The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-07-25

what is "a condition of peonage." That expression has a history. Shortly after the war the territory of New Mexico had q system, inherited from old Mexico. which in turn. inherited 1t from Spain, which was commonly called peonsge, but which under the laws of that country was treated as the relation of master and servant. Under that system a peon was not slave. He could vote, he could be elected to office. He lost none of his political rights. He went to some one and said I want service You advance me some money and will agree to serve you Upon an advance made the master
 became entitled to hold him by force, against his will. to labor to pay that debt. The laws of the territory provided If either party broke the contract the other could take it into court and if necessary to enforce the contract the court might sell either the master or the employe to the highest bidder. In the same way man could trade off his interest in another man, whom he held as a peon.
 The result was that the people of the
 territory became very much degraded.
 They had two classes, masters and ser
 vants The peons did not improve. They
 got into debt. and they staid in debt.
 They had no ambition. were thriftless. dependent and servile. The system brought about condition which was un- desirable among free and civilized people. Congress intervened. It passed an act which 1 will read you. so that you may understand the reason of the definition I give you.
 He read the act.
 A condition of peonage exists where one person holds another to involuntary ser
 vltude, or to do labor or work for him by force against his will either for the payment of a debt. or in liquidation of some obligation due or claimed to be due from the person who is hired out. If owed one of you gentlemen some money and you took me, against my will. and
 hired me to somebody who worked me by force against my will until the debt
 was worked out, I would be held in a con- dition of peonage. It means slavery for debt in its last analysis. It is a funda- mental rule of our civilization, and of our constitution that no man shall be deprived of life. liberty or property, ex- cept by due process of law Due pro- cess of law, among other things means that all men in like circumstances shall stand alike before the law-that there
 shall no tbe privileged classes. who are entitled to a high measure of protection,
 and another and lower class entitled to
 less measure of protection as to life, liberty and pursuit happiness of the citi- zen. when d cltlzen IS cnarged with
 crime he is still an object of the laws
 solicitude. The law says in the first
 place. he shall not be put on trial until
 jury of his countrymen have investi- gated the matter. and found that 1t is of
 sufficient importance to put you before
 petit jury. That is all that an indict-
 ment means, and all that 1t Is worth.
 It is not any evidence of guilt; 1t is merely a statement by the grand jury that
 we have investigated this matter, and we
 think that 1t ought to be inquired into by petit jury. So solicitous is the gov
 ernment of the United States about the I liberty of the citizens charged with an offense that If he is too poor to defray the expenses of his own witnesses the
 government will help him. It has that
 solicitude even for a man who is charged with crime, and it has no less solicitude
 for any other citizen who is not charged with crime, but has been the victim
 of wrong great Englishman has said l that the life of Anglo Saxon civilization
 beats in twelve men in the jury box and