The Labor enquirer., 1886-06-19

and accompanying this you will hnd
proof of what is here asserted, which
please note. Q. B. SMITH.
SAN Francisco, June 12.
Freedom OF Citizenship in the United
States.
For The Enquirer. r. ~
A demand for freer and better condI-
tions is scarcely doctrine" This de-
mand. that Is always being made in some
form or another and hasslnce life began,
or there would be no advancement of
the human race whatever, cannot be
made without threats-threats against
the existing order of things.
When Luther wanted more freedo
than the church gave, he thereby threat
ened the institution which lawfully en-
shaved HIM and others. When our fore
fathers wrote the Declaration of 1nde-
pendence it was d determined threat
against the government under which
they lived.
When the abolitionists demanded
freedom of the black slaves they threat
ened the legal and lawful institution OF
slavery. And now, every demand for
more freedom AID better. conditions, is
and must be standing threat against
the institution, law, custom or power,
whatever it may be, that enslaves us or
makes us wretched. The spirit of every
demand IS, destroy this bad institution,
this law, system or power that is hurting
US. 1t must be swept out of existence
peaceablv if possible, but it must be
destroyed at all COSTS"
Reform movements of all kinds are
more or less tlreats against some estab-
lished and lawful institution. Some re-
forms are SO far from being IN earnest'
that the reformers propose to coax the
wrongs out of the way, and are careful
to inform the upholders of the bad law
that they would not hurt it for anything,
This kind of reformatory talk has
been allowed in this country since it had
an existence, for the real reason that il
WAS harmless, and the persons profting
by the wrong systems were IN no danger
whatever; and at the same time great
showlngcould be made for our free
speech" privileges by the allowance.
But IN avery instance where people
have expressed ideas in opposition to a
legal institution, law, or the g1vern-
meut itself, with all earnestness thai
proclaims their sincerity and determln
alton, the law has speedily punished
them and cut off their freedom ol
sp9t Cf.."
Before the war, abolitionists who only
expressed their opinions in an abstract
way, were merely mobbed. But if they
put their ideas into practical shape anC
assisted runaway slave or detied {
United States marshal, while proteCtins
one, the law pOunced upon them anC
showed them how much freedom. they
possessed, if they dared defy or ignore it
The southern people were taught il {
terrible four years lesson that it woulC
not do to express opposition to the gov
ernment in the practical manner they
did And to-day men may talk in {
mild wav about bad laws, if at the same
time they assure the conservative publ,
they mean nothing by it,
In reality we have meyer had genuine
free speech" People were allowed t.
talk because talk was harmless-th,
possessing classes were too sure of thei
power to mind the idle discussions bu
once let demand be made which reall.
threatens to destroy their vested right
and privileges, backed by force egua
to their own, and immediately all tnei
powers are called into requisition to
crush out the demand and to kill, i'm
prison and silence those who demand
OF late even the ordinary amount o.
freedom to which American citlzen
have been accustomed has been vic
lated.
Every home where Socialist sympa
thlzers are known to live has been IN
vaded by officers OF the law. The entel
at any hour of the day or night; they
have grossly insu!ted women and havt
robbed houses of various sums of money
They have imprisoned men and womel
who are merely suspected of AnarchistiC
tendencies. Quiet people who hav,
broken no law, are dogged by detectives
their letters broken open and many O
them stolen. The prisoners, while no
proven guilty ofanY crime, are deprived
of common rights and were not even al
lowed to see g, law yer for many day
after arrest. If there are Socialists liv
Ing in Chicago who have not been dis
turbed, it is because they are not know1
10 the authorities, and are 30 very care
full they are not likely to be.
The barbarities of the officials, detec
tiveS and police since they have entered
on the warpatn against anything Social
istic, would vie well with the crueltie
of the middle ages. l keep a file of the
papers and can prove what say: be
sides having the personal testimony o
many who have experienced the treat
ment referred to.
If it is necessary to take the space anc
time to furnish those who still inss
binu 10 Ipualu in ThinouO I Mill 4,