked on by them as one of their most devoted, reckless and desperate men. He was thus enabled to come into possession of their most profound secrets, and by his daily reports to his superiors he gave such warnings of intended crimes that, in some cases at least, their commission was prevented. What was known as the coal and iron police had been organized, and a trusted member of the Pinkerton agency was made a captain in it, and through him warnings were often given. THE LONG STRIKE. What was known as the "long strike" was inaugurated in Decem- ber, 1874, and continued till June, 1875. In this contest the influence of the Mollies was potent, and fear of them prevented an earlier return to work. The "labor union," under the direc- tion of which the strike had been commenced and continued, was finally compelled to succumb, and its defeat was overwhelming. During the early part of the strike outrages by the Mollies were comparatively infrequent; but in February and March, 1875, when the success of the strike began to look doubtful they became very frequent and desperate in their character. Finally, when the end of the strike came, and the power of the labor union was completely broken and paralyzed, the Mollies became more desper- ate and defiant than ever, and their most fearful reign of law- essness and crime commenced. From that time till the close of the year 1875 the reign of terror in the coal regions was at its height. Outside of the large towns and borough the feeling of insecurity was such that many dared not walk abroad after night- fall, and even their houses did not always afford protection; they were broken into and the object of displeasure ruthlessly beaten or murdered. If a mine boss had discharged a Mollie, refused him work, or incurred his displeasure in _____________end page 102.______________ page 103 POLITICIANS PROTECTING THE MOLLIE MAGUIRES. _____________________________________________________________ any way, his death might be demanded and strangers brought from a distant division to assassinate him; and even if he had in his employ some person or persons who were obnoxious to the Mollies a note of warning with sketches of a coffin and revolver would be received by him. The project was even conceived of attacking Mahanoy City in force, and shooting down in open day those who were obnoxious to the members of the order. The details which McParlan was able to learn of the plans and execution of several murders during this time exceed in cold bloodedness and atrocity anything of the kind which has been recorded elsewhere in the country. POLITICAL INFLUENCE OF THE MOLLIE MAGUIRES. In the future time the question will naturally arise, why, with the evidences that there were of the existence of such an organization in their midst, the people did not rally for their own safety; and, if the supremacy of the law could not be assert- ed, adopt such means as have been successfully resorted to else- where for protection against outlaws. It must be remembered that in this country the elective fran- chise has hardly a limit, and experience has shown that partisan politicians will, in their greed for power and patronage, caress and court the favor of any party or organization no matter how reprehensible, if by so doing they can secure the triumph of their party. The Ancient Order of Hibernians, which as has been seen, was controlled by the bad men known as Mollie Maguires, was sufficiently strong here to hold the balance of power between opposing political parties. Both these parties therefore sought by every means to secure the support of the members of this order; and the result was that Mollie Maguires became the incum- bents of township offices in the mining regions, and also of county offices in some cases. They even boasted of their ability to control in their own interest political parties in the state and nation. During the political canvass in 1876 it came to be known that the Mollie vote had been purchased in this county by the Republican party, and that large sums of money had been paid to the Mollie leaders. Doubtless many supposed this to be an arrangement with influential Irishmen by which the Irish vote was to be controlled. In August, 1875, two of the commissioners and an ex-commissioner of Schuylkill county had been convicted of misappropriation of county funds to their own use, and sentenced to two years' imprisonment. One of these was a Mollie, and the others were said to favor the order. It was charged, and was afterward testified to by one of the parties to the arrangement, that not only was money furnished, but that it was understood that in case Governor Hartranft was re-elected these men, with another who had been convicted of a murderous assault, would be pardoned. This was denied with apparent indignation, but he was re-elected and the men were pardoned. ERECTION OF A CRIMINAL COURT. In the State of Pennsylvania the judiciary is elective. A early as 1867 difficulty had been experienced not only in appre- hending Mollie Maguire criminals, but of convicting them even of minor offenses after apprehension. For commenting on the "lax administration of justice" the editor of a prominent journal in the county had been three times arrested for libel. Under these circumstances it was thought that the administration of justice would be facilitated by the erection of a criminal court dis- trict, which should include this county. In the spring of 1867, in compliance with the earnest appeal of a committee of fifty citizens of this county, who visited Harrisburg for that purpose, the Legislature enacted a law estab- lishing a criminal court in the counties of Dauphin, Lebanon and Schuylkill, and Governor Geary appointed Colonel David B. Green, of Pottsville, judge of this court. A special police law and an act providing for jury commissioners were also enacted. The passage of these laws was violently opposed, and after their passage the presiding the presiding judge and some of the county officers sought to impede their execution and ignored the juris- diction of the criminal court. Certain attorneys, too, seemed desirous of winning an unenviable distinction by their opposition to the law, and the question of its constitutionality was brought before the Supreme Court, where it was fully sustained. At the election in the autumn of 1867 Judge Green was chosen to preside over this court, and though opposition to it continued to be manifested by the presiding judge and some of the county offi- cials, this opposition grew constantly feebler, till about 1870 or 1871 it had become quite impotent; and from that time to the adoption of the new constitution in 1874 this court exercised exclusive jurisdiction in criminal matters, and the county en- joyed a degree of quiet it had not seen for some years previous- ly. By the adoption of the new constitution this court was abol- ished and Judge Green was transferred to the Court of Common Pleas. It is proper to say that those who opposed and sought to obstruct the execution of this law were probably not aware of the formidable character of the organization the political influence of which they thus endeavored to secure. It was a source of regret, however, that political ambition led people to favor influential criminals, and that the condition of things here rendered it necessary to include two other counties in the crimi- nal district in order to secure the election of an impartial judge. POSITION OF THE PRESS. It is noteworthy that while some of the journals published in the county, either through fear of losing patronage or by reason of their partisan character, or for some