Bandon recorder., September 23, 1909, Image 7

Indictment nt Cipitalism
and Its Despotic
Institutions.
Eloquent Plea For i Free
Press and Free
Speech.
THE SENTENCE.
“If ever that man runs for president
he will get my vote," df-clared oue of
those who participated In the discus­
sion.
Warren was sentenced to pay
a fine of $1,500. the cost of the
prosecution and to serve si*
months in the Fort Scott jail.
By GtOHGE H. SHOAF.
No court in the history of Jurispru­
dence ever presented a scene more re­
plete with dramatic interest than that
witnessed in the federal building at
Fort Scott, Kan., Thursday afternoon,
July 24, when, in response to Judge
Pollix'k’s invitation to show cause why
sentence should not l>e pronounced,
Fred D. Warren, editor of the Ap­
peal to Reason, arose and began to
speak. Tlie last bit of uneontradicted
evidence disclosing tin1 bias and preju­
dice of the Jurors who convicted War
reu hail been introduced. The last ar­
gument in Is-half of Justice for the de
femlant had L m - ou made by his attor­
neys Rone and West of the prosecu­
tion had declined to reply to Darrow
and Boyle. Judge Pollock had just de­
livered his decision overruling the mo
tlons for an arrest of Judgment and a
new trial. Everything that could be
said and everything tliat could be done
to reverse the processes of the court
and snatch victory from defeat had
been said and done.
Unconquered Client.
Tense were the feelings of the sp<>c
tutors as Warren faced the court. In­
stinctively it was realized that some­
thing was about to happen, but Just
what it would l<e no one could think
or say. The Itenign face of Clarence
Darrow, the celebrated lawyer who in
a hundred courts iias championed la­
bor’s cause and whose volet* from a
thousand platforms has been lifted In
behalf of the poor ami oppressed. show­
ed concern, as did the faces of his as­
sociate attorneys, when it became evi­
dent that their defeated but uncon­
quered client was about to initiate ac­
tion in his own behalf. The govern­
ment’s agents and attorneys looked as
if a red tlag had been unexpectedly un­
folded or a bomb was about to be hurl­
ed, and they cringed speechless in their
chairs. Judge Pollock himself, bis eyes
fastened on the figure before him, his
countenance plainly revealing the con
dieting emotions of his mind, sat as if
stricken dumb.
Voice Rang Like a Clarion.
“Yes, your honor, there are some rea­
sons why sentence of the court should
not be pronounced."
With his hands on the table before
him and his eyes looking straight and
fearlessly into those of the court,
Warren’s voice rang like a clarion as
be began a speech as remarkable as it
is without a parallel. The unexpected­
ness of tile proceeding and Warren’s
boldness of utterance astounded Judge
Pollock, «»nee or twice Prosecuting
Attorney Bone looked appealingly at
the court as if the latter dignitary
ought to foreclose on tlie speaker's re­
marks, but the court was too preoccu­
pied with amazement to except. To a
■lieneed judge and in the presence of
an audience whose very breathing
could neither Is* felt nor heard cap­
italism's most prominent victim and
labor's uncompromising champion pro­
ceeded with the uncovering of the
causes that had led to his conviction.
Never in his life had Judge Pollock
listened to a speech like this; never
In the history of jurisprudence was
there a speech like this made in a
federal court.
Situation Dramatic Beyond Words.
Tribute From a Juror.
tentative of the capitalist classT
I did
not believe that the $1,000 offered by
the Appeal would Induce any man to
undertake tlie abduction of Mr. Tay­
lor. as for seven years the state of
Kentucky had a standing reward of
$100.000 for tlie capture of the mur­
derers of Governor Goebel, for which
crime Taylor had been indicted by the
Franklin county grand Jury in Janu­
ary, 1000.
“Darrow's argument and Warren’s
tqx*ech put this case in a different
light," said R. J. Finley, one of the
; jurors w ho voted to convict and who
sat through the proceedings of the day.
