Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1892-07-29
COMMUNICATIONS


desire to express to you my thankful
appreciation of the wholesome sentiment
editorislly expressed in the columns of
the JOURNAL this morning upon the case
of "e1Private Iams." The punishment
administered to this miserable and most
unworthy representative of American
citizenship may have been triae severe,
but even allowing it 30 to have been, do
the rightfully constituted heads of mill
tary authority of the State of Pennsyl-
vanis, called out in an unusual emergency
to protect the rights, the property and
the lives of its peaceable and law abiding
citizens from danger and death c. th1
hands of outlaws, merit the wholesale
flood of condemnation and invective be-
ing at present rained down upon themi
Will it all have a tendency to command the
respect and obedience to our laws of that
large e-would- -be-if-they dare lswless ele-
ment of our American civilization
There seems at the present time to be
veritable epidemic of morbid and sickly
sentiment, which, ostensihly in the name
of humanity and Christianity, (but which
in truth emanstes from selfish demagogues
seeking by soms short and easy route
public notoriety) undertakes to awaken
sympathy in favor of every worthless
character who by word and deed outrages
the honest sentiment and laws of this the
freest and most msgnsnimous of all Chris
tian lands. Much of this gushing and sickly
sentiment may emanate from sources scarce
worthy of notice. Indeed, it is hardly
possible TO conceive in any case of
its expression by the lips of one
~c ~
citizen. And yet do we not hear it some
times (though, let us be thankful, seldom)
from those placed in positions of RESPONSE
bility and honorl What but such senti-
ment WAS recently heard upon the fi"or of
our national congress, when, in ringing
speech, one of it's members upheld the
course of the strikers at Homestead in all
their acts of violence and lawlessness and
declared that they had done what was
right. At the same time who can doubt
that the eminent gentleman was well
aware when he uttered his words in com
mendation of the acts of those men that
he was upholding acts of outlawry by
band of outlawsa-for such they had GER
tainly come to be, and no longer merited
the name of strikers. As one has said: ITO
speak of them still as strikers, now that
they have in fact become outlaws, is to
concede to them claim for sympathy
in a high degree p-rilous to good order"
No country under the broad canopy of
heaven affords it's people the liberty of
thought, speech and act as this our grand
and glorious America. Is it not time that
there be partial assusgement of this
abundant overflow of sickly sentiment,
which sympathizes with and tries to make
heroes and martyrs of the criminal ele-
ment of society," Should we not stand by
and uphold our rightfully constituted au-
thorities, who labor to preserve the peace
and protect the lives and property of each
and all, high and low, in the rightful and
peaceable pursuit of prosperity and hap
pinessl c.
No sympathy for Anarchists.
To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
You are quite right in saying: 'tIt will
be hard work to make q martyr of ex-Pri-
vate Iams." Notwithstanding General
Buffers opinion that the punish
ment inflicted WAS ''barbarous,
cruel and unjustifable by any
law, in peace or war;" it is the opinion of
the general public-which is bigger and
more consequential even that General
Butler-that any man, especially under
existing labor conditions and troubles in
this country, who svowedly expresses sym
pathy with the acts aud endorses the ut
terances of these enemies of peace and or
der known as anarchists, richly deserves a
punishment that he will be likely to re-
member during the remainder of his nat
ural life.
The natural effect of such sympathy,
coming, as it does in this instance, from a
somewhat distinguished source, is pernic-
ious in the extreme; and q man like GEN
eral Butler, who is supposed to have the
welfare of his country at hand, ought to
feel ashamed of the position he has taken.
Butler furthermore says, "That sort of
punishment was not permitted in the war
by any rule of war that I know Off and
yet such punishments were inflicted. to
the writer's certain knowledge, while serv-
ing in the army of the James In Virginia
during the late war, and that, too. while
General Butler was in command. The
s>ueral might not have countenanced it,
but 1t seems strange that he could have re-
manned in ignorance of such infiictione for
they were of quite frequent occurrence. /
have seen men tied up by the thumbs for
long periods at a time, and for offences
much less fragrant than that of Private
Iams. l thought it barbarous mode of
punishment at the time, and still think SO,
and yet I have no sympathy for an anarch-
ist, and do not consider that his
punishment can be too severe. That class
of wretches must be hunted down and
placed inside of stone wall where all op-
portunity for doing harm will be effectual-
ly ended. 1t Q great mistake to suffer
suoh . scoundrel - Hsrr Most to have his