other unexplained reason, were exceedingly cautious in their comments on the doings of the Mollies, the Shenandoah Herald, conducted by Thomas Fos- ter, was bold and outspoken in its denunciation of them and their crimes, though it was published in the very heart and center of their power. The Herald fearlessly advocated the adoption of prompt and effective measures against them by vigilance commit- tees, in order to give _____________end page 103._______________ page 104 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. _____________________________________________________________ the people that protection which the law failed to afford. He thus incurred the enmity of these lawless men, and threats against him were freely uttered. On the third of September, 1875, he received through the post-office the following notice, prefaced with a sketch of death's head and cross bones, and ending with a rude picture of a shot gun: "Mr. Edtore wie wil give ye 24 hurse to go to the devil out this ye ------R we wil send ye After gomer James and Mr -----and Som More Big Bug with ye "P. Molley." "We aint done shooting yet." He published the notice, and informed them that the one sided character of the shooting was at an end. The firm stand taken, and the fearlessness displayed by the editor of the Herald and a few others, not only taught the Mollies to respect and fear their opposition but inspired them with courage, and made Shenandoah the center in the coal regions of opposition to the Mollies, who were notified that tenfold retaliation would be inflicted on them. The night of October 9th, 1875, is remembered as one of terror in Shenandoah. A turbulent and violent spirit seemed to pervade the town, and a conflict between the Mollies and their foes seemed imminent, but though there was some shooting and other violence no general riot occurred. BEGINNING OF THE END. On the morning of September 3d, 1875, a murder was committed at Storm Hill, in Carbon county, and the murderers were arrested near Tamaqua, and were taken thence to Mauch Chunk by the sheriff of Carbon county. An excited crowd of some fifteen hundred men accompanied these prisoners, guarded by officers, to the depot; and, to quote the language of Dewees: "That no riot did occur is a flattering commentary upon the deep respect for law and order which characterizes the masses of the residents of the coal region. Only two days before the present tragedy Thomas Sanger and William Uren had been brutally murdered, and the assassins had escaped. Two weeks before, Squire Gwyther had been shot down on the public streets of Gi- rardville, because he had dared to issue a warrant against a Mollie, and the murderer was still at large. Two weeks before, on the same day, in the presence of a large number of people, Gomer James had been openly shot at a picnic, and yet no one could tell who committed the act. Within two months policeman Yost, an official of their own town, had been shot while in the discharge of his duties, and the deed seemed clothed in mystery. The last of a series of brutal outrages had just been committed, and the assassins, fresh from the scene of blood, had fallen into their power." The prisoners barely escaped lynching at Landsford and Mauch Chunk, but were finally lodged in jail at the latter place. This arrest was "the beginning of the end" of Mollie Maguireism in the anthracite coal region. At first the Mollies were confident that, thought the case against these guilty men would be a strong one, their political influence and the facility with which they could suborn perjurers to prove alibis would secure the acquittal of the culprits. The investigations of McParlan, however, and the information he had furnished, gave the prosecutors confidence by assuring them that they were in possession of the guilty parties, and enabling them to defeat every attempt to show an alibi. His communications were made through his superiors in the Pinkerton Agency, and the prosecuting officers did not know who was the detective that furnished the information. The condition of things in the coal region was never more critical than while these men were lying in jail in Mauch Chunk awaiting their trail. The feeling of hostility to the Mollies daily grew stronger, and their desperation became more intense. In December, 1875, a secret vigilance committee, as it was sup- posed, killed Charles O'Donnell, a Mollie and a suspected murder- er, at Wiggan's Patch, near Mahanoy City. This murder of one of their men, committed after their own manner, carried consterna- tion among them and rendered them more desperate. In January, 1876, at conventions held for the purpose in this county, an assessment was made on each member for the purpose of arming the order with rifles; but arrests which were made about that time prevented the contemplated hostile organization. Such was the state of feeling at that time that a slight circumstance might have inaugurated open warfare. Through McParlan it was known that other murders were contem- plated, but the commission of these was deferred till after the trial of the prisoners at Mauch Chunk. Certain victims were marked for assassination after the acquittal of these prisoners, which was confidently expected. Had they been acquitted probably vigilance committees would have taken the matter in hand, and all the horrors of complete anarchy would have been the result. FIRST CONVICTION AND EVENTS SUCCEEDING IT. On the 18th of January, 1876, Michael Doyle, one of the mur- derers of Jones, was put on trial at Mauch Chunk, and by means of information recently furnished by McParlan, who was present at the trail in his assumed character of a Mollie, the chain of evidence on the part of the prosecution was so strong and com- plete that the defense did not venture to introduce the witnesses that were present to prove an alibi, and the accused was, on the 1st of February, found guilty. In the course of this trial circumstances transpired which induced James Kerrigan, another of the prisoners, to become what among the ignorant Irish has always been considered most despica- ble, an "informer, and the revelations which he made, confirmed as they were by McParlan, gave the civil authorities confidence that they should be able to bring many other murderers to jus- tice, and break up the organization which had hitherto given these assassins impunity. Soon after the conviction of Doyle, six others were arrested and lodged in jail at Pottsville, charged with the murder of Yost at Tamaqua; and a few days later two others, charged with the murder of Sanger and Uren at Raven's Run. It had become known that information ___________end page 104._____________ page 105 McPARLAN SUSPECTED-HIS TESTIMONY. ______________________________________________________________ had been given by James Kerrigan, but the arrest of the murderers- of Sanger and Uren, and some things which transpired during the- trial of Doyle at Mauch Chunk, led to the suspicion on the part- of the Mollies that information had been derived from another- source, and that the details of their doings had been made known- by some one within the order. Suspicion fell on McParlan, and- was communicated to the Mollie leaders by Catholic priests,- although the order had been publicly denounced by them. The- result of this suspicion was that his death was determined on by- the Mollies, and the men who were to kill him were selected; but- by assuming a bold and defiant demeanor in the face of his ap-- pointed assassins, and stoutly protesting his innocence, he- escaped assassination. The narrative of his adventures at this- time, and his