"Then* is no question as to Warren's
Similar to Other Rewards.
ability and sincerity. I am not a So-
But I did expect that the offer of
i cialist, but as far as I am able to
I determine I believe Warren Is honest this reward in the manner and with
and free from criminal intent,” Finley the language used would attract pub­
lic attention to the kidnaping decision
I declared.
It Is difficult to interpret the impres of the supreme court. I felt that if
slon that was made on the ndnd of the this decision, sanctioning the kidnap­
court. Ordinarily convicted prisoners ing of poor and defenseless working-
accept sentence in silence. Warren's men by rich and powerful capitalists,
' course petrified with astonishment the was understood by the American peo­
1 court, to whom his remarks were ad ple a wave of protest would sweep
I dressed. An age seemed to have the country and force the supreme
' elapsed before Pollock recovered suffi- I court to recede from its position, as
| clently to proceed. It was very evi­ had been done before, notably in the
dent that he did not know what to say. famous Dred Scott decision, and will
j Undoubtedly lie had made up his mind undoubtedly lie done again.
This Taylor reward was circulated
I as to the severity of the sentence, but
this speech from the prisoner appar­ througth the mails in a manner In
ently upset his plans. Now lie vibrated daily use by banka, private detective
between doubt and despair. Warren, agencies, anti horse thief associations,
possibly with a note of defiance, had sheriffs and marshals. I have here
announced that he did not ask or ex three postal cards mailed by national
pect clemency or mercy; that he was and state banks offering rewards for
not guilty and was not conscious of the arrest of men whom these banks
having committed an offense. The allege to have committed crime. The
United States district attorney had de­ card which I offer for the inspection
manded that the full penalty of the of the court, it will be noted, bears
law. five years in the penitentiary and upon the back or outside of the card,
in large letters, figures and characters,
a $5JMk) fine, be inflicted.
the following language: “R. R. Rond,
The Court In Doubt, but Pronounces
produce dealer, wanted for issuing
Sentence.
forged bills of lading; $250 reward will
With halting tones and in a manner tie paid by tlie First National bank.
plainly denoting the confused eondi Nashville, Tenn., for his arrest and
tion of his mind, I’ollock began the delivery to Nashville authorities.”
pronouncement of the sentence with
First Instance on Record.
an apology in part and an attempt at
It will tie observed tliat this lan­
argument In reply to Warren's speech. guage. to quote this court’s decision
According to the Fort Scott Tribune. on our demurrer to the indictment,
Warren's impassioned address made a “is calculated to impress the readers
most profound impression.
of the language with the thought that
“Tlie fact that Judge I’ollock stated Bond was guilty of the commission of
! he had given the case weeks and 9ome crime for which he would be
weeks of tieliberation and had hardly prosecuted by tlie Tennessee authori­
j known what to do shows that Warren ties if captured and returned to them.”
| may have had some merit in his claim It can further lie said, following the
that the government had sanctioned court’s line of reasoning, that this lan­
kidnaping. The speech .Mr. Warren de­ guage was obviously intended by the
livered will be kept as a treasure by First National bunk to reflect inju­
many who are with him in this case,” riously upon the character of B. B.
declared the Tribune.
Rond and from its terms and the man­
Warren's Great Speech.
ner and style in which it was dis­
Tlie speech, which is destined to be­ played on the postal card is calculated
come immortal in revolutionary lit to have that effect.
erature, is as follows:
The other cards contain similar lan­
I wish to call tlie attention of the guage and display. This is character­
court to the fact that this case is the istic of thousands of cards which daily
outgrowth of the kidnaping of three pass through the mails of the United
workmen by tlie agents of the great States, and yet In not a single instance
mining corporations, with tlie con- lias any effort liovn made by the gov­
! nivance of tlie state officials of Idaho ernment to rid tlie mails of this ob­
' and Colorado. The kidnaping of these jectionable matter and protect those
i workingmen was acquiesced in by the of its citizens who are fugitives from
1 president and sanctioned by the su justice.
My arrest and conviction is the first
' preme court of the United States.
