The Portland daily press., 1891-04-18

There is good deal of force in an edito-
rial which recently appeared in the Bangor
Wing, and which undoubtedly came from
the pen of Congressman Boutelle, in which
1t was commended that in such a case as the
recent New Orleans lynching the national
government ought to have the power to mi
tiate the prosecution of the men who have
essayed to take the law into their own hands.
In this particular case public sympathy was
so largely upon the side Of the lynchers, be
cause Of the fact that the men lynched were
thoroughly disreputable and had in all prob
ability been guilty of the most heiuous CT
fences, that the lack of power on the part
OIL Inc n~t'"nal- government to proceed
against the lynchers mas not been gener-
ally regretted. But suppose the Italians
killed had been upright and we'll disposed
people. guilty of no wrong, and that they had
been the victims of race hatred. The direc-
tion of public sympathy would then have
been reversed, and there would have been a
great demand upon the part of all decent
people for the speedy prosecution and pun
ishment of the offenders. Yet in that case
the national government would have been
just as powerless as in the one that exists,
odN bhO ObotO uOpdk WUulu nave DceQ
compelled to confess that under existing
laws the national government could not mi
tlate a prosecution, and that that must be
RELOCATED to the local authorities, who might
be wholly in sympathy with the mob. In
such case as the one assumed all the up-
right people of the country would be cha
grined that our laws should he so defective
as to compel such reply. Foreign nations
in making treaties with MS have to deal with
our national government they cannot deal
with our State governments, and our nation
al government ought to have the power to
secure to the citizens of foreign nations
sojourning among us the same protection
which those nations guarantee to the citi-
zens OF this country living temporarily with
In their jurisdiction. Congressman Bou-
telle, in the editorial referred to, points out
that the United States government has re-
peatedly refused to entertain the plea which
we make and are compelled by our laws or
want of laws to make, in this New Orleans
case. In the Alabama claims case our gov
eminent adopted and set forth the following
contentious Of Secretary Fish as to the liza
bility of Great Britain for failing to prevent
the fitting out of rebel cruisers to prey upon
our commerce:
The Queens ministers excused themselves
by alleged defects in the municipal law of
the country.
On the present occasion the Queens minis
tiers seem te have committed the error of as
Stunning that they needed not to look beyond
tneir own local law, enacted for their domes-
NC convenience, and might under cover of
Gno ueIcIehcleS Oh That law, disregard their
power" 'O'0'0'sn
Ifindeed, it were so, the causes of recIa-
nation on the part of the United States
would only be the more positive and SIRE
for the law of nations assumes that each
government is capable of discharging its
International obligations; and, perchance,
If 1t be not, then the absence of such capa-
bllity Is itself a specific ground of RESPONSE
Dility for consequences.
There Is this to be said, however The
powerlessness Of our national government
aliects our own citizens as much as it does
Inc SUBJECTS of foreign governments dwell
Ins among US. There is no discrimination
against the latter. Redress is as easv for
unnaturalized Italians as for persons who
are natives. Hundreds of black men have |
poen prutaily outraged and many murdered |
Wy oisanized bands of white men in Louisi. |
ana ana the national government has been
po"eIless 10 redress their wrongs. Though
the ohence for which they were nun,sbed
consisted IN the exercising of a right gnoran
teed to them by the constitution 80 a.
nnuntru Va Wills