hairbreadth escapes with his life, reads more like- romance than reality; and the courage and coolness that he dis-- played are almost incredible. After an interview at Mahanoy- Plane with Father Connor, the priest who had denounced him, in- which he partially convinced him that he was innocent, he became- satisfied that his mission as a detective among the Mollie Ma-- guires was at an end, and disappeared. James McKenna the Mollie- was no more seen in this region, but the work of James McParlan- the detective began to bring forth its fruits. On the 27th of- March, 1876, Edward Kelly was put on his trail at Mauch Chunk for- the murder of John T. Jones, and on the 6th of April a verdict of- guilty was rendered. He was convicted without the evidence of- Kerrigan or McParlan; and, as in the case of Doyle, no attempt- was made to prove an alibi by witnesses suborned for the purpose. When it came to be generally known among the Mollies that- Kerrigan had given information to the authorities, their indigna-- tion was very great, and this feeling was shared by the better- class of Irish who had no sympathy with the criminals, for almost- every Irishman considers the crime of being an informer one of- the blackest in the criminal category; so strong is the prejudice- which he acquired in his native country. A fruitless effort was made to effect the release of the Mol-- lies arrested for the murder of Yost, under a writ of habeas- corpus. The hearing was private, and Kerrigan was for the first- time introduced as a witness. IMPORTANT TRIALS AT POTTSVILLE-McPARLAN AS A WITNESS. On the 4th of May (CDL), 1876 these men were arraigned at- Pottsville for this murder, and elected to be tried together.- Their names were James Carroll, James Roaritty, James Boyle, Hugh- McGeehan and Thomas Duffy. Ample and elaborate preparations had- been made for this trial on both sides. The Mollies had, as- usual, suborned their witnesses to prove the alibis and felt sure- of their ability to thus break down the testimony of Kerrigan,- which they thought was the main reliance of the prosecution.- Without their knowledge, however, the prosecution had determined- to bring McParlan on the witness stand; and thus, on both sides,- the utmost confidence was felt as to the result. That the jury- might not be influenced by sympathy or fear care was taken to- exclude from it, as far as possible, Catholics, and those who- resided in isolated or unprotected localities, where the work of- the assassins might be done with comparative impunity. It was- known, too, that vigilance committees had been formed and that- summary vengeance would be taken in case of lawlessness on the- art of the Mollies in future; and this knowledge tended to- strengthen the backbones of the jurors. No case had ever before- been tried in this county of equal importance with this, and none- had ever elicited so deep an interest; for it was felt that upon- the result depended not only the financial prosperity of the- region, but the personal safety of the inhabitants. Judge Per- shing presided, with Judges Green and Walker and Associates- Judges Kline and Seitsinger, constituting a full bench. In his- opening District Attorney Kaercher announced the fact that the- detective, James McParlan, who had only been known to the Mollies- as Jim McKenna, would be brought on the witness stand. This was- a complete surprise, not only to the Mollies, but to the public,- which had not hitherto known of his existence. This feeling of- surprise deepened into one of wonder and amazement when he was- placed on the stand, and with perfect coolness and deliberation- told in detail the story of his career among the Mollies. When- he told of being suspected as a detective and related his inter- views with his intended assassins, his escapes, etc., judges,- jury, counsel and audience listened with breathless attention;- and so completely spellbound were all by his recital of things- the existence of which had not been thought possible that at any- time the falling of a pin might be heard in the densely crowded- audience. Much of this narrative which was not relevant was not- objected to by the counsel for the defendants, because of the- intense interest which they evidently felt. He was on the stand- during four days, and the most searching cross-examination failed- to discover a flaw in his testimony. No conclusion was reached- at this trail, by reason of the sudden illness and subsequent- death of one of the jurors. Early during this trial arrests and commitments were made of- John Kehoe, high constable of Girardville and county delegate of- the Ancient Order of Hibernians; Michael Lawler, of Shenandoah;- Frank O'Neil, of St. Clair; Patrick Butler, of Lost Creek; Pat- rick Dolan, sen., of Big Mine Run; Michael O'Brien and Frank- McHugh, of Mahanoy; and Christopher Donnelly, of Mount Laffee. Martin says: "During the trial of the Yost murderers it- became known to the Mollies for the first time that those who- planned and urged on the murder were liable to the same punish- ment as those who committed the act. They were terrified and- incredulous. Then it was proposed to assassinate all who were- actively engaged in the prosecution of the Mollies, but this was- abandoned as too hazardous." CONVICTION AND IMPRISONMENT OF THE CRIMINALS. Alexander Campbell was convicted at Mauch Chunk ____________end page 105.______________ page 106 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. _____________________________________________________________ on the 1st of July of the murder of John P. Jones, though he did not fire any of the fatal shots. On the 12th of the same month Thomas Munley was found guilty at Pottsville of the murder of Sanger at Raven's Run; and on the 22nd Carroll, Roarity, McGeehan and Boyle were, after their second trail, convicted on the murder of Yost. On the 21st of September in the same year Thomas Duffy, who had demanded a separate trail, was also convicted of the murder of Yost. At about the same time many others were convict- ed of different crimes, and on the 16th of October received the following sentences, as stated by Martin: "Thomas Donahue, accessory after the fact to the assault and battery on William M. Thomas, was sentences to two year's impris- onment at labor. "Edward Monaghan, accessory before the fact to assault and battery on William M. Thomas, to seven years' imprisonment at labor. "Barney N. Boye, perjury, three years at labor. "Kate Boye, perjury, two years and six months at labor. "Bridget Hyland, perjury, two years and six months at labor. "Thomas Duffy, perjury, two years and six months at labor. "John, Kehoe, John Morris, Dennis F. Canning, Christopher Donnelly, John Gibbons and Michael O'Brien, convicted of complic- ity in assault and battery with intent to kill William M. Thomas, were respectively sentenced to seven years' imprisonment at hard labor. "John Kehoe, John Morris, Dennis F. Canning, Patrick Dolan, sr., Michael O'Brien, Christopher Donnelly and Frank O'Neill, convicted of conspiracy to kill Jesse and William Major, were sentenced as follows: John Kehoe, seven years; Dennis F. Can- ning, seven years; Patrick Dolan, sr., one year; Christopher Donnelly, five years; Michael O'Brien, five years. The two last named, together with Frank O'Neill, were sentenced to two years respectively for aiding Thomas Hurley to escape." The counsel for the men condemned to death made every effort to save them from their fate, without avail, and on the 21st of June, 1877, James Boyle, Hugh McGeehan, James Carroll, James Roarity, Thomas Duffy and Thomas Munley were hanged; the first five for the