In referring to tlie manner in which instance on record where a man was
I these workingmen were taken from prosecuted for attempting to bring to
their homes as kidnaping I wish it un­ the bar of justioe an indicted fugitive
derstood that no loss distinguished a charged with the crime of murder.
personage than Justice McKenna of
The Reason Not Hard to Find.
i tlie supreme court of tlie United States
There must be some reason why I
used this term in dissenting from the alone of tlie thousands of men who,
j opinion of his associates. Justice Me- according to the rule of this court and
: Kenna, after reviewing the facts laid the opinion of the district attorney and
I before tlie supreme court, said:
ills assistant, have committed substan­
In the case at bar the states, through tially the same act should be singled
i their officers, are the offenders. They by
out and marked for prosecution.
l an illegal exertion of power deprived the
The reason is not hard to find. So­
accused of a constitutional right. • • •
Kidnaping Is a crime, pure and simple
ciety today is divided into two classes,
• • • All of the officers of the law are i On tlie one side we find the work peo­
supposed to be on guard against this.
• • • But how Is It when the law becomes ple-men. women and children who
the kidnaper-when the officers of the have no means of obtaining a liveli­
law. using the forms and exerting Its hood but by their hard labor. On the
power, become abductors? This Is not a
distinction without a difference, another other hand we find a relatively small
form of the crime of kidnaping, distin­ group of men who own the land aud
guished only from that committed by an the tools which these people must have
Individual by circumstances. If a state
may say to one within her borders and access to if they are to live. It is the
upon whom her process Is served. “I will ' primary if not the sole purpose of the
not inquire how you came here; 1 must men who own this productive proper-
execute my laws and remit you to pro­ I ty to obtain as large profits as possi­
ceedings against those who have wrong­
ed you." may she so plead against her of­ ble. while on the other hand the work
fenses? May she claim that by mere people strive constantly to increase
; physical presence within her borders an th««ir wages. Tills creates a class con­
accused person Is within her Jurisdiction
denuded of bls constitutional rights, flict.
Warren represented in the concrete
the agony and woe, the blood and tears
of tlie working class of the world. lie
typified the Issue la-tween the ruling
class and those who are fighting the
age-long war for human emancipation.
Through him were voiced the outraged
sentiments of men, women and chil­
dren who in tlie field, factories and
mines do tlie work of the world and
who in some way would protest
against tlie methods by which the
wealth their work creates is taken
from them and given to those who though he has been brought there by her
violence? Ami constitutional rights the
labor not. Here in this federal court, accused
(the three workingmen I have
the strongest bulwark of the system alluded to) In this case certainly did have,
and
valuable
ones.
that is responsible for the agony and
blood and outraged sentiments, War
Justice McKenna voiced my views
ren, already convicted and about to and tlie views of every law abiding cit­
receive sentence, faced without hesita­ izen on this Important matter touching
tion and without a tremor the tiesh the rights of the individual. But the
and blood embodiment of capitalism's supreme court declared otherwise and
mighty power and challenged him to refused to grant the relief asked for
do his worst.
i by these workingmen and guaranteed
Would Vote For Him For President. j to them by tlie constitution of the Unit
Warren’s speech climaxed his de­ ed States and by every consideration
fense mid clinched it irrefutably in the . of fair play and Justice.
To Test the Supreme Court.
consciences of his auditors. If there
It was during the heat of this strug­
had liven any doubt as to the injustice
of the prosecution and the animus and gle between the Western Federation
origin of it. this doubt rapidly dispelled of Miners and the wealthy Mine Own­
as the speech proceeded. After sen­ ers' association of the west that I con­
tence was pronounced and the prisoner ceived the idea of offering a reward
was admitted to bail pending nn np for ex Governor Taylor, who, ns was
peal John H Crider, one of the most generally known, was a fugitive from
promiuent Republicans in Fort Scott justice from his home state of Ken­
and probably In secret society circles tucky and in hiding in Indiana, pro­
the most Influential man in Kansas, tected from the service of requisition
who had listened to Warren's address, by the governor of Indiana, wh<>M
came forward and volunteeri-d to sign position was indorsed by Governor
his bond. The offer was accepted. Roosevelt of New Y*ork and every
Downstairs after adjournment of court prominent Republican |>e"tlclnn and
a group of men. Democrats and Re­ - newspaper in the United States.
