The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1888-02-23
TO CONGRESSMAN LIND.

portance not only to all newspaper
publishers, but to the very liberty Of
the press itself. The matter is this:
You are aware that at the closing
hours of the AID Congress, when host
of bills was rushed through 'amid the
most disgraceful confusion end up.
roar" a bill was passed known as the
Comstock Postal Law, or section 1898
of the Revised Statutes. Although its
passage was urged ostensibly for a good
purpose, it was intended as man trap
to catcl, and imprison all free thought
publishers.
Under this most infamous law, which
would not have been tolerated during
the anti-war period of our history,
scores of publishers and editors have
been bounded and prosecuted 10y man
named Anthony Comstock, who secur-
ed the passage Of this law. and who is
paid 81 900 a year 10y a Society in New
York organized cstensib'y to suppress
vice, but really to suppress free thought
literature.
Under this most iniquitious law,
which destroys the inviolability Of
the mails, and puts innocent men at
the mercy of such spies, decoys, and
crime.procurers rs Anthony Comstock,
The editor of the New York Truth
Seeker was sent to the penitentiay for
one year for simply mailing philoso
phical pamphlet or tract to this pro.
curer of c1ime, who wrote decoy let
ter asking for the tract. The editor of
the Northern Ohio Democrat is now
serving a term of one year in prison
for mailing al edition Of his paper
containing an account Of seduction
affair which is no worse than the body
of tho seduction, divorce, rape and 9th
er mere news matters published every
day. Un,ler this law a prominent cit.
izen was held in the Toombs in New
York city for some months for publish.
ing passages from the Bible, and wa s
then released because the ComstOck
gang decided that if tried and convict
ed, the result would be to prove the
Bible an obscene book. Under this
most pernicious law a refined lady, go
years of age, was dragged from her
home in Virginia and lodged in several
filthy jai|s, to sleep with insane per-
sons, and was finally tried and found
guilty. Her offence was mailing pa
6ers upon a scientific work which she
was writing. She WAS saved from the
penitenti .ry by mere technic*lity.
The editor of a New York paper,
House and Home, had an edition held
back two weeks by the postmaster be-
cause he thought he saw an unmaila.
ble advertisement in the paper. These
are only few instances, among scores,
of the wrongs which are being CON-
mitted under law which is uncOnsti.
tutional.
Now for the present application of
all this:
The enemies of free thought having
gained so much power to punish free
thinkers and writer's, the medical and
other bigots, who desire monopoly and
who labor for class legislation, have
secured the introduction of an amend.
ment to this infamous Postal Law.
This amendment is known as H. r.
1874, and it proposes to add to the law
the words ''filthy or disgusting" so
that any one who mails matter which
can be construed into being ''filthy or
disgusting,' will be liable. Under
this, all medical advertisements, excent
those Of the regular doctors, would be
excluded, from newspapers, and all de-
tails of any event whatever, if these
details could be construed into being
''disgusting" to any one, would lay
editors and publishers liable to impris-
OEment.
You will doubtless be called upon to-
vote upon this amendment, this at
tempt to tighten the grip of the ene-
mics Of the liberty of the press. We
call your attention to the fact that the
laws of each State are ample to regu-
late publications within their respec-
tive limits, and that the use of the U.
). Postal System as a trap by. which
one class of religious, medical or other
thinkers can persecute and imprisoD
other classes, is most unjust, uncon-
stitutiOnal and un-American.