murder of Yost, and the last for the murder of Thomas Sanger. Not a word of penitence for their crimes was uttered. They only expressed their forgiveness for those who had been instrumental in procuring their conviction. On the same day four convicted Mollie Maguire murderers were executed at Mauch Chunk. In November, 1877, Dennis Donnelly was convicted of the murder of Sanger, and he was executed June 11th, 1878. Martin Bergen, who had been convicted of the murder of Pat- rick H. Burns, was hanged on the 16th of January, 1879. John (commonly known as "Jack") Kehoe, who had been sentenced to fourteen years in the penitentiary, was tried for the murder of J.W.L. Langdon, and found guilty on the 18th of January, 1877. Strenuous but unavailing efforts were made by his counsel to save him from the extreme penalty of the law. Three death warrants were issued, and finally, after every resource had been exhausted in his behalf, he was executed on the 18th of December, 1878. Probably no one was more deeply steeped in guilt than he. He was not only an influential man among his countrymen, and a prominent politician, but an acknowledged leader among the Mollies; and it is safe to say that all the crimes the commission of which he incited will never by known. By the conviction and execution of these criminals the su- premacy of the law was asserted, and the lawless organization, which had acquired such power as to threaten the prosperity of the region and render life insecure, was effectually suppressed; and people were permitted to breathe free again. The history of this country does not record another instance in which, by the ordinary processes of law, so great, so wide- spread and so dangerous an evil has been destroyed-so malignant a social cancer safely extirpated; and the people of Schuylkill county have just ground for a laudable pride in the fact that their administrators of justice, by their prudence, skill, and energy, accomplished this great work. _____________ CHAPTER XV. _____________ THE MILITIA OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY PARTICIPATION IN THE MEXICAN WAR. ________ The militia of the State of Pennsylvania, which was estab- lished in early times, was reorganized under an act of Assembly passed in 1822. Under this law an enrollment was made of all citizens between the ages of twenty-one and forty-five liable to military duty, who were required to appeal for drill at certain times and places under a penalty of fifty cents. Of course, except to keep up an enrollment for emergencies that might arise, this system was of no account, and for that purpose it was found during the late civil war to amount to very little. In 1864 an act was passed regulating the organization of the militia and dividing the state into twenty military divisions in which an enrollment was required; but in addition to this a system of volunteer companies, regiments, etc., was established. These volunteers were required to appear in uniform for drill and exercise, and were supplied with arms and accoutrements by the state, and constituted what was termed the volunteer militia. Under that organization Schuylkill was a part of the fourth division. The expenses of this organization were borne largely by the volunteers themselves, and this was found to be so burden- some to them that by subsequent acts of Assembly provision was made for the payment to the companies by the state of sums suffi- cient to meet a portion of their expenses. By an act passed in 1870 the name of "National Guard of Pennsylvania" was given ___________end page 106.____________ page 107 MILITIA OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. _____________________________________________________________ to this volunteer militia, and by an act of Assembly in 1874 ten divisions of the National Guard were constituted and Schuylkill county was included in the fourth division. Each of the divi- sions was under the command of a major-general, and the divisions were divided into brigades according to the discretion of their commanding generals. In 1878, by an act of Assembly, these divisions were abol- ished, and the state was constituted a single division with five brigades. Under this law Schuylkill county became a part of the territory of the 3d brigade. The National Guard of this county consists of parts of two regiments and one unattached company. The last is known as the Ashland Dragoons, Captain O.H. Barnhardt. It was organized July 8th, 1874. Of the 7th regiment six companies are included in this county. Lieutenant Colonel W.F. Huntzinger, of this regiment, and Major P.J. Monaghan, quarter-master B. Bryson McCool and Assist- ant Surgeon Charles T. Palmer are residents of this county. The companies in Schuylkill county are commanded as follows; Company A, Captain William G. Burwell; Company C, Captain John F. Shoen- er; Company F, Captain Samuel R. Russel; Company G, Captain John M. Wehteril; Company H, Captain George W. Johnson; Company I, Captain Patrick H. Dolan. Of the three companies of the 8th regiment in this county Company F is commanded by Captain Theodore F. Hoffman; Company H, Captain John W. Barr, Company B, Captain Wallace Guss. Brigade officers residing in this county are: General, J..K. Sigfried; Inspector, Major William S. Moorhead; Quartermaster, Major E.J. Phillips; Aid-de-camp, Captain Clay W. Evans. In June, 1875, all the militia of the county were called out to suppress riots at Mahanoy City and Shenandoah, the 8th under command of Colonel T.S. Gobin, the 7th commanded by Colonel A. Caldwell, the whole under command of General Sigfried. The troops remained on duty at these point, patrolling the region for the period of twenty days. During the great strike of 1877 the entire military force of the county was again called on, and promptly responded with the exception of two companies of the 8th and the Ashland Dragoons, the circumstances surrounding which rendered concentration in season impracticable. The 7th; under Colonel Caldwell, and the 8th, under Colonel Gobin, were ordered to Harrisburg, where they arrived on the 22nd of July, and were at once assigned to duty at the arsenal, which they guarded till the 25th, when the 8th marched to Rockville, Dauphin and Marysville to guard the rail- road bridges at those points. On the 31st the 7th, with General Sigfried, who had been in command at Harrisburg, proceeded by rail to the vicinity of Pittsburgh and went into camp, followed two days later by the 8th. They remained at that camp till the 10th of August, but they were not called on to suppress riotous demonstrations, for the disorderly elements had previously expended their force. While encamped the soldiers in these regiments were placed by order of General Sigfried under strict military discipline, and greatly improved in drill and all soldierly qualities. WASHINGTON ARTILLERY OF POTTSVILLE. This company was organized in 1840 by Captain James Nagle, and its members at that time were all boys, under 20 years of age. The uniform was simple, made of blue drilling, and the company was known as "The Pottsville Blues." In 1842 the company changed their name to Washington Artillery, and were supplied by the State with arms. In the latter part of the year 1846 the governor of Pennsyl- vania issued a proclamation, calling for one regiment of volun- teers to serve in Mexico, during the war. This company offered their services and were accepted. The company numbered only about 30, but recruits from Minersville, St. Clair and Schuylkill Haven soon brought it to the requisite strength. Headquarters were established at the old town Hall. The citizens of