Would the supreme court hold to its
publicans. united in open Indorsement
of the speech and unqualifiedly ex­ opinion that kidnaping waa not •
pressed their admlratlou for the man crime if the victim waa a mambos
who made IL
Epoch Making es Petrick
Henry's Immortel
Oration.
The Conflict Began With Civilization.
This conflict began with civilization
and has come down under varying
forms to this day and will continue
with increasing intensity so long as a
small group of rich men are permitted
to lay upon the masses, to quote from
Pope Ijeo, “a yoke little lietter than
slavery.” Discussing the ever present
problem of labor and Its compensation,
John Adams in 1770 observed:
of the Revolutionary and civil war |ie-
rlods. that the master class recognized
no difference between the chattel
aittve and tlie wage hireling, lu 180S
Karl Mars, the founder of acleutific
socialism, summed up the labor prob­
lem in the following striking sentence:
In point of fact, however, whether a
man works three day* of the week for
himself on hi* own Held and three days
for nothing on tlie estate of his lord or
whether he work* In the factory or work­
shop six hours dally for himself and *tx
hours daily for hl* employer, It come* to
the same thing
This surplus value over and above
that which Ls required by the slave,
the serf aud the wageworker to main­
tain his physical existence ls the por­
tion which the master, the feudal lord
and the capitalist have taken by force
of arms in the first case, by ownership
of land in the second and by owner­
ship of tools and cunningly deviat'd
laws and court decisions in the last
Instance.
The slave master built up a civil and
political system which protected his
right of property tn the bodies of his
slaves and the wealth they produced.
One does not have to go very far back
in the history of this country to find
confirmation of this statement. Prior
to 1800 the laws enacted by congress
and by most of the several states,
backed by the decisions of federal and
state courts, bud for their object the
protection of the slave master in his
right of ow'nersblp of men, women and
children. The man who dared raise
his voice in protest against the ex­
ploitation of the black man was brand
ed as a traitor to his country. If he
attemptisl to speak he was thrown in­
to Jail, and if he attempted to print a
newspaper voicing his sentiments his
press was destroyed and he was mob­
bed and murdered.
What was true in the two revolu­
tionary periods which marked the dis­
appearance of a iKilitical system bast'd
on kingcraft and a political system
based on chattel slavery ls true today.
Marked For Persecution.
The men and the newspapers that
have espoused the cause of men, wom­
en and children who work in the fields,
factories and mines of this nation are
marked for persecution, as were tlie
Revolutionary and abolitlou editors be­
fore them. For ten years as editor of
the Appeal to Reason I have been In
constant conflict with the ruling class
and the meu who hope to pick up the
crumbs which drop from the tables of
the great captains of industry, on
whose will employment depends, not
alone in the industries, but in the gov­
ernment and municipal service.
Postoffice and Court* Varau* Appeal.
The postoffice department was first
employed to hamper aud harass the
Appeal to Reason in its work of edu­
cation and enlightenment. The most
absurd rules and regulations were ape
dally formulated to apply, as Third
Assistant Postmaster General Madden
wired to the Girard postmaster, "to
the Appeal to Reason." lu every in­
stance where our right to the mails
was questioned the Appeal won a sig­
nal victory, liecause we strictly obeyed
the spirit and the letter of the law’.
Then the aid of the courts was in
voked to accomplish what the postof-
fiee department had failed to do. The
courts today, as prior to 1800, are with
the owning und ruling class, Daily
tills fact is becoming more apparent.
One has only to refer to the long list
of decisions in which the interests of
labor and capital are opposed to veri­
fy this statement. The blacklist bus
lieen legalized and the boycott out
la wed. The injunction has been list'd
with telling effect in labor contro­
versies to terrorize and crush the men
who work, while it has proved ineffec­
tive and of no avail when directed
against great capitalist Interests, as
President Roosevelt pointed out when
he was engaged in his battle with the
great packing industries.
