The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1885-05-29
Crawling out of 1t.

On Wednesday morning the Argus had
this 10 say in regard to the arrest of the
Salvation Army:
1t appears to us that the Mayor did an exceeding
ly foolish thing in ordering the arrest of the Saliva
ton Army last night. 1t of petty persecution
The Salvationists, though not agreeable to many
people in their ways, are harmless and well be-
haved folk. There is no more justice in arresting
them than in arresting a hundred other noisy pro-
eessiona, like minstrel bands political torchght
professions, that infest our streets. Let all be
served alike. If paid hirelings are permitted to
disturb the peace of the streets the same privilege
should beextended to Jealous men and women wor
shipping God after their own fashion-grotesque
though that fashion may be.
On Thursday morning it said this:
1t Is not generally understood, we think, that the
Salvation Army people do not recognize the civil
authorities. They are military organization and
obey their leaders even In defiance of law And
when the necessities of the situation seem force
subordinates to respect the law and civil authority
against the direction of their superiors in their
Army organization. they are immediately displaced
and others put in command. Two captains for the
time beiRg Of the band here arranged with the city
authorities not to parade the streets Sunday with
drums and other martial instruments, but each was
soon displaced. It is the third that is making the
present trouble, and she does it at the command Of
her superior officer. This defiance of civil authority
and of the peace of the Sabbath the city authorities
have at last very properly resolved to bring to the
attention Of the court. The arrests on Tuesday
night were for that purpose. If the law forbids
their Sunday parades and such week day process.
sions incommode the public and peril the safety
of street pedestrians, these will be suppressed. If
only Sunday parades are unlawful these only will
be stopped. In short is the purpose to know what
the rights Of the public are and to enforce these
rights in the most quiet aud effective manner.
Who some of the Argus's callers were on
Wednesday can be readily guessed.
The second of the above paragraphs is I'M
doubtedly seml-oficial explanation of the
performance of Tuesday night. 1t can
hardly fail of notice that running through
it is an insinuation that the real cause of the
arrest of the Army was a parade with drums
last Sunday. The authorities would I'M
doubleday be very happy if the public
would take this view of the matter, but
they dare not make positive declaration
that such view is the correct one, because
they know it would be untrue. The Army
did not parade on Sunday with drums.
That is proved by the testimony of Deputy
Marshals Black and Crowell, who witnessed
both of the parades on that day, and their
testimony is corroborated by the fact that
the Army was not arrested or that day, as
they certainly would have been had they
been parading in defiance of the Mayors Or
hu hn ofbar faat that ha
plant on which they were arraigned on
Wednesday morning was for violating the
city ordinance on Tuesday and not on Sun
day. The Mayor and Marshal, therefore,
might as well abandon any attempt to make
it appear that the Army was arrested for a
Sunday parade.
The second point made in the explanation
is that the arrest was for the purpose of as
pertaining by procedure before the court
what are the rights of the public and of the
Army in the matter of parades. The Argus
says, SIT is the purpose [of the authoritiesl
to know what the rights of the public are,
and to enforce these rights in the most quiet
and effective manner" If this was their
purpose they set about it in most bungliRg
fashion. Probably at any time by applica-
ton to the judge of the municipal court they
could have ascertained what the rights Of
the parties were without any arrest at all.
But if they considered an arrest necessary
they might have made it in much more
quiet way than they did, and in manner
that would have been quite as effective. Ii
their sole nurnoge was to test the nuestion
the arrest of one of the men who had been
beating drums in the procession would have
been sufficient. There was no need of wait.
ing until the army appeared upon the