Pottsville took a lively interest in the welfare of the men. They presented every member of the company with a revolver, and the officers were presented with swords. On the 5th of December, 1844, the company received marching orders, and left in the cars for Philadelphia, accompanied by a committee of citizens, Col. John C. Lessig, Samuel Huntzinger, and others. They soon left for Harrisburg, where the men were transferred to freight boats on the canal, and after considerable suffering from the inclemency of the weather arrived at Pitts- burgh, where they were mustered into the service of the United States to serve during the war. The company was designed as Company B 1st regiment Pennsylvania volunteers. Francis M. Wynkoop, who accompanied the company as a private, was elected colonel of the regiment. Lieutenant Fernsler returned from Pittsburgh sick, and Sergeant Felsnagle was elected to fill the vacancy. The officers of the company as mustered into the serv- ice were Captain James Nagle, 1st Lieutenant Simon Nagle and 2nd Lieutenants F.B. Kaercher and Jacob Felsnagle. The company arrived at New Orleans on a steamboat, the latter part of Decem- ber, 1846, and went into camp on the old battle ground, seven miles below the city. On the 8th of January, 1847, the company and regiment joined in a grand military parade in the city of New Orleans, to commemorate a day dear to the people of that city and the country. On the 16th of February they embarked with two other companies of the regiment, on board of a transport, cross- ing the bar on the southwest pass on the 18th, and in due time arriving at the island of Lobos. This was the first transport that arrived at the point selected for the concentration of the troops for the line of operation against Vera Cruz, and the Washington artillery was the first company of troops that disem- barked at Lobos. The 1st and 2nd Pennsylvania, New York, and other regiments encamped on the island. General Scott, commander-in-chief, having arrived, the troops re-embarked, and the fleet set sail for Vera Cruz, ___________end page 107._____________ page 108 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY _______________________________________________________________ where they arrived on the 5th of March. The companies, provided with three days rations, were transferred to the ships of war. On the 9th a landing was effected at a point about three miles below the city. Worth's division was first landed. Patterson's volun- teer division, to which this company was attached, was next landed. A line was formed and the men lay down with their arms. On the 10th and 11th the investment of the city was completed. During the 10th the company received while marching through the chapparal, the first infantry fire (having previously been fa- vored with salutes from the Mexican batteries); a halt was ordered, the fire was promptly returned, and the Mexicans were put to flight. On the 26th the firing ceased; the Mexicans having agreed to surrender both the city and the castle. On the 9th of April the division to which the company was attached commenced its march toward the City of Mexico. They were joined near Cerro Gordo by General Scott, and on the 16th and 17th considerable skirmishing took place in endeavoring to get favorable positions, and in opening new roads to turn the enemy's left, and to gain possession of an eminence opposite Cerro Gordo Heights. At the battle of Cerro Gordo, which took place on the 18th, the company was under the command of Lieutenants Nagle and Kaercher, Captain Nagle acting as major. After this engagement the company, with its brigade, went to Jalapa and thence to Castle Perote, where, with some other compa- nies, it was, during some time, engaged in dispersing guerillas and maintaining communication between Pueblo and the National Bridge. Early in October they moved to Pueblo to relieve the garrison there. An action took place not far from there, and the enemy fell back on Matamoras. At Pueblo the companies of the regiment were united, and proceeded with the command of General Lane to the City of Mexico, and encamped at San Angel till the expiration of the armistice. In June, 1847, Lieutenant F.B. Kaercher and Sergeants Farnham and Shadman were sent home on recruiting service. At the National Bridge the party with which they were was attacked by guerillas, and a sharp action ensued. On the 10th of July Lieutenant Kaerch- er and his associates reached Pottsville, opened a recruiting office, and enlisted a number of recruits, who were sent to Baltimore. January 26th he sailed from Baltimore with 60 re- cruits, and after a voyage of 26 days arrived at Vera Cruz, where he rejoined the company and regiment, which had been sent to Vera Cruz on guard duty. The regiment shortly afterward returned to the City of Mexico and took up its quarters at San Angel, where it remained till peace was declared. Colonel F.M. Wynkoop, who left Pottsville as a private in the company, commanded the brigade at San Angel. He was highly com- plimented by General Scott for capturing General Valencia. Returning with the army, the company landed at New Orleans, came up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to Pittsburgh, and thence to Philadelphia, where they were mustered out of the service. On their return to Pottsville they were received with all the honors that their grateful friends could bestow on them. The streets were decorated with arches, flags were displayed, adresses of welcome were made, and the people vied with each other in doing honor to the returning veterans. The following is a list of the members of this company from Schuylkill county. Officers-Captain, James Nagle; lieutenants-Simon S. Nagle, F.B. Kaercher, Jacob Felsnagle; sergeants-Edward Kehr, William S. Nagle, Edward Kaercher, L.S. McMiken; corporals-Enos Zentmoyer, J. Egbert Farnum, Edward Napon; drummer, Daniel Nagle, jr.; fifer, Reuben Stamm. Privates-A.H. Berger, Bernard Barr, Charles Brumm, Nelson Berger, James Cochran, John Doyle, Peter Douty, Levi Epler, Henry Fisher, George W. Garret, Henry Graeff, John C. Gilman, Thomas W. Guthrie, Elias P. Hiney, John Hays, Elias Kelly, John Kipley, Singleton Kimmel, William Knockenhouse, Michael Lusht, William Lyons, Abel B. Macy, Alexander McDonald, Francis C. McGreen, Ferdinand Mamerenk, John Mooney, John Myers, Samuel Maglauchlen, Valentine K. Mills, William Markle, Benjamin Nagle, John M. Nolan, Seth Price, Edward Robbins, Henry Richards, James Ruckle, Andrew N. Stamm, Benjamin Smith, Benjamin Shell, Charles Scrim- shaw, Daniel Shappel, Eli Shelley, Franklin Seitzinger, George K. Seitzinger, Henry Smink, John Stegner, John Shuster, Jacob W. Shoop, James Sands, Michael Sands, Robert H. Savage, Samuel Shadman, Emanuel Shelley, William Seitzinger, Owen D. Thomas, F.M. Wynkoop, Gotleib Wisshue, Robert F. Walter, Robert Welsh, William Wolfinger, William Wethicomb. Killed-Private Levi Bright, Private John Douty. Deserted-Corporal David Lewellyn, Priveate John Hand, Private William H. Hatchley, Private David Jones, Private John Jennings, Private Thomas Simpson. ________________ CHAPTER XVI. ____________________ ORIGIN AND EARLY INCIDENTS OF THE CIVIL WAR PATRIOTIC SPIRIT IN SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. _______________ The limits and scope of this work will not permit even an enumeration of all the events that led to the civil war. It is quite proper, however, that a brief mention should be made of some of the more important and immediate antecedents of the contest, in which many of the citizens of this county bore a conspicuous and honorable part, and in which many laid down their lives. The doctrine which has by some been termed a grand political heresy-that of State sovereignty or, as it was improperly termed at the south, State rights-was what led to the civil war. By this is meant the right of a State to set aside any act of Con- gress which may be deemed unconstitutional by the State authori- ties. This doctrine was distinctly set forth in the famous Kentucky resolutions of 1798, and was for a long time accepted by many, perhaps a majority, in all parts of the country. It in- volves not the right of nullification alone, but that of seces- sion. ____________end page 108.