Q. At the time of the strike on the 19th of July?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Were you there on Thursday?
A. I was there on Thursday morning.
Q. Be kind enough to state what occurred?
A. I got to the round-house, I guess, about eight o'clock; stayed in there awhile. I was reading a dispatch containing an account of the riot in Martinsburg to three or four other fireman and engineers. There was a man came into the round-house and said the brakemen were on a strike. So a couple of us went down to the yard, and the brakemen said down there that they were not going out on any double-headers. There was a fellow tried to make a coupling, and a man hit him with a link, and a little while after that they took out the same train with a yard engine. They couldn't get any long road engines out—nobody would go. I went home to dinner and came back. They tried to take out this double-header. They coupled engine 775 and 473, and it was an understood thing between the engineers and conductors, that any person could go out ahead and make a signal to stop, they would stop and get off. As soon as 775 went down the yard and got the train of thirty-six cars, and came up into the yard, and 473 coupled ahead and pulled her out, there was four or five policemen got on each engine, and John Major, he was on 473, and the engineer of 473, pulled her out. She made about two exhausts, and a fellow got ahead on the track and threw up his hands. That stopped her. He reversed, and got off. Then the road foreman and civil engineer took the train back into the yard and ran the engines up to the round-house. I went home to supper that evening, and was going to Allegheny, and parties said, "You better stay around here at Twenty-eighth street." It was all very quiet. There was no disturbance or anything. About twelve o'clock, somebody says, there was a kind of collision in the crowd. Right at Twenty-eighth street, about three feet on to Twenty-eighth street, there was a car that they used in loading cinders, and directly a man stepped up—it was Sheriff Fife—and commenced talking, and said we had better go home, and leave the company do as they please. It was only making the thing worse. The company would come out ahead anyhow, and it was no use kicking about it. General Pearson and Davy Watt was along, and, I guess, they talked in the neighborhood of ten minutes, perhaps, and some person went to General Pearson, and asked him about the case of McCall, who had been arrested. Pearson said if they would be down at the lockup with all their witnesses, he would defend them, and would not want any money for it. They thought that was a magnificent offer of General Pearson, and they would accept it, and I do not know whether they went down or not. I went home—the sheriff was there—and went to bed and got up about six o'clock, went down street; bought a paper to read an account of the strike, and went down town; and going down, there was one hundred cars of stock that had come to Twenty-fifth street, and asked for them to have two engines, and some parties volunteered in the crowd that they could have a dozen if they wanted. I went down to the depot about nine o'clock, and the engineer requested me to fire one of these trains to East Liberty. I fired up twice for him. The first trip they had put up this proclamation purporting to be the Governor's. I read it myself. There was three of them, I believe, posted up round there somewhere. This was about eleven o'clock. There was nothing further occurred of any importance there that night. I heard of the First division being called out. Knew of the other troops being called out—I heard of it about eleven o'clock. The First division was called out, and was coming here at about two o'clock. I heard about the shooting in Baltimore, and was told that they came to do the same thing here. I stayed there until General Pearson came. I was acquainted with General Brown. Talked to Major McDonald, he said his men could not fire, that his men had no ammunition.
Q. Who told you that?
A. Major McDonald, of the Fourteenth regiment. I talked to General Pearson a while, and he got up and said there was no damn use of the boys going around there, he was going out with a double-header, and was going to ride on the pilot. Some of the boys allowed that he was not. I stayed there until ten o'clock, and I knew the Philadelphia troops ought to be there pretty soon. I left and went home; went to bed. I slept then until evening, and didn't know anything about the shooting, until I was awaked up about six o'clock. I went up to Twenty-eighth street. Didn't see any dead men. Seen some blood around. Stayed around Twenty-eighth street and Penn, and saw parties marching out with guns, flags, drums, &c. Went home and slept until half-past three o'clock that morning. I got awake by seeing the fire out of my bed. Waited until daylight. As I got to the Twelfth ward lockup the black maria came. They took down a whole gang for stealing up there that night. Just as I crossed Twenty-sixth street, an engineer of the road says, "The Philadelphia troops fired at us." I got up to Twenty-eighth street again, and was told they were going to leave the round-house. I stayed there at the corner of Twenty-eighth and Liberty, and I saw them marching down Twenty-fifth street. Then I stayed at Twenty eighth street until they passed. I saw they had all their arms cocked, and ready to fire.
Q. Did you see anybody fire?
A. No, sir. I went up to the hospital grounds with a lady friend of mine, stayed around Twenty-eighth street. She thought it would be the least danger. As soon as they got to Thirty-third street, I heard a volley. I guess it must have been a hundred pieces went off.