The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-03-11
AMERICANS ABROAD.

foi sohcttiiC poot thc picos uuu thS pVii
| ticians, for mere political effect, have been
agitating in this country the question OF
imprisonment abroad of American citizens,
and have been insisting that vigorous pro
tests should be made against such acts by
our ministers and various representatives
in foreign capitals. While in political
emergencies, and when the arrests have
an international or political complexion,
such course should be pursued, and at
once by the United States, in the great
majority of cases mentioned nothing could
possibly be done by our government.
We are, perhaps, too severely critical
of our officials in matters of this kind,
and an investigation of what is loudly
claimed as national insult, would no
doubt oftener show simply the fact that the
average citizen has been attempting. to
brave the operation OF laws in other lands
which did not exactly suit his advanced
democratic views. 1t is a very safe propo-
sition to say that nowhere in the civilized
world is n stranger rechlessly arrested and
incarcerated without cause and merely
from the fact that he is n stranger. Be
hind all such cases there will most
generally be found some misconduct war
ranting the action of the officials
A traveller in country is amenable to the
civil and criminal statutes of that country
so long as he is a sojourner, and cannot ex-
Yasi l,N tha laua pf natinnc In NJ
ishment for acts in violation of the local
statutes. In consequence of this well known
principle many foreigners are arrested and
imprisoned, and it is absurd to suppose
that the whole machinery of a great nation
would or could be exercised in their behalf
when no national question was at stake.
If the citizen offending is present among
another people in an official or representa-
tive capacity, different considerations
and different rule will indeed
prevail, but u private citizen
must learn to respect the least of the local
laws surrounding him at the time being.
Misled by the opinion often that the stars
and stripes are still over them and licensing
them to free action, many of our people get
themselves into serious difficulties, and ii
is getting high time that the public mind
was disabused of this idea. We called at
tention yesterday to the reply of Mr.. Low
ELL, our minister in London, to appeals on
this subject, and we cannot too strongly
emphasize his remarks. Sympathy with
ireland has induced hot-headed citizens
of the United States, now travelling in
Great Britain to bring themselves under
the provisions of the coercion acts, and
they have very properly and very legally
been imprisoned. They now, in their as
constituent and virtuous indignation that
strong hands should be laid OH American
citizens, appeal to Mr.. LOWELL. He
briefly, but pointedly informed them that
they were beyond his reach, and must be
by exactly the same conditions
and regulations rs the native agitator.
The rule is the same everywhere, and our
and free American citizens who
think they can run their own and
every foreign government might
as well begin to learn that when they 90
abroad as private individuals they become
subject to foreign statutes and had better
conduct themselves accordingly. Of course
in any case where nationality or citizen
ship or international right or cour-
tesy are involved they can claim the in
reference of the home government, but
not otherwise unless Determinations are
made against them which are not made
against native subjects.