____________ page 109 CAUSES AND BEGINNING OF THE REBELLION. _____________________________________________________________ South Carolina in 1832 was dissatisfied with the protective tariff which Congress established, and adopted an ordinance of nullification and secession. A compromite was effected, some concessions to her prejudices were made and she repealed her ordinance. The question of the introduction of slavery into Kansas arose, and the people of the northern States evinced a determina- tion to prevent it, in which they were successful. In 1856 threats of secession were freely uttered in case of the success of the Republican party, which in 1855 had been formed on the issue of slavery extension. In 1860 Abraham Lincoln was elected President, and this was regarded by southern statesmen as the finishing stroke against the extension of their institution, and they proceeded to execute their threats. South Carolina took the lead in this, followed by Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Virgin- ia, Florida and Louisiana, all of which before the end of Novem- ber issued calls for State conventions to consider the question of secession. In this they were followed after a time by Tennes- see, Texas, Arkansas and North Carolina, all of which adopted ordinances of secession. South Carolina adopted the ordinance on the first day of December, 1860. Three days later Governor Pickens issued his proclamation, declaring it to be a "separate sovereign, free and independent State, having a right to levy war, conclude peace, negotiate treaties," etc. John B. Floyd, of Virginia, was at that time Secretary of War. He had caused 70,000 stand of arms to be placed in the arsenal at Charleston, and had put that arsenal in the care of the governor of South Carolina; and thus when the State seceded it was able to possess itself of these arms, and it was also found that the northern arsenals generally had been depleted and the arms sent south. Many of the ships of the navy had been sent to distant seas, and the government was left without efficient resources with which to repress a sudden uprising. The senators from South Carolina were the first to resign their seats, followed by others, and by members of the cabinet and of the House of Representatives. Texas, the last of the seven States which united in forming the "Southern Confederacy," adopt- ed the ordinance of secession February 1st, 1861. On the 4th of the same month the delegates that had been appointed by the conventions for that purpose met at Montgomery, Ala., to form a government. They adopted the constitution of the United States, with some additions and alterations, as the constitution of the Confederate States, and chose for provisional President and Vice-President Jefferson Davis and Alexander H. Stephens. When South Carolina passed the ordinance of secession in December, 1860, Fort Moultrie, in Charleston harbor, was garri- soned by sixty effective men in command of Major Anderson. The fort was not secure against attack, and Major Anderson was denied reinforcements. Accordingly on the night of December 20th he removed his force to Fort Sumter, which had been quietly prepared for his occupation. He had been instructed by the President "not to take up without necessity any position which could be con- strued into a hostile attitude, but to hold possession of the forts, and if attacked defend himself." This evacuation of Fort Moultrie therefore surprised the President and aroused the indig- nation of the South Carolinians, who thought they had a pledge from the President to prevent such removal. He was induced to take this step because he entertained just apprehensions of the occupation of Fort Sumter by the South Carolina troops, and an attack on his small force in the nearly defenseless fort where he was, in which case it would have been impossible for him to hold out a day. Three commissioners that had been appointed by the South Carolina Convention "to treat with the United States" repaired to Washington, and in obedience to their instructions demanded that Major Anderson should be ordered back to Fort Moultrie, and in case of refusal, that the forts in Charleston harbor should be unconditionally evacuated. About this time the government of- fices, forts, etc., were possessed by the state troops, who were supplied with arms and ammunition from the arsenal. An attempt was made by the government to revictual and rein- force Fort Sumter, and for that purpose the steamer "Star of the West" was sent in January, 1861, with two hundred men, provi- sions, ammunition, etc. She was fired on from Morris Island, was struck by several shot and compelled to return without landing her troops and cargo. April 12th, 1861, at 4 a.m., the bombardment of Fort Sumter was commenced from the batteries of Fort Moultrie, Sullivan's Island and elsewhere. The rebel forces were under the command of General Beauregard, who demanded the surrender of the fort. Major Anderson replied that he would only surrender when his supplies were exhausted. The cannonading was kept up with spirit on both sides. The result was the surrender of the fort on the 13th, and on the 14th Major Anderson and his command left on the steamer "Isabel for New York. After the attack on Fort Sumter it was feared that the Con- federate troops would march at once on Washington, and all the available forces were so disposed as to afford the best protec- tion to the capital possible with the meagre number of troops available. Measures were immediately taken to raise troops in several States, and thousands of volunteers at once offered their services. President Lincoln promptly issued his proclamation and call for 75,000 troops for three months, and stated that they would first be used to "repossess the forts, places and property which had been seized from the Union." The proclamation also called a special session of Congress for the next 4th of July, to do whatever might be deemed necessary for the public safety. Another proclamation, declaring a blockage, was soon issued. To the call for volunteers the people of the loyal States responded with the utmost alacrity. Only two days after Governor Andrew, of Massachusetts, issued orders calling for troops, two regiments were on their way to Washing- ____________end page 109._____________ page 110 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY _______________________________________________________________ ton. In every city and almost every village in the loyal north meetings were held, large sums of money were pledged for the support of the families of volunteers, regiments were raised and sent forward, and a degree of patriotic feeling was aroused the existence of which had by some been doubted. On the 29th of April the President called for 40,000 volun- teers to serve three years, and 25,000 regulars for five years' service. In his message to Congress, which convened in special session in July, he recommended the passage of a law authorizing the raising of 