Herbert Seely Bigelow
Kentucky Post, Saturday, 11 August 1917, page 3
WHY-Socialists of Kenton, Campbell and Hamilton counties are planning a picnic and outing at the Lagoon Aug 26. Herbert S Bieglow, Cincinnati will speak at 3 pm on "Why I Joined the Socialist Party."
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Kentucky Post, Thursday, 1 November 1917, page 1
CITY REWARD-Newport Socialists met Wednesday night in their hall, Fifth and York Streets, and adopted a resolution which was handed the Newport commissioners, asking the city to offer a reward and to fully investigate the kidnapping and whipping of Herbert S Bigelow of Cincinnati, Sunday night, when he visited Newport to speak. The resolution as presented in full follows:
"The Socialist Party organization of the city of Newport Ky. hereby request the mayor and commissioners of our city to take into consideration the following matter: The Newport Socialist local organization has always stood for law and order and the members of our organization have a clear record of law abiding and well behaved citizens. In regard to our national war policy, the Socialist Party of Newport has done nothing directly or indirectly to hamper our government in the prosecution of war against Germany. It has done nothing to oppose the draft and it has done nothing in opposition to the Liberty Bond issues. The city of Newport has a record of being free from slackers.
In securing the services of Herbert Bigelow to speak in behalf of the Newport Socialist organization it was intended that the speaker confine his lecture to the regular Socialist doctrine and Socialist political activity; the aim of the Socialist Party being to bring about industrial democracy in conjunction with political democracy. We deplore the fact the said Rev Herbert Bigelow whom we have thus invited to our fair named city, and before he had a chance to deliver his lecture, had been kidnapped from the steps of our hall and cruelly mistreated.
We also deplore the fact the said kidnapping took place in the presence of the Home Guard of the city of Newport. We believe the action of the chief executive and chief of police of Newport, who was himself present inside the hall, but who left at the first sign of trouble and disorder, was an act of surrendering authority. We believe the kidnapping of Herbert Bigelow area stain upon Newport and the state of Kentucky. We believe that in order to erase the stain, it is imperative the city of Newport offer a reward and investigate fully the kidnapping of Bigelow."