The people of Missouri in their ca­
pacity a-g sovereign voters recently
elected a governor and legislature on
a platform demanding relief from rail
road extortion. A two cent fare bill
was enacted into law. This law was
upheld by the state supreme court.
The railroads went to the federal
courts, which with the stroke of a pen
nullified the will of 3.000,000 people.
So closely allied has become the fed­
eral judiciary of this country to the
great corporations that even now
there is pending in congress a resolu­
tion demanding an Investigation of the
acts and conduct of the federal Judges
who have prostituted their high office
to the profit of these corporations,
three-fourths of which, according to a
statement made by Governor Hadley,
are either illegally organized or un­
lawfully conducted.
Fighting Industrial Despotism.
For years the Appeal to Reason has
lice., waging almost single banded a
light against the oppressive and Intol­
erable industrial aud political condi­
tions which confront this country. We
frankly admit having been unsparing
In our criticism of the acts of public
It Is of no consequence by what name officials and the courts of this land.
you AUI your people, whether by that of
freemen or slaves In some countries the We have dared to tell the truth, and It
laboring poor men were called freemen. is because of this that I face this
In others slaves, but the difference waa court today a convicted felon In the
Imaginary only What matters It wheth­
er a landlord employing ten laborers on eyes of thousands of men and worn
whose resjH*< t 1 covet.
hl* farm gives them annually as much
as will buy the necessaries of life or
Whence came this prosecution? The
gives them those necessaries at flrat
Kansas City Journal in November,
hand?
Coming down to the civil war pe­ 1907. editorially stated that the de­
riod, we find tliat the Charlestown partment of Justice at the Instance of
Baptist association in presenting a the president of the United States had
memorial to the Georgia legislature tn been instructed to commence proceed­
1X35 discussing this ever with us prob­ ings against a Socialist sheet at Gi­
lem of labor gave expression to the rard, Kan. 1 do not know the Jour­
nal's aour<-e of Information, but am In­
following conclusion:
It nmounts In effect to this whether the clined to believe from facts now in my
operative* of a country shall be bought possession that thia prosecution of the
and sold and themselves liecome property,
Appeal to Reason has been directed
as In this state or whether they ahall be­
come hireling* ami their labor only be­ from the attorney general's office in
come property, as In some other state*.
Washington.
Slavery of th* Working Claaa.
It will l>c seen from these two quo
of the Republics* party and ■ ropeo< tations, clearly reflecting the opink»
When the Pierson envelope, on
which thh action is based, was sent
to the poatoffice inspector of thia di»
trict fro» Los Angel**« that gentleman
turned it over to the district attorney.
The district atfURiey returned the en­
velope to the postoffice inspector with
the opinion ‘bat there was uo ground
for action. The inspector in making
report to the departincut at Washlug­
ton “marked the case “Closed." He
later explained to me tliat this meant
that so far as the district of KausaB
was concerned no further action would
be taken. But soon thereafter word
was received from Washington, so the
assistant district attorney announced
in the presence of this court, that there
had been a violation of the law and
that the case must be reopened and
vigorously prosecuted
The supreme court has Pcrwfna 1*
fact the reigning monarch of the
Atneriegn people No measure of re­
lief demanded by tlie voters of ttd*
nation enacted into law by their elect-
i ed representatives and signed by the
president may become o|»erative with
out its Judicial sanction. At the com­
mand of the lords of privilege auy ob­
noxious law is promptly declared un-
i constitutional.
Th* supreme court of the United
States has today mor* real power over
the people than is vested in any mon­
arch of the old world.
The late Senator Hanna boasted that
the courts are maintained to buttress
property rights. Ex-President Roose­
velt denounced a federal judge for bin
“We Are After the Appeal."
The district attorney’s office at To­ interpretation of the law in the gov­
peka, however, revised its decision ernment’s prosecution of the beef
after heuring from Washington that trust.
