The morning call., 1893-11-13
ALTGELD'S SHARE OF THE RE-
SPONSIBILITY.

In accounting for the recent tidal wave
I in Illinois no one has made sufficient
| allowance for the influence exercised by
the pardon of the anarchists by Governor
AtgeId of Illinois. Ii the Governor had
been a mere politician his action would
| have caused little comment. Blu. he is a
m an of high reputation as a jurist and as
a writer on penology. He has been a con-
spicuous Judge His personal character
| has never been called in question. He was
supposed to represent the very best class
ofsmen in the Democratic party. There
fore, when he opened the doors of the
prison in which the Haymarket assassins
were confined, 1t was assumed by thou
sands that the party of which he Is a
leader is in secret sympathy with the
anarchists. and every citizen who is in
favor of law and order felt it incumbent
on him to rebuke the recreant official by
striking his party.
The existence of body of men who are
imbued with the homicidal tendency.
without motive. is one of the gravest
dangers of modern times. Society can
protect itself fairly well against the muir
derer who goes about trying to assassinate
But it is powerlass. or nearly powerless,
to anticipate and prevent the acts of q
crank who without any reason arms him.
self with bomb full Of nitro-glycerne
and throws it into a crowd. 1t is sad to
observe that such cranks are cropping up
in almost all countries. There were a
dozen or so of them who were concerned
more or less directly in the Haymarket
massacre.
In this city we had one who placed a
bomb on the track of cable-car and an-
other who attempted to throw bomb into
a crowded OpeTa-house. a number of
lives were destroyed at the opera house at
Barcelona by the explosion of missile
thrown by an anarchist who proposed to
kill Martinez Campos. a terribly danger
Gus bomb was recently picked up in the
streets of London. Ravachol and his
accomplices are known to constitute quite
a powerful body at Paris. All over the
world men are turning up who hunger aud
thirst for the massacre of people who
have done them no injury. These extra.
ordinary monsters are willing to sacrifice
their own lives in order TO take the lives
of individuals against whom they have no
grievance and whom they propose to kill
in order to testify in vague way their
disssti sfactlon with the general conditions
of society.
This is peril which the cUdifiers have
never contemplated Offenses against the
person are supposed to have been inspired
by specific motive. One who is accused
of murder can generally secure his acduit-
tai # he can prove that he had no interest
in the death of the deceased. The anarch-
lists occupy ground peculiar to them
selves. They have no motive which can
be recognized by an intelligent mind.
They fill the place of the outcasts
who in ancient times were known
as enemies of the human race. It
is difficult TO catch them. They
work in secret. The consequences of their
deeds are so overwhelming that they often
escape in the confusion. They may sally
forth from their homes and walk through
a thoroughfare with a score of lives in
their pocket. and yet no suspicion may
arise which would justify policeman in
making an arrest. When it happens that
such miscreants are caught red-handed
society demands that they be punished
and will not forgive any party which
seems fairly chargeable with treating them
with undue lenity.
The police of France, Spain. Italy,
Switzerland, Germany and Austria are
adopting comprehensive plans for track
ing their anarchists to their hiding places
and taking them wherever they are found.
England thus far hangs back. the authori-
ties of Scotland Yard being reluctant to
adopt the vigorous plans OF the Continental
police. But the English will presently fail
into line. With the assistance of sheep"
and the telegraph SO unrelen ting a system
of pursuing the bomb-throwers may be
naugurated that escape will be difficult.
Americans would be pleased to see this
country enter into the league. No one
wants to see Domb-throwing flourish in
this country. And when a prominent
|. Democratic official goes out of his way to
screen anarchists from their proper doom
1t is no wonder that at the next succeeding
election he and his hackers get slap in
the face.