Upton Sinclair is best known for writing the book "The Jungle." However this story is not about that book so much, but a subsequent book Sinclair wrote entitled "Boston." This book is about two Italian immigrants, Bartolomeo Vanzetti and Nicola Sacco, who were put to death by the electric chair in Massachusetts after they killed two payroll clerks, and stole a parole to help fund their terroristic organization which was fighting against the elite in the Boston area. Mostly they would set of bombs, but they needed to purchase dynamite to do this. The two men had alibis, but they were also identified as being the killers. Sinclair, always for social justice, had a point to make with his book. He challenged the verdict and the trial feeling it had been unfair. Besides the men maintained their innocence. Sinclair however saw some inconsistencies in the men's testimony, and sought out a lawyer who had worked on the case. Despite the lawyer proclaiming them guilty, that he had trumped up the alibi witnesses, Sinclair still published the book maintaining the trial was unfair. Many years later a letter about this meeting would come to light which indicated that Sinclair knew the men were guilty. Sometimes the truth just gets in the way of a good story or cause.
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| Upton Sinclair |
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