The Washington times., 1902-02-09
OPPOSES SPECIAL LAW
TO PROJECT PRESIDENT
Minority Report on Anti
Anarchy Bill.
MR.. LANHAM'S OBJECTIONS.
MIR.
Proposed Law in Opposition to the
Rights of Stntes-Iife of One Indi-
visHIaI No More Important Than
That of Another.

A minority report on the Ray anti-an-
archy bill has been filed by Representative
Lanham OF Texas. a member of the House
Judiciary Committee. Mr.. Lanham, who
is one of the ablest jurists in the House,
endorses the bill to protect the President
from assault and conspiracy so far as 1t is
intended to keep out alien anarchists, but
he opposes the special punshments for at
tack on the President and other high Off
Gals
III his minority report Mr.. Lanham an
alyzes every feature OF the bill, giving In
good strong terms his reason for opposing
it. He says:
There are some features of this bill
which j approve. 1 an in favor of all
| suitable legislation to discourage and pre-
vent the coming into our country of all
such persons as oppose organized govern
ment and seek its subversion. Our citizen
ship should not be impaired. and our in
stitutions should not be imperiled by the
immigration or naturalization of anarch-
lists.
In Favor of Exclusion.
''There is no place for them in our free
country. Their presence among us is not
only undesirable. but dangerous. We have
never intended to open ar asylum TO those
WHO are not in sympathy with our laws and
| forms of government, much less to those
who oppose and teach antagonism to every
| kind OF civil government.
"They ought to be restrained from TAX
| ing abode with us and prevented from the
| propagation in our midst of their pernici-
GUS doctrines. | am cheerful to support so
much Of the bill now reported as seeks to
accomplish this object.
Opposed to Special Legislation.
81 cannot however, give my assent to
the propriety of the passage of any law
which proposes to single out any citizen
| Of our country and make it special or
peculiar offence to take his life as con-
tradstinguished from that OF any other
! citizen.
81 deny the proposition that one honest
and law-abiding mans life is any more
| sacre ed than that of another. The murder
| of the humblest citizen in our land is just
as heinous, just as felonious as that of
| the greatest or most distinguished.
President sIayers Punished.
| while Presidents have been murdered,
still we must remember that in no case
have their slayers escaped condign pun
| ishment.
| "It may well be doubted If such law
| as is here contemplated would add to the
protection of the life of the President.
| The moral pervert or fanatic or anarch-
ist does not stop to consider the severity
| or certainty of punishment. 1t would
seem that he is ambitious to pose as a
heroic martyr and to die the death of
| stole
| Might Increase Danger.
II am not sure that law like that
here proposed would not tend to increase
rather than lessen the danger to those
whom it is designed to protect.
TO violate such law might all the
more magnify the Importance Of the deed
| in the distempered fancy of those who
are inclined to destroy Kings and rulers,
and stimulate rather than repress such
reckless and criminal disposition.
| at may be possible by the ingenious
] use of language. framed to meet a sup
posititous case, to construct a bill which
| would be constitutional upon its face,
and thus confer jurisdiction upon the
! Federal courts to enter within the
boundaries of a State and try offenders
for crimes cogniZable in the State courts.
| But is il either wise or necessary to as
| sert such a power as is proposed to be
employed in this bill? And may it not
! lead to further encroachments OF Federal
| jurisdiction?
Defined by LAW.
"Our laws now define the circumstances
under which the Federal courts may try
anyone charged with murder or other
| crimes. and fix the venue.
| "a homicide commit t.nd ,vi+b;n q
and not upon Federal territory is against
the peace and dignity of the State where
| the offence is perpetrated, and such
| State is not only interested but obligated
to vindicate the power and majesty of its
| own law.
There are certain powers of govern
| ment which have never been delegated
never surrenderd. but always abide IN the
| States and the people The preservation
| OF these powers has been traditionally
insisted upon, and any invasion thereof
| has always been regarded as a dangerous
| encrOachment.
Mr.. jefferson has left us his earnest
| admonitiOns in this respect. He said: L
am sensible of the inroads daily making
by the Federal into the jurisdiction of
| its coordinate associates, the State gov
| ernments. The judiciary branch
| is that instrument. which. working like
| gravity, without intermssiOn. is TO press
| us at last into one consolidated mass.
: If Congress fails to shield the
| States from dangers so palpable and so
| immediate. the States must shield them
selves and meet the invader foot to foot
The Punishment Adequate.
1T is true that not only our own coun-
| try. but all the world stood aghast at the
| horrible assassination of President Nc
| Kinley. ii aroused the deepest indigna-
tion, not only Of our own people but of
| every friend of law and humanity.
while we mourn his loss we must re-
| member that The vengeance of man and
| the powers of the law-the State law of
| New York-have been fully exhausted
| upon his slayer. who now fills a felon's
| grave, and we should not permit our sor-
| row at the untimely death of the late la
i mented President 70 obscure our judgment
| or carry MS beyond the well-defined limi-
| tations OF Federal power: nor our eXas-
| peration at the deed which can never be
| recalled, to lead us to invade the juris-
diction belonging respectively TO the great
| States of the Union
eiI Affecting Labor Disputes.
| Representative Grosyenor tRep., Ohiol.
| Yesterday introduced in the House the Hoar