The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1899-05-10
More Anont MTreason. 2,

at epublic ear and roar "treasonW
at those honest Americans who be-
lieve in upholding the spirit of
American liberty at home and
abroad and who have the fearless
ness to criticise the acts of truck
ling administration which are
themselves reasonable to the prin-
ciples underlying the American
republic.
Imperialism has not yet fastened
itself upon this land to the extent
of taking away from the sovereign
American citizen the right to crit
icise the acts'of the administration
at Washington. The head of the
American government who holds
his Office through the sufferages of
the sovereign people, whose SER
want his administration is and to
whom he is accountable and re-
sponsible, is not yet Emperor, and
the king can do-no-wrong theory
is not yet accepted in all this
country.
The cry of treason" in the
months of ignorant and bigotted
administration organs who use it
parrot-like partly because they do
do not really know what treason is
and partly in lieu of argument to
support the un-American attitude
of the administration, is the height
of vicious insolence. It shows,
also, how far a certain element of
the administrator party would go
if thoy dared in obrogating the
right of free speech and in muz-
cling the press-the twin bulwarks
of American liberty. These bigots
are not true Americans. AS we
have said, they, themselves, are the
real traitors to our most cherished
American institutions. They CON
fess themselves against a free press
and free speech Id practically in
favor of the methods employed by
the government of Russia to hold
its people in subsection. They are
indeed Imperialists of the worst
and most rabid type, whose in
huence is more dangerous to Amor
lean institutions than an actual
armed enemy at our doors. We
can meot and do battle with an
open foe, but it is thrice difficult
to guard against the assaults upon
our liberties from those in our
midst, who pose the while as the
pink of patriotic perfection.
There is no doubt, whatever that
certain members of the admins
tration, backed by the Imperialist
party and the Imperialist press,
would not hesitate to suppress
those newspapers who oppose the
administrations Philippines policy
or to clap in prison such out-spok-
EN- Americans rs Bishop Spalding,
Senator Hoar, Andrew Carnegie
and Grover Cleveland if they but
dared. 1t is but step from the
threat to the execution of it, and
and would require but the grant
ing Of little moro power to the
Imperialists to witness that eXecu-
ton and thence the final disappear
ance of American liberty.
This is not oxaggeration. 1t is
d serious danger that menaces the
liberties of the people.
Already the Postoffice Depart
ment has stopped the circulation of
the Congressional Record among
troops in the Philippines. The
next step-if they dare take it
may be the prohibition of the use
of the mails to American newspa-
pers not owned body and soul by
the administration and its Wall
street allies. 1t is not regard for
the Constitutional rights of Amor
leans that prevents it being done
but sheer cowardice-fear as to the
effect of such action and the tidal
wave of indignation it would Gre
ate.
Suffice it to say, in the eyes of
patriotic Americans, it is not those
who dare criticise the administra-
TONS Wall street-dictated policy
in the Philippines that are guilty
of treason, but those who raise this
insolent cry, who do not know
what treason is and who themselves
are traitors to American liberty
and to all the cherished institu-
tons which the fathers foughtand
bled to uphold. They are traitors
to the memories of those whose
fast disappearing graves the nation