President Taft in his Hot Springs
there was no ground for action against
me. One of my attorneys Journeyed (Vaj speech expressed a decided opin­
to Washington and laid before the de­ ion upon I In* same question in referring
partment thousands of reward cards to the inability of the poor to cope in
similar to the Taylor reward which the courts witli men of wealth. With ex­
had been mailed from nearly every pressions like these from men of prom­
city in tlie Union. When my attorney inence. do you wonder that there is a
Inquired why the Appeal was singled growing distrust on the part of the
out for prosecution on this flimsy poor people of this nation that the
charge, while all the senders of these courts are against them?
other cards, who were equally culpa­
The Courts Ruled by Property.
ble, were not molested, the representa­
In the western district of New York
tive of the government opened a of thirty cases decided in favor of in­
drawer in his desk and produced an jured employees twenty-eight were re­
armload of marked copies of the Ap­ versed in favor of tlie master class by
peal
the higher courts. United States Dis­
Blue pencil marks designating cer­ trict Attorney Sims of Chicago was
tain articles in the Appeal indicated waging a vigorous fight against the
that this paper is pretty closely read white slave drivers, aud when Victory
by high government officials. The gov­ was almost within his grasp ills hand
ernment official shrugged his shoul­ was paralyzed by a decision of the
ders in reply to Darrow’s question and supreme court, which virtually put an
remarked. "We are after the Appeal."
end to tlie prosecution of that unspeak­
This cast* has dragged its weary way able infamy. There are property in­
through this court for over two years, terests involved in the wholesale de­
continued from time to time at tlie in­ bauchery of young girls, and these
stance of tlie government. I submit property Interests must la» safeguard­
from these facts tliat. I am not prose ed al whatever cost. As for the girls,
cuted for having violated any federal they are the daughters of the working
law, but purely because of my political class and in point of value are not to
opinions and my work in liehalf of the be compared to property.
working class of this nation.
Our modern system of jurisprudence
This prosecution is not unexpected is a survival of mediaeval times, when
to us. As plainly stated by the govern­ judges presided by right of ownership
ment official to whom our attorney of lands and castles, and it will require
talked while In Wasldngton, it is evi­ another political revolution similar to
dent that secret service agents of the that of 1776 and that of 1860 to abolish
government have been camping on the this bulwark of special privilege and
trail of the Appeal for, io. these many capitalist exploitation.
years.
Convicted by Jury of Republicane.
Is it not pretty conclusive evidence
I was convicted by a jury composed
that we have observed religiously the
laws and regulations governing the of partisan Republicans. It was shown
conduct of a newspaper when after by competent evidence Introduced in
ten years of effort the government is tins court today that two of the Jurors
able to find only this lone and paltry had expressed hostile and prejudicial
sentiments against me.
Affidavits
alleged violation?
Personally I feel proud of this rec­ herewith filed show that one of the
ord. I feel no sense of guilt, nor will Jurors. Mr. Nelson, became deathly
the world approve tills conviction sick in tlie jury room, and he affirms
when the truth prevails and the facts that it was because of this sickness
and his fear of death unless medical
are known.
attention could be secured that he was
Submitted Copy to Postmaster.
The government's witnesses testified forced into voting for a conviction.
here on the stand tliat I submitted to Again it is shown by competent evi­
them copy of the matter I expected to dence introduced at this hearing that
mail and asked whether in the post­ the principal witness for the govern­
master's judgment it constituted a vio­ ment, ex-Governor Taylor, made state­
lation of the federal law. Tliat official ments which were untrue. He stated
after looking (lie matter up said it did that at the time the reward which I
not. and I want to say here tliat dur­ offered was circulated through the
ing the ten years of mj’ connection malls lie was not a fugitive fropi Jus­
with the Appeal to Reason I have had tice nor was there any charge pending
frequent occasion to consult with the against him of a criminal nature in
postmaster at Girard on matters re Kentucky \flidavits, state records and
latlng to the postal laws, and in no in­ letters signed by Taylor himself, all
stance was his judgment ever at fault, on fih' in lids court, show tliat Tay­
lie assured me tliat in his judgment lor had been indicted and tliat for
the matter I proposed mailing was seven years prior to the offer of our
identical in character with the thou­ reward lie had been a fugitive from
sands of postal cards mailed at his of­ justice witli a price on Ills head. It Is
fice by the sheriff, tlie marshal and tli<' common practice In all courts tliat
the officers of the Anti Horse Thief as where tlie defendant can show that a
juror in qualifying perjures himself a
soclation.
