With other lads of his neighborhood he shared
the meager privileges of the school terms that did not interfere
with farm work. At thirteen he was in the coal mines in
Braidwood, Illinois, and at sixteen he was the outer doorkeeper
in the local lodge of the Knights of Labor. Eager to see the
world, he now began a period of wandering, working his way from
State to State. So he traversed the Far West and the Southwest,
alert in observing social conditions and coming in contact with
many types of men. These wanderings stood him in lieu of an
academic course, and when he returned to the coal fields of
Illinois he was ready to settle down. From his Irish parentage he
inherited a genial personality and a gift of speech. These
traits, combined with his continual reading on economic and
sociological subjects, soon lifted him into local leadership. He
became president of the village school board and of the local
lodge of the Knights of Labor. He joined the United Mine Workers
of America upon its organization in 1890. He rose rapidly in its
ranks, was a delegate to the district and sub-district
conventions, secretary-treasurer of the Illinois district,
chairman of the Illinois legislative committee, member of the
executive board, and national organizer. In January, 1898, he was
elected national vice-president, and in the following autumn,
upon the resignation of the president, he became acting
president. The national convention in 1899 chose him as
president, a position which he held for ten years.
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