400,000 men and placing $400,000,000 at the dis- posal of the government, in order to make this contest a short and decisive one. During the nine days of the session acts were passed to legalize the past action of the President, to authorize the calling out of 500,000 volunteers, to appropriate some $266,000,000 for the prosecution of the war, and to confiscate property used for insurrectionary purposes. At the breaking out of the war hardly any one anticipated a struggle of beyond two or three months; but instead of the short, decisive war that was at first anticipated, the contest was prolonged through four years, with an expenditure of life and treasure unparalleled in the history of similar wars. During this time the union forces experienced alternate successes and reverses till the decisive triumphs of Grant and Sheridan, the resistless march of Sherman to the sea, and the complete exhaus- tion of the enemy's resources, brought the consummation for which the friends of the Union had so long labored and prayed. The ten- sion at which the feelings of the friends of humanity had been held during four years was relaxed, and the world breathed free again. In this county, as in all parts of the country, the departure of the first companies of volunteers was an occasion of peculiar interest. It was the first time in the history of the country that the national existence had been threatened, and the patriot- ic feelings of every loyal citizen were roused into intense activity. It was the first general call which had been made on the present generation for volunteers to serve in the field, and, of course, the first occasion on which the people had been called to bid adieu to fathers, sons or brothers, who took their lives in their hands for the defense of their country. They experi- enced a higher pride in the patriotism of their kindred and friends, and a more poignant grief at parting than they felt on similar occasions afterward; for the acuteness of these feelings was, to some extent, worn away by frequent exercise, and after the first departure less of idle curiosity was felt. The brave volunteers of Schuylkill county who left the com- forts of their homes, their social and domestic pleasures, and who severed for the time the ties which linked them to their families and friends, to rally for the defense of the institu- tions under which they had been permitted to enjoy these com- forts, pleasures and affections; to face the stern realities of grim-visaged war, to endure the hardships and privations of the field, to inhale the pestilential emanations from southern swamps, to languish in sickness and pain on pallets, "with no hand of kindred to smooth their lone pillow," and too often to find solitary graves where neither mother nor sister, wife nor children could come to "drop affection's tear," deserve a more extended history than the limits of this work will permit. They constituted parts of organizations the balance of which came from other regions, and their histories are inseparable connected with those of these organizations. On the receipt of the intelligence that the national flag had been fired on the people in Schuylkill county at once forgot party distinctions, and came to be actuated by the feeling that the government must at all hazards be sustained. On Monday, April 15th, at noon, the proclamation of the President was received. The requisition for troops came on Tuesday, the 16th, and on Wednesday, the 17th, two days from the time of receiving the proclamation, two companies, the Washington Artillerists and the National Light Infantry-numbering some two hundred and fifty men-were marching for Harrisburg and Washing- ton. New companies were at once formed in various parts of the county, and their lists were rapidly filled. Such was the patri- otic ardor aroused that men whose heads were white with age and scarcely adolescent youths presented themselves, and so great was their anxiety to serve their country that they regarded their rejection as a hardship. On the evening of the 16th a meeting convened at the court- house in Pottsville, at which resolutions were adopted and five trustees-Andrew Russel, Thomas H. Walker, S.N. Palmer, Levi Huber and Benjamin Haywood were appointed to take charge of subscrip- tions and funds for the aid of the families of volunteers. During the meeting subscriptions to the amount of $5,200 were received, and within four days this amount was increased to %6,915, from 77 contributors. Similar meetings were held in other parts of the county, and within a week a total of $24,286 was subscribed. Of this fund Burd Patterson & Son subscribed $1,000, William H. Johns $250, Christopher Loeser, James S. Kirk and Gideon Bast each $200, and each of the following $100: T.H. Walker, J.M. Wetherell, F.W. Hughes, B.F. Pomroy, L.F. Whitney, James W. Bowen, Benjamin Bannan, John Bannan, John Shipper, E.O. Parry, J. Sillyman, G.H. Gay & C.W. Heings, J.H. Campbell, Charles Baber, J.S. Carpenter, A. Russel, G.W. Snyder, B.W. Cumming, William Milnes, jr., Frank Pott, Fox & Brother, John Clayton, Myer Strouse and mother, William Wolff, John T. Hobart, A.H. Halberstadt, Benjamin Haywood, Palo Alto Rolling Mill, Michael Bright, John T. Werner, Thomas Foster & Co., I.F. Voorhees, Samuel Morris, jr., John S. Morris, R.R. Morris, W. Donaldson, David Beveridge, Jacob Christian, Jacob Huntzinger, Jr., H. Rosengarten, J.D. Cake, George Patterson, Ruch & Evans, Charles F. Kopitesh, George D.B. Kerm, Jacob A. Hazen, William B. Wells, Nichols & Beck, Pliny Fisk, Gideon Bast, A.S. Moorhead, Benjamin Pott, Robert F. Weaver, L. Vasline and J. Pott, William Mortimer, jr., B.F. Taylor, James Focht, Thomas Johns, D.G. Yuengling, J.W. Roseberry, Thomas Cooch, R.M. Palmer, William E. Boyer, _______________end page 110.________________ page 111 FIRST VOLUNTEERS IN 1861 _______________________________________________________________ Thomas Petherick, Samuel Harrison, L.H. Allen, M.P. Fowler, Nicholas Seitzinger, A. Landaner, G.H. McCabe, H.F. Stidfole, William Price, John C. Deibert, Henry Saylor, Drs. S. and F. Shannon, William H. Hopkins, A.T. Troutman, George D. Natchin, John Kitzmiller, Lyman Nutting, Levi Miller, Reuben H. Stees, James L. Nutting, John Hoch, John E. Graeff, Edmund L. Tyler, William Graeff, Peter Filbert, sr., and Isaac Harvey. Many others contributed smaller sums, according to their abil- ity. By the 24th of April 22 companies, aggregating 1860, men, had left the county for the seat of war. Of these 1,600 had reached Washington on the evening of the seventh day after the issue of the President's proclamation. At a meeting on the 25th a draft was adopted of a law authorizing and requiring the county commis- sioners to levy a tax of two and a half mills on the dollar, according to the valuation of the property in the county, to constitute a fund for the benefit of families of volunteers who required assistance. Under a resolution at this meeting a com- mittee of three in each township and borough was appointed to report the families of volunteers requiring aid. Meetings were held in all parts of the county, and everywhere prompt measures were adopted to sustain the government in its hour of peril. A number of the patriotic women of the county organized a "Nurse's Corps" and tendered their services to the government through the Secretary of War. The patriotic spirit which the ladies of this county thus early manifested did not forsake them, but throughout the war they labored in their sphere for the comfort of those who had left their homes and gone forth to face the stern realities of "grim-visaged war," in the defense