The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-10-08

Indictment and trial, are desplsers OF
the law and their conduct spreads an
archy more rapidly than the throwing
Of bombs and the firing Of pistols by
protested anarchists.
Hence the dangers of anarchism are
threefold. Scientific anarchism though
harmless in itself is founded upon WIS.,
ionary dreams and false conceptions Of
human nature. and its teaching Is IL
able to lead feeble and half-baked in
telects to commit deeds of violence.
Criminal anarchism is political poi
son to the body polite and affects the
social veins of nation as disastrously
as medicinal poison affects the blood
vessels of the human system.
Respectable anarchism teaches dis
respect of all law, encourages law
breakers everywhere, and is promotive
of the very anarchy it wishes to exter-
inmate with fire and sword. These are
the dangers of anarchism. What is the
remedy? The removal of the cause Is
the best remedy.
We have to consider whether there is
anything in the law or government or
in our institutions or mode of life that
furnishes just cause of complaint to
reasonable men and women; and IL so
when and how shall the reformation be
made.
To begin with we need revival of
obedience to law and respect for those
in authority. In Russia and other
lmonarchial countries where arbitrary
government exists there Is some ex-
cuse for rebellion against the law and
the rulers. But in republic where the
people make the laws there is no ex-
cuse for disobedience to the law so
| long as suffrage and speech are free.
When a law becomes unsatisfactory 1t
should be repealed, but while 1t re-
mains on the statute book every one
who believes in government by the peo-
l. pie should respect and obey the law.
| This does not mean that the acts of
officials and the decisions of judges
may not be criticised and criticised
severely whey they deserve 1t. Nor
does it mean that we should make
fetish of the law, for to say that the
law can do no wrong is as untruthful
as to say the king can do no wrong.
| Crimes may be committed In the name
of law as well as in the name of liberty.
Christ was crucifed officially by due
process of law
There is no good reason why the law
should remain stationary and I'M
changable. New conditions require new
laws 1t is time for new legislation
that will make the great railroad COM
panies and other corporations servants
and not masters Of the people; that will
lequalize opportunities and the burdens
of taxation; and that will narrow and
fill up the yawning gulf between the
employers and the employed
1t might be well also to have some
stricter laws in constraint of wanton
libel, crlminally melting language, and
malicious vilifcation.
So long as q person advocates a
change, of law or the removal of rul-
Iers by legal and constitutional methods
he should be protected, but the moment
he suggests violent and revolutionary
methods to attain his political purpose,
then his language should be made
ImiSdemeanor or felony
Another proposed remedy is to make
lit a punishable offence to hold anar-
chistic opinions or to express them by
speech or publication. Now it would
be dangerous to liberty and the republic
4 to enact laws making 1t a criminal Of
fence for any one to hold certain opin-
Ions on any subject however absurd
such opinions might be so long as he
abstains from committing crimes him
self or from instigating the commit
ment of them by others.
The law should be in general terms
and applicable to everybody. 1t would
not do to apply it to any particular
class or group of people. Persecution
is no remedy. In Germany the Reich
/. stag, under the lead of Bismark, I'M
/, dertook by repressive legislation to
: exterminate social democracy in the
= empire, but unSar the most rigid en-
forcement of the law the strength Of
| the social democrats increased from
year to year until they became the
. most numerous political party in al
Germany and weh able to secure the
repeal of the laws against them. yell
low journals can not be named in legis-
lation enactments, and besides it is ev-
ident that they are not the cause OF
anarchism however much they promote
anarchy itself Anarchism hourishes
in Russia but there are no yellow jour-
nails in tStt )country Yellow journals
flourish here because there exists an
anarchistic constituency to support
them. When the spirit Of anarchy sub
sides the circulation of these journals
will decrease also.
Another suggested remedy is that we
export the anarchists we have here,
! and stop their immigration to these
parts also. The answers to this sug-
! gestion is that foreign countries might
| object to the landing of them on their
| shores and 1t would be impossible to
stop their immigration unless the i'm
| migration Of everybody else was
stopped also. And moreover this would
| NOT De complete remedy as InOSe
born in this country would still be
| here.
| Another proposed remedy, which
seems to be the favorite and most pop
ular of all the remedies thus far sug
| gested. is to STAMP out anarchy" or
I ito crush it," or ito exterminate IT,"
, or "to extirpate the unholy creed" and
many like expressions which sound
| well in glittering and resound-
ing phrases. but are not very
useful to the legislator in search
| of sensible and practical points on
which to base judicious and practicable
statutory law.
The truth is that stamping out an
Archy" is one Of those things which
are easier said than done.
Stil1 another proposed remedy is to
spread religion and education to every
hamlet in the land. No doubt religion
and education are good things and ABB
solutely essential for the highest at
tainments of humanity yet neither of
them is a complete safeguard against
| anarchism. An educated criminal is
more dangerous person than an igno-
rant one Education then without