May Day and the Haymarket Riot (1886)

On May 1, 1886 350,000 working people went on strike from coast to coast demanding an 8 hour workday. This was the beginning of scores of demonstrations around the country; the most notable being the rally held in Chicago’s Haymarket Square on the 4^th of May. During that rally a bomb was hurled and killed several police officers. The police then fired into the crowd of demonstrators, killing and wounding over 200.

As a result of the violence on behalf of the labor unions, eight labor union leaders were arrested and tried for the killings; even though only one had actually been present at the rally. They were all charged with murder. Of the eight, 1 received a 15 year sentence; 3 were sentenced to life in prison; and on November 11, 1887 the remaining 4 were hung.

Decades later it was proven that a man named Rudolph Schnaubelt had actually been the bomber, acting alone. His history was somewhat puzzling; he was a known anarchist as well as a police informer. It is widely believed that he was put up to the bombing by the Police, who were trying to discredit the Labor Union movement.

As a child during the late 1950’s (I was in Kindergarten) I was confused by the May Day event that the school had each year. There was a Maypole and children went out at recess to dance around it. This seemed to be a tradition which stretched back to the middle Ages in Europe and heralded the arrival of spring; but coupled with what I was hearing about May 1^st being the day the Soviet Union Displayed its’ weaponry in a parade at the Kremlin; which was covered in the news; I wasn’t sure what to think!

So, May Day has quite a cultural, as well as political, path. I prefer the Maypoles to the tanks and missiles.  I was confused as a child; but not too much anymore. At least where Maypoles and missiles are concerned…

Note: Maypoles are not to be confused with Liberty Poles, which where used by the Patriots during our own Revolution to communicate with one another. As soon as the British tore one down, two seemingly sprung up in it's place. These poles were in use all year long, not just on May 1st.

"The Fish That Ate the Whale" by Rich Cohen (2012)

I had never heard of Samuel Zemurray until I picked up this book. As usual, I chose the book by its cover; which is something I was told never to do, and have done since. I’m glad I did. Samuel Zemurray was arguably the banana “King”. From his first encounter with the fruit sometime around 1893 in Selma, Alabama. He was smitten with everything about the fruit; from its shape, color and size; to what was it worth? Samuel, like most immigrants from Eastern Europe at the time, looked at everything in a different light than others. This was, after all, the land of opportunity, and who knew what that first banana held in store for him? As it turned out, it was quite a lot.

Sam Zemurray is the man who popularized the banana, taking it from the small marketplaces of the southern ports of America, all the way into every grocery store in the nation. By the time Mr. Zemurray was through, bananas were celebrated in song, and had become a staple of American cuisine. In this unusual biography of both the man and the banana, author Rich Cohen has given us both an education in the history of the banana in America, as well as a chronicle of the United Fruit Company. This is a story of American capitalism; in a business started by an immigrant; and the effects his success had on those less fortunate than he in the countries from which he derived his that good fortune. In a way, it is the tale of “Raggedy Dick the Shoeshine Boy”; while in another sense it recalls “The Grapes of Wrath.”

From his most humble beginning as a fruit peddler, with one cart of bananas, Mr. Zemurray rose to become a tycoon. Along the way he wrestled with Unions, politicians, foreign governments, and even the CIA, as he built an empire which proved capable of starting wars and influencing politics.

Just as my great grandfather Max Henkin, who hailed from Russia; and is shown here next to a palm tree; Zemurray was fascinated with this healthy and exotic fruit. In his own turn, the author does everything within his power to convey this fascination to the reader.

Tracing Mr. Zemurray’s history and rise to fortune , the author has taken a life which reads like a fairy tale, and strips away a bit of the veneer, getting at the heart of what drove this man who became the “Banana King”. He also manages to let us understand how he stayed at the top of his industry for 40 years.

Also of interest is the bit of education about the industry which the author manages to squeeze into the narrative. He ably explains the difference between a “stem”, which holds one hundred “bunches” of 9 “hands”; which in turn comprise 15 “fingers”, or bananas each.  This called forth the image of stevedores in tropical ports unloading the bananas by hand; shouldering several hundred pounds at a time; with the danger of scorpions and spiders lurking within each bunch unloaded.

This book covers everything from bananas to foreign coups in “banana republics, as well as corporate and labor disputes. This is a real life tale worthy of a good screenplay; and your time will not be misspent in reading Rich Cohen’s entertaining; and educational; biography of a highly unusual individual.