The Cairo bulletin., 1907-10-23
PROSECUTION OF
EDITOR ORDERED
WRITINGS AND CARTOON IN Ap-
PEAL TO REASON DlsPLAEs.
ED BoNAPARTE.
SCORED THE PRESIDENT
Eugene V. Debs, fact. Says
Roosevelt is Try '@''0 'pzzie
The Anti-Adr, ~ i5n
Press.

Girard, Kas., Oct. 20. Acting undol
special instructions from Attorney
General Bonaparte, United States Dis
trict Attorney Bone of Topeka has be
gun criminal proceedings against the
publishers Of the Socialist paper, The
Appeal to Reason, Fred ID. Warden
editor, Eugene " Debs, editorial
writer, and other members OF the
staff because of a cartoon and ar
ticle which, it is stated was obiec-
tionable to Mr.. Bonaparte and Presi-
dent Roosevelt. This order was is.
sued after the district attorney inyesti.
gated the case and reported to the De
partment of Justice that there were
no grounds for indictment. The first
article to which the administration at
Washington objected was written by
Eugene v. Debs, and was denuncia,
tion If the president for his attitude
in the Haywood case In Idaho Ana
ether article specified Is an offer of
a reward for the kidnapping and re-
turn to Kentucky Of William Taylor.
fugitive ex-governor OF that state, af
ter the United States supreme court
in the Moyer-Haywuod Pettibone ha
beas corpus appeal had decided kid
naping to be an act of legality" It
was pointed out that President Roose
welt had personally contributed to the
a. n hf 1nla HOW he
defendant in the Goebel murder case,
while branding the Idaho prisoners
as undesirable citizens"
After the matter had been dropped
for lack of sufficient grounds, as the
district attorney said. oe which to
base an indictmentf Th8 Appeal to
Reason published a cartoon by Ryan
walker caricatnring both Attorney
General Bonaparte and President
Roosevelt, after which the attorney
general ordered the case reopened.
The action against The Appeal to
Reason Is based upon section 1888 of
the federal statutes, which 1t is hoped
to so construe as to define the first |
The law prohibits the mail |
ing of any paper when there appears |
upon such cover or wrapper" any de- !
epithets. terms or language |
of a scurrilous, defamatory or threat |
ening character, or calculated by the |
terms of manner or style of display |
10 reflect iniuriously upon the char
aeter or conduct of another, and pro
vides a penalty "for each and every
Dffense" Of five years Imprisonment
At hard labor, or $4,000 fine, or both,
Postoffice Inspector Chance of Fort
Scott informed the Appeal manage
nent that the case had been closed
IN the records of the Postoffice De-
Dartment, but that it had been reJp-
aned at the direction of Attorney Gen
aral Bonaparte. The Appeal to Rea
ION management argues that a conyic
ion would establish a precedent
which would enable the admiuistra-
Jon to exercise a rigid censorship
,ver all papers during national cam
laign next year. suppressing "unde.
irable" cartoons and eliminating un-
riendly matter from the first page.
The editor Of the Appeal to Reason
5 already under indictment in the
cdcral court for publishing and mail
ng articles refecting on President
Roosevelt His trial will be called in
he November term of the United
states District Court at Fort Scott.