The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1901-09-27
Barring Anarchists Out

The dc -blooded character of the
murder of President Mckinley has IA
turally aroused all the vengeful feel
ing latent in the American people.
The utter w~antonness of the crime is
it's conspicuous feature, and the first
impulse of every n is to visit the
quickest and most merciless punish
ment possible upon the assassin. But
when all this is done, there still re-
mains the question, How shall we head
off the recurrence of such an outrage?
An ounce of prevention is worth a
pound of cure, and the killing Of a
dozen vile creatures Of the CZolgosz
type will not be half SO satisfactory as
an assurance against the assassination
of another president.
The problem presents itself in two
aspects: The barring Of gates of this
country against the sort of human YER
min who bring into it from other lands
the lawless ideas of the Goldman-Most
propaganda, and the disposal of the
anarchists we nave already with us.
1t is u duty to deal with them in
their order. We hear a great deal
about wha congress is going to do
next winter to amend the immigration
laws in the interest of social protec-
ton: but congress has been faced with
the same conditions and it's sponsors
have made the same promises for it
many a time before. The Haymarket
massacre in Chicago, in re spring OF
1886, was warning enough of what was
coming if a halt were not promptly
called upon rampant murder, and was
followed by numberlesS pledges and
prophecies in behalf of our lawmak-
ers-but nothing more. The one brave
Judge who set the example Of using
such law as he found on the statute
book to throttle anarchism till some
thing of greater effectiveness could be
enacted dc more to bring about the
legislation Of which Illinois is o so
Justly proud than all the a~nti-anarch-
ist writer's and agitators in the coun-
try. Is there not q lesson to be learned
from this by the secretary OF the treas
ury?
The complaint is heard on various
sides that we cannot keep alien anarch-
lists out of this country till we get
some amendments to our immigration
laws. Is this true? The law of March
, 5, 1891, defines the classes of alien i'm
migrants who are to be excluded, be-
sides contract laborers and Chinese
These are idiots, insane persons, pau.
pers, or persons likely to become &
public charge. victims of certain kinds
of disease, convicted criminals, polyg.
:. amists, and assisted" immigrants
Possibly the a upon persons likely
: to become a public charge" was orig
!, inally designed to keep out a Shiftles:
and irresponsible class rather than per
sons capable of bearing their share o.
: the burdens of their new national affil
iation: but although the act contain:
. several moderating provisos, it no
+ where limits the broad terms used IL
7 this passage.
In his own field the secretary of tn,
, treasury is clothed with almost des
: potic power in administering the i'm
= migration laws. He may not maxi
. regulations outside Of the laws for tn
purpose of extending their scope blu
o within the ordinary mean
$ ing of their phraseology he is the hna
. arbiter. A citizen whom he under
: takes to exclude as an alien can su
n out a writ of habeaS corpus and hav
Q his status ~judicially determined, blu
otherwise the courts are PRACTICAL,
ithou power to interfere. Why, then
should not the secretary OF the treas
. ury add to his regulations one declar
ing that from this time forward an
archists are to be regarded as person
e likely to become a public charge an
leave to the anarchists to say VIVA
e they are going to do about it?
There can be no question mat IN
secretary would be upheld in takln
such a step. If it be within his prov
d ince to decide that n man with
1t single gold piece in his pocket has /
l. him the making of a good citizen, an
V NAV. therefore, be allowed to lant
while another with ten times as muc
II must be shut out as on the way to IN
hospital or poorhouse, why has he nc
a an equal right to say that a perso
who belongs to a misunderstanding Gu
r is on the high road to prison or tn
re gallows. and III the government
therefore, cannot afford to let him in
al The courts put forth constructions {
le the law as broad as this every da.
Common sense and popular sentimer
re would approve il. Let nav
an example OF independence and coul
age such as was set to the Illinois le
ar i~slature when Judge Gary snapped n
Is fingers at bubbles and undertook tf
n administration Of substantial justice
the Haymarket case.
e- Amend the immigration laws by a
K means. Make them as drastic again:
Or murder-preaching as against polygam.
Id But. meanwhile there is no reason WI
we should not enjoy the whole benz
ut of such laws as we already hav
es Congress will then have 10 excu:
as whatever for further ignoring the d.
S, mands Of the entire American people.
Washington Post.