New-York tribune., 1908-03-02
"MISPRISION."
Hoe Diwespect of Republican and
MOndrchicGI Rulers Is Punished.


this country as those for instance. in France,
where. when Loubet still in office the
Executive OF the nation. the city fathers of
Paris. that is TO say, alderman of the name of
Bariller, condemned to six months imprison-
ment for having at a meeting of the municipal
council applied the epithet of "cornchon'' to the
President Of the republic ''Cornchor," literally
translated, a small picked cucumber. such
given free of cost in inferior restaurants
by way Of rendering paatable the fare OF the
place but is used in slang TO describe the very
cheapest kind of imbecle. The offence for
which Alderman Barililer punished was that of
'msprison'' that is say, the attempt 70 bring
into ''meprs' (Which is the French word for con-
tempt and whence the expression 'rnisprision' is
derived the Executive of the nation
In other European countries misprision is even
treated in the light OF treason, and one of the
forms Of misprision which in olden times was most
severely punished and still remains unrepealed in
the majority of the codes on the other side OF the
ocean. is that Of imputing mental arrangement TO
the chief the The offence was considered
grievous enough If the intination 10 the erect hat
there was any impairment of reason on the part
of the executive was contained In verbal utter
ance. and. Of course, the crime was regarded as
infinitely more serious if perpetrated in print.
In fact, DR.. Allan McIaue Hamiltons article III
the current number OF The North American Re-
virtually assang the sanity OF the Presldent
of the United States would. in the event OF lts
having been printed in any European country con
cerning the head OF the government OF that couii
try have landed its author in jail, with mprlsoh-
1nent and heavy fine. for misprision 1t Is not 50
many years ago. indeed that the penalty "ouIo
have comprised the pillory. while in Gernlahs' uii
I'll the beginning OF the nineteenth century Ihose
convicted Of casting anv doubt directly or inureCt
lv upon the sanity OF the ruler were sentenced ho
alone to the pillory. but TO carry a NANCY Nu'
upon their shoulders from one great 'o"n ~ o.
other a punishment which Emperors OIlo H4-0
Frederick are on record having lnnlc0eo ol
mobiles even OF the highest rank
In England quite a large number OF people
mainly Journalists and publishers, were s'ioI7N
to oillory fine and imprisonment on chl'ses
-,Jsnrision for having intimated that George III
was crazy before Parliament had officially oecia'e
that monarch TO be insane and Whle tneIe - ~ g.
instance known of any conviction OF tii's ~ ,
England during the nineteenth century YET 80
- ,,,o,-er,en+ du-inq the reign of that slngularly
Ie,eI-neaSed sovereign, Queen Victoria "heh IL"
law officers the Crown and the soVerhiiie" "
the day found It necessary 10 issue d uuie' . -
ing 10 certain organs OF the London press uat
-. ,,o~s;s,a5 IN intfu.ating in print that the
,a,,r.l faculties of the sovereign were lhlpai'eo
the laws on tie subject Of misDrlslon "oulu ""'o
to be enforced x+,
+ las alyyavs been the policr of the royal family
IN Fnglao.d IN modern times to ignore slahoeES anu
- a4rs,+ % take po notice whatsoever OF any sos-
sin concerning them. That was all very wen III 'io
dav= when popular education was OF an lIili4i''7S
more restricted nature. and when newspapers We're
far less numerous and less widely circulated 6'
,,o-- things have changed. Every worklngTnan III
England reads his paper and forms MS optlto-i'
rhereflorn. consciously or unconsclouslS
that are Of importance in view OF the Iacl lde -e
,,s,,s commands a vote. # therefore. his news
o- = ,,er77,i++ed dav after day and week alter
eal, n hold IIp the monarch TO public oollquE' 10
deriziol ard contempt. as was done 10Y
F tho widely circulated London Reynolds ; News
r,s-er during the reign spirit OF dl9'o4
nd Of hostility 10 the government Is ensehoeIeu'
which seriously concerned Queen Victoria MIN
listers ,.,
Anxious 10 avert. If possible, the outcry Whlcn
hing
be construed as attempt to curtain 'he
7or, Of the English press, the government hao a.
one moment under consideration the arrest anu
r11nishment of or two OF the 1ohuoH o'-i
spondents Of foreign papers whlch hdo iepo
in their London dispatches and letters the siaH.
sa-s concarnfus the sovereign in "Reynoids :
and other English journals OF the same Class d.
rieces Of actual news The ministers 49,"
that - would serve a fair warning ~ 't-C
English newspapers and that their action "ouiu
80 Nth almost universal approval in the
United Kingdom on the ground that aI'housh
The Briton himself may lavish abuse upon iI4S
sovereign and upon his reignlng mousse ne - Fei=
7,7fclz 70 resent any similar utterances on lne
mart Of an alien. "Reynolds's, however anu 1'S
ll-t4-o5 conter,noraries when the existing laws
concerning rnisprision were brought 10 theH al
-ertion nended their manners with FeS@'o u -
1-ac,7-ive and the projected measures against
the London correspondents OF 1orelsh P0Po17
,-ara abandoned as unnecessary
RUSSIAN CHI ff'-tt i'I-->Ct.->@A->
ALISM
,,:.. ,,4,,,rcb is largely responsible for the
-e,o-foDary current that is once more pFedonh-
r-.,,- -, Government and political circles at 81
T,a+a-et,7,rr For the Holy synod, composed Oh
me various rnetropolitans and patriarchs OF 'he
orthodox rite. have communicated 10 l4e h-'i'f
"a - the administration through their prlncl-
- L. member the Procurator of the Holy
soc Iswolski a protest, in which II i oe
go -t,s- many Of the liberal measures decree0
b,- the car and enacted by the senate anu py
- T,,,,rna are OF q nature not merely graNely 10
1srr, bvt even 10 shatter the posIuon oi '"7
Church in the State . .ha
Tho synod especially takes eAcei''lot1 10 INC
t.,,as m, Nicholas II in April, 1919, IN
l,-5.s ba grants equal Iberty Of worship to al
,~-;e,ia, denominations in his domlnions' ana
-ar,oyes every legal obstacle ana tne Pe"'
,,,e-cas of conversion from the orIhoooN Hd
-, .r,,,cb 10 any other Christian cult 1llls
Io = +ba Gar il is claimed is IL ma
-. c--radictioa OF all the Fundamentals la"S
. 1,,,ssia governing the relations between ota'0
I'D church ana - equally oppoSeu " ''0
+s,,az and time honored prerosatlNes oL INC "a "a
,o The protest of the Holy SYNOD exaclS ina "
o,.are ous shall be tolerated by law save
- +bs orthodox Church. that deseruoh oI
10 for another form of Christianity
- become once more penal offence. ahu
mat all Legislation Of the Iast ''ie g...asts of
80 either directly or indirectly the -
the national Church should oe a'' So u,an
-frc % this protest Goes at a fhonle"-
inns = forms Of government have proved 50
it-shIe failure in St petersburg anu
= 4fo-ts OF the well-intentiohed f-IlpeI'' =
..aa,e constitutional methods ana Hoe'aI
aus - brought about something very HluCH
forms h" ,,,,strative and political chaos the
ann - NJ the Holy synod cannot but exercise
- ereat influence, especially upon I>lCiio-"1 oar.
,tv-self who is extremely Te's' 80
- any of his predecessors on the thfohe'
AlEyI nd |