St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-05-24

and glorious republic. We might eX-
pect that the president would ask Mr..
Oney to resume his practice of the law
at his old stand in Boston, but for that
marked 0btuseness Of his which renders
him imperviOus to the well-meant,
purely pro bono publico efforts of our
estimable contemporaries to instruct
and guide him and his administration in
the straight and narrow path which
leads to their esteem and confidence.
An alarmed public, dismayed at the
sight of so bad man in SO exalted a
place. has not yet recovered from the
shock when the new attorney general.
Immediately OIL taking office, did not
grasp that jawbone OF an ass, the anti
trust act. and 20 forth among the trusts
shifting them hip and thigh. There was
the act Matched in the patriotic brain of
John Sherman, passed by Republican
senate and house of representatives and
having on it the approving signature of
benjamin Harrison, and here on the
other hand. was the foul brood of trusts
Matched out of the prolific nest of Nc
kinleyism. To be sure the act had been
in force some two years before Mr.. o.
ney took office. and Mr.. Attorney Gen
eral Miller had not hurled the act
against the head of a single trust, but
as Rip van Wrinkle observed when he
broke his pledge to take just one drink,
"thau don't count" MI. Miller was a
Republican aud thus, perforce. good
man. Mr.. Olney did bring an action
against the sugar trust in spite of his
own Judgment that the act was bit of
Republican buncombe not intended to
hurt their friends the trusts. and the
judge held that the facts alleged. all
violations of this act. did not constitute
an otfense. but that don't count either.
and Mr.. Olney was still a very bad
man.
Now he has made another exposition of
his innate cussednesS and given the
patriots OH guard another opportunity
10 prove their watcbfulneSS OF the pub
lie interests and to dIlale OIL the
wretched badness OF Mr.. Olney. He
CONSTITUTES the law which prohibits any
person from soliciting campaign funds
i'll any room or building occupied by
any one in the service of the United
States to mean not to prohibit the send
ing through the mails Of letters to per-
sons so occupied in such rooms or build
lngS soliciting such contributions.
In this there is cordial and unani-
nous agreement among cur Republican
papers at least that Mr.. Oiney is
clearly. wilIfully. maliciously wrong
and plainly influenced by that Demo.
cratic hatred of this civil service law
which our brethren Oh the other side
are cocksure every Democrat is IN
spired with. That this is penal
statute; that it is fine province of
legislatures and not the courts to make
laws; that the latter only construe acts;
that laws making that criminal when
wasinnocentr receive strict construction
in the courts,and that in this case, when
the law says that "a person. who So
licits ''in room or building" is guilty,
any court in the country would hold it
to mean the presence of the person in
the room soliciting contributions. and
that letter sent into the room was not
a person, all this is also of no account.
MIR. Olney remains. in the opinion OF our
able contemporaries. an irredeemably
bad man for whom impeachment would
be none too severe.