In submitting to this court these new trial is granted. Perjured test!
postal cards mailed by bankers it is niony on the part of tlie prosecuting
not my Intention that the government witness is also ground for a new trial
should proceed against those men on In ordinary cases < if course I under­
the evidence furnished by me. I know stand that this is not an ordinary
these gentlemen are immune from case. The whole history of these pro­
prosecution because they represent the ceedings shows conclusively that It Is
dominant class in society today. The not an attempt to secure the ends of
rewards which they offer are for men justice, but an effort to punish me be­
who have committed crimes against cause of my political views.
No Mercy or Leniency Asked.
property, and in the prevailing social
system the property of the rich is of
In conclusion permit me to say tliat
vastly more consequence than the life I nm not asking tlie mercy or leniency
of this court. I have committed no
and liberty of the poor.
crime, anil there is festering in my con­
Is Criticism a Crime?
On the other hand, the editor -who science no accusation of guilt, but If
has espoused the cause of the wage my conviction and punishment will
slave today lias in the eyes of the rul­ serve to rivet public attention upon
ing class committed a crime against the abuses which I have tried to point
existing institutions for daring to of­ out then I shall feel that I have not
fer a reward for the apprehension of suffered this humiliation in vain.
After all. tills is tlie price of human
an Influential member of (lie dominant
progress. Why should I expect Im­
political party.
I have also dared to criticise a deci munity? Tlie courts have ever been
slon of the highest judicial tribunal in and are today tlie bulwarks of the rul­
the United States. Judge West, the as ing class. Why should they not pun­
sistant district attorney who assisted ish offenders against that class?
In feudal slavery the court* iu«-
in my prosecution, in his argument a
year ago last November, after present­ tained the feudal lords, in chattel -slav­
ing his reasons why the demurrer In ery they protected the slave owners,
this action shopld be overruled, closed and in wage slavery they defend the
his argument in a burst of passion industrial masters.
Whoever protests for the sake of Jus­
with tlie statement that “as a matter
of fact this literature was sent out for tice or in tlie name of the future is
the purpose of bringing into contempt an enemy of society and ls persecuted
and discredit the supreme court of the or put to deatli.
In one of tlie most eloquent charac-
United States.” Is criticism a crime?
And is it for this I am being prose­ ,-erizations of history Charles Sumner,
tracing tlie inarch of the centuries,
cuted ?
pointed out that tlie most infamous
Our Colonist Forefather*.
crimes
against tlie lilierty and progress
Smarting under tlie vicious attempt
of the English king to prevent the cir­ of tlie human race had been sanctioned
culation of Revolutionary newspapers by tlie so called courts of Juntice.
during tlie period preceding the sign­
Truth Will Triumph In th* End.
ing of tlie Declaration of Independ­
This case is a mere incident in the
ence. the first amendment to the new mighty struggle of the masses for
constitution was made to provide for eiiiaiicipittlen. Slowly, painfully, pro­
a free press and free speech, always ceeds tlie struggle of man ngainst the
and everywhere recognized as the sus­ power of Mammon. The past is writ­
taining pillars of free Institutions
ten In tears and blood. The future
Our
colonist
forefathers,
imbued is dim and unknown, lint the Hnnl out­
with the high ideals embodied in their come of tills worldwide struggle Is
immortal Declaration, shouldered their not tn doubt. Freedom will conquer
guns and shot to death the divin* slavery. truth will prevail oter error,
right of kings, and then the cunning justice will triumph over Injustice, the
enemies of democracy raised in its light will vanquish the darkness, and
•tead the supreme court, with its many humanity, disenthralled.- will rise ro-
federal arms reaching out into all the
-plendent iu the ylory of iuiiv«ra*l
e’ats* of th* Union.
brotherhood.