He was the leader of the overalls brigade, a group of Wobblies who referred to themselves as "red blooded working stiffs.
They held propaganda meetings at each stop, singing IWW songs and selling literature to finance their trip.
[2] They traveled over 2,500 miles in their "Red Special" cattle car, ate in hobo jungles, and preached revolution in prairie towns.
[2][3] While at the convention, they were primarily responsible for the split that drove Daniel DeLeon out of the Chicago IWW.
In 1909, Walsh led a free speech fight in Spokane, Washington, where he was arrested on March 4, 1909.