New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-05-31
FREE SPEECH ~ GERMANY.

The conflict over freedom Of speech and OF
meeting goes on apace In Prussia II VIII Do
remembered that last year when the grcnf Ger
man Civil Code was before the Rechstag. there
was strong movement 10 embOdy in II clause
granting liberty of combination and meeting lo
political societies. UDQuestionably il would
have been adopted but for the tactics OF the
Imperial Government. The Chancellor pro
tested against the scheme. not Ostcnsibly. be-
cause he was opposed to the spirit Of it, but, on
the contrary. because he favored it and because
il could be effected more easily and quickly by
legislation In the various States. which latter
on the part of Prussia he explicitly promised
Let the Code be adopted without any such
amendment" he said in effect. land we will give
"yOu legislation for the desired end ut the
earliest possible moment. Indeed. you may
"havc such legislation in a few months. while
'thc Code will not go into effect for several
years"
The Reichstag adopted the Code without the
amendment and now the Chanccllor's promise Is
being fulfilled. bill for the regulation Of politi-
cal societies was introduced the other day into
the Prussian Parliament and is now being fierce
ly debated As drawn. il did in one obscure
clause fulfil the promise. But 1t hedged 1t about
with conditions which were held by the advO-
Gates of free speech to make il practically value
less. AS for the bulk of the measure, II was de-
nounced by the same parties as reactionary In the
extreme. Nothing comparable with 1t, they said,
had been seen in Germany for nearly hundred
years 1t abolished freedom Of speech and civil
rights so far as political meetings and organ
izations were concerned. 1t actually nullified
some provisions Of the Prussian Constitution.
II made the police the sole and arbitrary judges
of the propriety Of all political utterances and
gatherings, and gave them absolute power sum-
marily to dispense all meetings Of which they
disapproved II police officer heard in public
meeting sentiment expressed which did not
coincide with his political views. or If he saw
in the audience youth whom he Judged TO be
less than twenty one years Of age, he was en-
powered forthwith TO disperse the gathering.
Thus was the bill regarded by large proper
ton Of the Prusslan people and their representa-
tivpS.
Vigorous attacks are being made to amend 1t
in the direction of liberalzing It's provisions,
with some success. and such a storm Is raging
over IL as seldom has been seen in Prussia in re-
cent years. Leading newspapers denounce the
bill as n scheme for the suppression OF indie
pendent political movements and the abolition or
civil rights. 1t Is compared. not TO its advan'
tage with the present law relating TO leze-
majesty under which men are arrested and i'm
prisoned for insulting the Emperor when they
have not mentioned nor referred TO him. Thus
one was recently punished for publishing his
torical review in which he criticised monarch
long ago dead for certain of his acts. 1t was
held that this amounted to criticism OF the
present Emperor, inasmuch as he Is known 10
have committed the same acts. Another is now
in prison for saying that William did not de-
serve the title of THE Great" given to him by
his grandson. a third is suffering punishment
for having said Of n battue at which the En-
peror was present tina: such wholesale shooting
Of practically captive animals was not sport bur
butchery BY such means the true dignity OF
the Emperor is not to be maintained. Neither
by arbitrary repression Of speech is order to be
preserved or loyalty promoted