The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-01-16
THE POLICE REBUKED.

Even those who are absolutely with
out sympathy with the Anarchists
and who want to see their Infamous
doctrines crushed out of existence will
be pleased with the decision of Judge
Tuley, of Chicago, as noted in our dis
patches this morning. The police of
Chicago have been entirely too jealous
in their anxiety to suppress the Anar-
chists and put stop to the dissenina-
ton of the principles of the Jewelers.. 1t
was an arbitrary power, more danger
Gus to liberty and good order than
the assumptions of the Anarchists
themselves. that the officers exercised.
A meeting would be announced
by the Anarchists, whereupon the
police would forbid the gathering, give
notice 70 the owner of the hall that he
would be prosecuted, and officers
standing at the door would refuse to
admit people. The interference seemed
not only irregular and unlawful, but
what might BIS called high-handed.
Finally the Arbeiter Band, the Anar-
chIst association, applied to Judge
Tuley for an Injunction to restrain the
police from interference with these
meetings. A few days ago His Honor
minated what his opinion would be,
and yesterday he rendered his decision,
holding that the officers had no right to
interfere with the holding of the meet
ings. The decision is undoubtedly based
on good law, aud will put a stop to a
very serious abuse of authority. If the
police can assume that a meeting of
Anarchists will violate the law and
should therefore be prevented, they
can assume that political or society
or even religious meeting may result
in the violation of the law, and should
be prevented. To admit this right of
interference would be to confer upon
policemen greater power and authority
than have ever been held by
officers of any kind in America, where
the right to assemble in public meeting
and of free speech are popularity held to
be above the legislative power itself to
forbid. 1t has transpired that nothing
of an unlawful character occurred in
some of the Anarchist meetings in
Chicago. Police officers and detectives
were present and they could find no
cause for complaint against those who
delivered the addresses; which in itself
furnishes conclusive proof that the
police were wrong in assuming that be-
cause meeting was called by Anarch-
lists it would necessarily violate the law.
One way to increase the number of
Anarchists and help the spread of their
principles is to persecute the misguided
indictments, and abuse the power of
the law in combating them. The
American people do not take kindly to
but they are sticklers for
individual rights and liberties. They
say, make the law bear as heavily as
possible for the suppression of Anarch-
istic ideas, but be careful that power is
not used arbitrarily and illegally in
fighting the evil.
The victory which the Anarchists
have won by this decision is no victory
whatever. The judge has simply rele-
gated to their proper place over-ofh-
cious and aggressive policemen who
presumed upon the popular ill-will
towards the Anarchists, to do things
which the law did not sanction if it did |
not forbid. The police have been
driven back to their legitimate sphere;
the Anarchists have no more rights
than the law has always guaranteed to
them. If the Anarchists violate the
law in their meetings they will be liable
to arrest and punishment, as hereto
fore; if they do not violate the law,
their meetings will be harmless, and |
ought not to be suppressed.