Omaha daily bee., 1902-02-12
NO LEsB MAJEsrE LAW.
Objections to the Measure Drafted by
the House C~enuaittee

the House Csmzaittee.
Chicago Inter Ocean Crep)
Congress is finally moving in the matter
OF curbing the a~narchists. A special COM
mittee OF the house judiciary committee has
agreed upon . bill Of which the main pro-
visions are a. follows:
The death penalty IL imposed upon any
person killing or Attempting t. kill the
president or anyone In the line of the
presidential succession. Accessories be-
fore the fact are declared equally guilty
with principals. Accessories after the
fact are subject to . fine and imprison-
ment. as are persons who counsel. advise
or advocate the committing Of such crimes.
Provision ia also made for the punishment
Of those conspiring in this country to kill
the head Of . foreign state. No alien
who advocates the overthrow of organized
government is to be admitted to this coun-
try. and II found therein may be deportsd.
Such q law would At least prevent the
sort Of scandal that would have followed the
practical escape from punishmeat OF Cool
gosE had President Mckinley recovered.
In that case the extreme penalty would
have been imprisonment for ten years. less
the usual Communication for good behavior.
And this assassin might have been pardoned
sooner II any political chAnc had hap
pened to afnict New York with q governor
who sympathized with anarchy. That hap
pened In Illinois with some of the accessor-
les Of the Haymarket anarchist murders.
The proposed bill Is encouraging as show
ing q disposition to take some action, but II,
nevertheless, fundamentally Objectionable.
It makes an attack upon the president and
several other ~oficiais q more serious crime
than . similar attack upon q private citizen.
OF course, in one sense that IL q more
serious crime, but so to treat 1t 10 contrary
TO the genius Of our institutions. The pro-
posed bill attempts to create q sacrosanct
ofacIal class, and essays to foist the prin-
ciple OF lese majestic into the avs OF a
republic. 4
The distinction should be made not in the
victim Of the crime, but In the criminal.
The military law furnishes a precedent and
shows the way. For a civilian to strike a
military onicer, even in time Of war, unless
in the actual theater of war and after
martial law has been declared, is merely
a. common assault But for a soldier to
strike his onicer at any time Is a felony.
Our laws should set apart the anarchist
from the society against which he wages
war, as they set the soldier apart from
tho mass OF civilians. The anarchist may be
Justly thus set apart, for he utterly deies
and denies the laws which civilized men
have made for their own protection.
The only logical and efncient way to deal
with the anarchist is to treat him as the
pirate has been and Is treated. That is
to declare him, as the pirate is declared.
an enemy Of the human race. wholly out
side the protection Of the civil law. and turn
him over to tho military law for restraint
and punishment. The attempt to distort
the civil law so as to reach the, anarchist
is dangerous and likely to cause more
evils than 1t cures. We want no Iess ma
jeste law in this country. Let congress do
the logical thing and turn the anarchist
over to the military law. That Is the safe,
him effectively.