of their country and its institutions. Many a soldier, as he languished in a distant hospital, far from wife, mother, sisters and friends, has had occasion to bless his unknown benefactress who sent from among the mountains in Schuylkill county some article for his comfort, or some delicacy which the government was not able to furnish. Ladies' aid societies were organized in different parts of the county, auxiliary to a central society at Pottsville through which the contributions of these societies were forwarded to hospitals or to recent battle fields; and by this system the patriotic benevolence of these ladies was made available for the objects of it more fully than could have been done had each acted independently of the other. Truth compels the admission that though, in the first wave of patriotism that swept over the county, as well as the entire north, no sympathy with the enemies of the country was discern- able, yet as time wore on a small party of skulking sympathizers with those enemies was found to exist here. That such a feeling should exist among the comparatively ignorant was not a matter of surprise; but that an educated and somewhat influential profes- sional man could be found to foster and encourage disloyal senti- ments among these was a cause of deep regret and chagrin among the better class of citizens in the county. On the evening of April 17th five Pennsylvania companies, including two from Schuylkill county, mentioned above, had re- ported at Harrisburg. As they passed through Baltimore the next day they were insulted and assaulted by the mob which the day after attacked the 6th Massachusetts. They reached Washington at 7 p.m. of the 18th, being the first to reach the city in response to the call of the 15th, for which promptness they were sbse- quently voted the thanks of the House of Representatives. They were quartered in the capitol, on the Potomac front of which they immediately commenced the construction of temporary defenses. During the period of their enlistment they were engaged in var- ious duties in and about Washington. They became a part of the 25th regiment, of which Lieutenant H.L. Cake, of the National Light Infantry, was made colonel, and Captain John B. Selheimer, of the Logan Guards, lieutenant-colonel. An evidence of the good quality of the soldiers composing these companies is found in the fact that of one of them more than half afterward became commis- sioned officers, of every rank from lieutenant to brigadier- general. The muster rolls of the companies as they reached Harrisburg were as follows: WASHINGTON ARTILLERY. Officers.-Captain, James Wren. First lieutenant, David A. Smith; second, Francis B. Wallace; second second, Philip Nagle. Sergeants-Henry C. Russell, Joseph A. Gilmour, Cyrus Sheetz, W.J. McQuade. Quartermaster's Sergeant, G.H. Gressang. Corporals-D.J. Ridgway, Samuel R. Russell, Charles Hinkle, Reuben Snyder. Privates.-George H. Hill, Francis P. Dewees, Wm. R. Potts, Thomas Johnson, Nelson T. Major, I.E. Severn, Thomas Jones, Thomas Severn. fifer; George Meyers, J.C. Weaver, John Engle, Chas. P. Potts, Chas. Loeser, jr.; H.K. Downing, Wm. H. Hardell, J.B. Brant, Chas. Slingluff, Theodore F. Patterson, Chas. Evans, Chas. Hause, Francis Hause, D.B. Brown, John Christian, A.G. Whitfield, W. Bates, Oliver C. Bosbyshell, R.F. Potter, A.H. Titus, Jos. Reed, Joel H. Betz, John Curry, Robert Smith, Aug. Reese, Hugh Stephenson, H.H. Hill, Eli Williams, Benjamin Chris- tian, Thomas Petherick, jr.; Louis T. Snyder, E.J. Shippen, R.M. Hodgson, Wm. W. Clemens, C.C. Pollock, Wm. Auman, Wm. E. Riley, Edward T. Leib, Daniel Morer, W. Brown, Edward Nagle, Godfrey Leonard, Charles F. Garrett, G.W. Bratton, John Nagle, Wm. Heff- ner, Vict. Werner, Val. Stichter, Francis B. Bannan, Wm. Barthol- omew, Geo. Steahlen, Charles A. Glen, Wm. Spence, Patrick Hanley, Wm. J. Feger, Wm. Lesher, D.C. Potts, Alba C. Thompson, Daniel Christian, Reuben Snyder, Samuel Beard, Thomas Irwin, Henry Deutzer, Philip Deutzer, H.Bobbs, John Pass, Heber S. Thompson, B.F. Jones, John J. Hetherington, Peter Fisher, Wm. Dagan, A.F. Bowen, drummer; J.R. Hetherington, Nelson Drake, __________end page 111.__________ page 112 HISTORY OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY. _____________________________________________________________ Benjamin Heffner, Francis A. Selzer, Charles A. Hesser, Samuel Shoener, Charles Maurer, James S. Sillyman, Henry Brobst, Peter Grow, Alfred Huntzinger, W. Alspach, John Hoffa, J.F. Barth, Wm. Cole, David Williams, George Rice, Joseph Kear, Charles E. Beck, F.B. Hammer, P.H. Frailey, Thomas Corby, Charles Vanhorn, John Noble, Joseph Fyant, Alex. S. Bowen, John Jones, Frank Stitzer, Wm. A. Maize, Wm. Agan, George H. Hartman, Richard Bartolett, Lewis Douglass, Richard Rice, Fred. Christ, Frank P. Myer, Ber- nard Riley. NATIONAL LIGHT INFANTRY. Officers.-Captain, E. McDonald. First lieutenant, James Russell; second, Henry L. Cake; third, Lewis J. Martin. Quarter- master's sargeant, D. Downey. Privates.-J. Addison McCool, Lamar S. Hay, George G. Boyer, John Simpson, Thomas G. Houck, Edward Thomas, Elias B. Trifoos, John Stodd, Lawrence Manayan, B.F. Bartlett, William Madara, Emanuel Saylor, William T. Garrett, John P. Womelsdorff, Charles Russell, J.J. Dampman, Ernst Saubrey, C.F. Hoffman, Jacob Bast, Daniel Eberle, William H. Hodgson, Ernst T. Ellrich, Amos Forse- man, C.F. Umberhauer, Abraham McIntyre, William R. Roberts, Jonas W. Rich, Charles Weber, Terence Smith, F.A. Schoener, William Pugh, Frank Hanley, James Smith, George W. Mennig, James Mar- shall, Ira Troy, Uriah Good, William Irving, Patrick Curtin, John Burns, Edward McCabe, F.W. Conrad, John Donigan, John Mullins, John Lamons, William McDonald, George W. Garber, F.W. Simpson, Alexander Smith, David Dilly, George Shartle, A.D. Allen, W.F. Huntzinger, George A. Lerch, James Carroll, John Benedict, Edmund Foley, Thomas Kelly, John Eppinger, John Rouch, David Howard, Jeremiah Deitrich, William Weller, William A. Christian, Mark Walker, Ralph Corby, Henry Mehr, F. Goodyear, William Carl, Anthony Lippman, John P. Deiner, William A. Beidleman, Charles J. Shoemaker, James Donigan, Edward Moran, Herman Hauser, Louis Weber, Thomas H. Parker, John Howell, Henry Yeger, William Daven- port, James Landerfield, James R. Smith, Michael Foren, Alexander Smith, W.M. Lashorn, Levi Gloss, Samuel Heilner, Enoch Lambert, Frank Wenrich, Joseph Johnson, Henry C. Nies, Jacob Shoey, John Hartman, William Buckley, Henry Quin, Thomas G. Buckley, William Becker, J.P. McGinness, Charles J. Redcay, jr.; William Britton, Thomas Smith, J.M. Hughes, Thomas Martin, Henry Garing, Dallas Dampman, John Bodafield, M. Edgar Richards, Thomas Butt, John Cooper. In 1862 an invasion of Pennsylvania by the rebels was threat- ened, and Governor Curtin on the 10th of September in that year issued an order calling on the militia to organize, arm and be in readiness for a sudden call. Says Wallace: "The order had the desired effect throughout the State, and nowhere was there a deeper feeling of earnestness and determina- tion than in Schuylkill county. The people closed their places of business and went to drilling. Companies were organized throughout the county and ready to move at a moment's notice. The order came on the 13th of September, and between that date and the 17th eighteen companies left the county for Harrisburg for State defense. One company of cavalry started , but was ordered back before reaching Harrisburg." These companies returned after a campaign of two weeks. Some of them were in line of battle, but none was actually engaged. End of Chapter XVI