Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-06

Reuss, elder line; the Prince of Reuss
younger line and the Prince Of Waldeck.
The absurdity of the conception of lese
majestic is illustrated IN several of these
cases. The King of Bavaria is a raving
mailman. who crawls about on his hands
and knees, barks like dog, eats his food
off the ground like an animal, and is alto
gether much more of a beast than a man.
Nevertheless, 1t is a criminal offense TO
utter any remark which could be construed
as disrespectful to his royal person. The
Prince of Lippe and the Prince Of Reuss
elder line, are also hopeless lunatics, whose
dominions are governed by prince regents
The Prince of Schaumburg-Lipp Is an in
significant individual, who reigns over a
state 100 square miles in area, with total
popula ton of 5000, and the village of
its capital 1t Is, however criminal Of
Tense for any one in any part OF Germany
to be disrespectful to his royal highness the
Prince of Schaumburg- Lippe There are
thus many pitfalls for the unwary person
who commits the imprudence of discussing
any one of the score of royal monarchs in
Germany.
The law relating to lese majestic provides
that the minimum punishment for the Of
Tense shall be imprisonment without the OPP
ton of fine and the minimum term of i'm
prisonment is three months. 1t is seldom
however, that the minimum term of i'm
prisonment is imposed. The maximum pun
ishment for the offense of lese majestic Is
ten years of penal servitude and although
degree of severity, it Is nothing unusual
for sentence of two, three or four years
imprisonment to be passed. A sentence of
less than one years Imprisonment for lese
majestic is quite exceptional.
Official statistics reveal the number of
convictions for lese majestic and the Sc
verify with which the crime is usually pun
ished. During the year 1904 there were
1856 convictions for lese majestic in Ger
many. OF this number approximately $500
persons were convicted for insulting the
German emperor, $50 persons for insulting
the King of Saxony and 200 persons for in
sulting one or the other of the remaining
German monarchs. The sentences passed
amounted to an aggregate period Of 4O9S
years. 1t Is thus evident that on aver
age more than ten persons are convicted
in Germany on every day in the year for
lese majestic, and that the average punish
ment imposed slightly exceeds one years
Imprisonment.
The official figures demonstrate the fact
that all classes of the population had their
share of punishment for lese majestic. The
total of 1856 was made up roughly as fol-
loxs:2 400 workmen in towns, 600 agricui-
tural workmen, 800 commercial men of all
classes, 200 women of all classes, 100 profess
sional men and 100 children under sixteen
years of age.
1t should not be supposed that there were
more convictions in 1904 than in other years
of recent date. On the contrary, last year
the number of convictions for this offense
remained beneath the average for the last
quarter of a century. Since the establish
ment of the present German empire in 1871
more than 100000 persons have been con-
v!cted of lese majestic and sentenced to
terms of Imprisonment aggrega ting more
than 300, 600 years.
One of the worst features of the statute
relating to lese majestic is the wide oppor-