Omaha daily bee., 1886-10-27

In all the great strikes which nave Oc-
Cured during the past year at Chicago,
and IN some other places, recourse has
been had by those against whom the
strikes were directed to the employment
of a special force for the protection of
property and employees designated as
private detectives" supplied by the
Pinkerton detective bureau, q private en-
terprise the ramtications of which ex.
tend all over the country. a force of
this character, armed with Winchester
rifles, was employed during the late
strike of the pork packers at Chicago and
distributed among the various establish
ments involved in the difficulty. When
the trouble was ended, branch of this
force on duty in the town of Lake, while
returning to the city, was confronted at
two or three points along the route by
strikers and their sympathizers, who
abused the detectives, and the latter
allege attacked the cars with stones and
other missiles. The Pinkerton men re.
talated by firing into the crowd, and one
man was killed. The captain of police
of the town of Lake says the firing was
without provocation. The men who did
it were arrested and will be tried when
the question whether they were assailed
and fired in self.defense will be judicially
determined.
This unfortunate occurrence has
directed attention more seriously than
ever before to the policy of employing
force of this kind, and endowing it with
full police power, when there is no
exigency requiring recourse to extraor-
dinary means, or when the lawfully or
dained forces for maintaining the peace
and protecting life and property have
not been exhausted. SO far as we have
observed. the consensus of opinion con-
dennis the practice as in conflict with
American institutions and a usurpation
having no warrantln law. While it may
perhaps be maintained that it would be
the right of the authorities, in an ex-
traordinary emergency, such as has at
no time existed IN Chicago, to employ
force of this kind, it should never be
done until every regular means provided
by law has been exhausted, and then
only under the direct control and super
vision of the authorities There has
been no exigency in Chicago or else
between employers and workingmen, in
which the police power of the city and
the military authority of the state were
not ample, if wisely and properly used,
for maintaining the peace and protecting
life and property, and therefore recourse
to force outside of these lawfully
prescribed means was without warrant
or justification. 1t is clearly
most dangerous expedient to confer
upon body of irresponsible men, gath
cred together for the occasion, and owing
obedience only to an officer of private
detective agency or bureau, all the power
which the law conters upon regularly
appointed and sworn officials, and place
in their hands weapons to enforce their
authority. Itis policy that would not
be thought Of, not to say tolerated, in any
other country than this, and it ought to
be abandoned here. If priva to detec-
tive system is necessary to aid the au-
thorties in ferreting out criminals and
bringing them to justice, and we will not
say it is not let it be maintained, with
whatever authority of law may be required
to carry it on efficiently, but solely in its
legitimate sphere. Whenever, otherwise
employed as it has been in Chicago, it
usurps function to which it has no
right, in the exercise of which it is of ne
cesslty obnoxious, and which is an almost
irresistible invitation to popular resist
anoe. The law-abiding people of this
country are abundantly able to pr otect
themselves by the lawful means which
are provided by the statutes of every
state, and they will not pa
tiently acquiesce in the resort
to extraordinary and unwarranted
expedients which has of late become
common with those who are not satisfied
with the prescribed instrumentallties of
the law. The people will not tolerate
the presence among them of armed
bands Of "privatc detectives" of whose
official authority they know nothing, nor
can it be we'll for any interest that such
organizations shall become permanent
part of the police systems of our cities.
The same public sentiment which ap-
proves the punishment of anarchists who
break our laws will demand that the
Pinkerton men who shot down Bcgley in
the town of Lake shall receive the
punishment they deserve.