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Original Typed Trial Transcript of Testimony in The People of the State of Illinois vs. August Spies et al. Chicago, IL, June 16 to 21, 1886. 586 pp., 8 1/4 x 12 3/4 in. This original typescript of Volume I of the trial transcript from the June 1886 term of the criminal court of Cook County covers the testimony of 36 witnesses for the prosecution from July 16 to 21, 1886. The witnesses in this volume include 18 police officers, most of whom were present at the Haymarket on the night of May 4, 1886. It is primarily in question-and-answer format, and most pages appear to be first impressions. The trial officially began on June 21 and continued until August 11.Throughout the testimony, the attorneys for the defense objected to certain questions, and almost every time the court overruled the objection, and usually, the defendants excepted to the court's rulings. These exceptions formed the basis for a later appeal by indicating testimony that the defendants' attorneys believed to be irrelevant or prejudicial.It is also interesting that several times, the defendants' attorneys, who spoke and understood German, challenged the interpreter's translation of the testimony for the court and the jury, who did not speak or understand German.Some forty pages of this volume of testimony relate to events on May 3 at the McCormick Reaper Works, where there was a battle between striking workers on one side and replacement workers ("scabs") and police officers on the other side. The clash left six workers dead and led to the meeting at Haymarket Square the following evening. The defense attorneys objected to the inclusion of all testimony related to the incident on May 3.Approximately seventy pages of this volume are devoted to the testimony of William Seliger, the landlord of Louis Lingg, who allegedly made the bomb thrown at Haymarket. Police arrested Seliger, but he agreed to testify on behalf of the state and was not charged.The complete trial transcript fills fifteen volumes, Volume A to Volume O. Volumes A-H regard the examination and selection of jurors. Volumes I-K include the testimony of witnesses for the state. Volumes L-M cover the testimony of witnesses for the defense, and Volume N covers the testimony of witnesses for both the defense and the state. Volume O includes both given and refused instructions to the jury, the verdict, a motion for a new trial, several affidavits, and the sentencing of the defendants. A separate volume included nearly 150 exhibits introduced by the state and five by the defense. Historical BackgroundOn May 1, 1886, hundreds of thousands of workers went on strike throughout the United States to demand an eight-hour workday. In Chicago, the center of the movement, an estimated 30,000-40,000 workers went on strike. After Chicago police killed six workers in a confrontation on May 3, German-born labor activist August Spies (1855-1887) called for a rally the following day at Haymarket Square. The rally began on the evening of May 4, Spies, Albert Parsons, and Rev. Samuel Fielden spoke to a crowd of several hundred to a few thousand. At 10:30 p.m., police arrived and ordered the rally to disperse. Someone threw a homemade bomb into the path of the police, and it exploded, killing one policeman, mortally wounding six others, and wounding dozens more. The police fired on the crowd of demonstrators, killing at least four and wounding dozens.In the aftermath of the incident, a harsh anti-union clampdown began, and employers continued to insist on workdays of ten hours or more. The event also caused extensive anti-immigrant hysteria and resulted in the arrest of eight labor leaders, six of whom were either German immigrants or of German descent, within days of the bombing. The chief suspect, Rudolf Schnaubelt, was twice arrested, twice released, and fled the country. William Seliger, who turned state's evidence and testified for the prosecution, was not charged. On June 4, a gra. (See website for full description).
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