Sunday Washington globe., 1902-02-09
"DOC" NORTON
On Deck and Watching the
Common Enemy.
DEFENDS THE CLERKS
Right OF Petition and Opposes Amy
Appropriation the People Takes TO
Honor the Coronation OF George
HIS Successor with Delegation
Of American Flnnkies - President
Means TO DO Right.

Hon. James A. Norton, of Ohio, in com.
menting on President Roosevelt's order
prohibiting Government employees from
petilioning Congress, says;
President Roosevelt is a brave man; he
is courageous, he is honest, and l believe
he means to do right, but in his zeal to en-
force the Civil Service law he has gone a
little too far. His recent ukase forbidding
any Government employe individually, col
lectively or through an association to which
he may belong, on the pain of dismissal
from asking relief at the hands of Congress
is something uuheard Of in the annals Of a
Republic such as ours. II is in effect a
denial of the. constitutional right of petit
tion
1t is monstrous.
Just think for a moment what the Presi-
dents order means. The letter carrier in
the city, the rural letter carrier, the railway
postal clerk, the watchman, the laborer in
fact, all Government clerks who think they
are underpaid are to be summarily dis
missed if they petition through their re-
spective Representatives in Congress for
au increase of salary. can hardly believe
the President realized what he was doing
when he promulgated the order.
The right to petition is guaranteed by
the Constitution, yet President Roosevelt,
with one stroke of the pen, would kin that
sacred right There is no telling where
he will stop.
who knows but he will next issue an
order forbidding our soldier boys in the
Philippines from writing home without
first submitting their letters to their COM
manding officers to see that no information
about the situation in these islands is sent
to this country?
II am almost willing 10 believe that
when the President discovers the effect of
his ukase he will rescind It,. | know the
country will not stand for il.
When you deny the right of petition
you take from the citizen that which is
most dear and sacred. 1 wonder when
the President wrote. his now famous or
rather infamous order, he thought of the
Round Robin2 Surely not. However, he
has given us material for the campaign
which Will largely aid US this fall in
electing Democratic House"
Representative Norton is also on
record as opposing any appropriation for
the funkey trip to the coronation of
King Edward VII Doc" is an American
Democrat, not an Anglomaniac nor a time
serving monarchial aping belly crawler.
All genung Americans are opposed to ap-
propriating the tax PAYERS money for any
such purpose. The presidents of two
European republics, the French and the
Swiss, inaugurate their rulers without the
presence or assistance of an American
special embassy And so do all the
crowned heads of Europe, our friend Rus
sia included Why we should particularize
the British king and distinguish him from
emperors, kings and presidents is explain
able only on the hypothesis that the couu-
try over which he rules has been our per
sistent enemy, fought our sires ravished
our women, paid savages for our scalps,
burned down our Capitol and attempted to
disrupt the states in the Civil war. Pro-
ceeding therefore on the theory that "the
more you kick a dogs -- the more il will
like you, the American hunkies, Anglo
maniacs and parasites are perfectly consist
eut in hOnoring King Edward by their
presence. But not at public expense, not
If American true born patriots of the Nor
ton type are numerous enough in Congress
to vote down the infamous proposition, and
we think they are.
By the way, who asked President Roose-
welt to appoint this special embassy Did
Congress or the American people2 And If
they did not, how comes it that he has
committed such an asinine piece Of follyp
II is even worse than his Mexican dictator
order abridging the citizen rights of the
department clerks 10 petition Congress.
Refusal of the right of petition ought to be
made an impeachable otfense and appoint
ing belly-crawling Aunkies to honor the
coronation Of George HIS succe 5sor de-
serves the condemnation of every honest
patriot in the United States. We dare the
Republican Congress to appropriate one
penny for such purpose. Beware the
ides of November