16-year-old Hungarian-American miner and Young Communist, William Simon was murdered by gun thugs on the picket line in Martins Ferry, Ohio, July 20, 1931.

‘Remember Our Young Martyr—William Simon’ from Young Worker. Vol. 9 No. 21. September 28, 1931.

William Simon is a young miner who was murdered on the picket line in Martins Ferry, Ohio, July 20th by a mine foreman. He was a member of the Young Communist League-EDITOR.

The path for the emancipation of the working class was again sprinkled with more working class blood. The latest martyr of the American workers is William Simon, 16 year old American-Hungarian young worker from Tiltonville, Ohio. William Simon’s life was shattered by a bullet from a scab’s gun. Simon, the young miner, died for the striking miners, for the American workers. He was a brave young soldier of the American working class, a front line fighter in the class war.

Shot Down at Martin’s Ferry

Near Martins Ferry, at the Gaylord mine, miners from the National Miners Union were picketing. White and Negro, native and foreign, young workers and women workers. Among them, William Simon. A truck full with scabs was approaching and as the picketing miners saw it come, they started to sing militant workers’ songs. As the machine came nearer, a volley of shots rang from the truck into the marching, singing miners. The truck sped away, leaving behind one dead from among the pickets.

It was William Simon.

Peterlyn, the scab foreman, who was on the murderers’ truck, went home happy. This murder will frighten the miners, the strike will end and he will be promoted; he will get a raise. Murder, terror–that’s what his boss wants.

Gas bombs and tear bombs did not frighten the miners.

The attacks of the deputy sheriff did not frighten them. It did not help the priest, who talked and preached against the strike.

It did not help the treachery of the U.M.W. leadership a bit. Neither did the free booze nor the hiring of prostitutes help.

So the mine barons hired Peterlyn, this dirty, bloody scab foreman, to kill, murder….

There he lay now in the dust, in the mud. Dead. Silent. Cold. The pickets stood around him, looked at him, but they did not cry. And the women did not cry, neither the children. Their eyes flashed fire, their voices thundered, and their hearts became as solid as granite. It is a war. It is a class war. Fight! William Simon was lying in the mud. His body became icy. His smile hardened on his lips. His wide open eyes were closed now. But under his closed eyes shone through a sharp ray: “Miners Revenge!” And his closed lips thundered “Class War.”

The sun went under a black cloud. Cool winds blew over the hill. The pickets shivered, then they made a stretcher and put Simon’s body on it. In his hand he still clutched strongly his newspaper, The Uj Elore, (Hungarian Communist daily). It was hard to take it out. It was dated July 20, 1931. On the front page a headline read “Machine Gun Volley on Demonstrating Negro Workers,” and under it the story of the Camp Hill massacre, where three Negro workers were killed, seventeen injured and five kidnapped. He was thinking of these Negro workers, who were shedding their blood for freedom. Through Gastonia, Atlanta, Scottsboro, Wildwood, Arnold City and Camp Hill. It takes much sacrifice, it costs much blood to reach the goal from starvation, suffering, to Communism, a workers’ society.

Mine Thug Acquitted

When the deputy sheriffs “arrested” Peterlyn he was smiling. Aren’t these deputy sheriffs his friends? Only yesterday they drank together in the presence of the police captain and the mine owner. They understand each other. It was only a young miner that was shot down. A young sixteen year old boy. There is now one less militant striker. In the prison Peterlyn ate, drank, and smoked. The mine owner came down personally in a nice auto and before everybody present, he shook hands with the dirty rat of a murderer, his friend, Peterlyn. Of course Peterlyn was freed. He is considered a good American citizen. He just shot down a striker.

Three thousand miners marched after the coffin bearing the body of Simon.

Silent, hard faced, three thousand miners.

Among them is his father, Mike Simon.

Yes, William was a sickly boy. He was operated on five times in the last two years. He used crutches for many months. He was just getting better. He was starting a new life. He was a fighting young miner, a member of the Young Communist League, but a scab bullet struck him. He is dead now.

Mike Simon did not cry. The miners never cry, not even the women. But their eyes light fiery, their hands ready to strike, and their hearts beat like a drum before an attack.

Miners Honor Memory of Simon

Three thousand miners marched after the coffin, bearing the body of Simon.

And three thousand of them there swore to carry on the struggle for which young Simon died. They are going to build the National Miners Union much stronger, bigger, more powerful.

Three thousand miners swore before the sixteen year old miner’s dead body that they will never give up.

Every inch forward in the class war costs blood, life, sacrifices. But the working class goes forward solidly, strongly, fearlessly. Never will the workers give up for what Simon fought for so bravely. The fight will go on till victory is ours.

Honor the memory of young William Simon!

Join the Young Communist League!

The Young Worker was produced by the Young Workers League of America beginning in 1922. The name of the Workers Party youth league followed the name of the adult party, changing to the Young Workers (Communist) League when the Workers Party became the Workers (Communist) Party in 1926. The journal was published monthly in Chicago and continued until 1927. Editors included Oliver Carlson, Martin Abern, Max Schachtman, Nat Kaplan, and Harry Gannes.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/youngworker/v09%20n17%20-%2031%20Young%20Worker%201931%20July%20Dec.pdf