The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-04-02
Subject Of Psonage Aired In
The House
PROSECUTIONS CRITICISED
Mr.. caufied of Missouri Defends At
torney General But Mr.. Clark Con-
demns Official and His Active
Assistants.

Washington, April 1.-The subject of
the House of Representatives todl
when Mr.. Caulfield of Missouri, from
the committee on judiciary, called UP
the resolution of Mr.. Clark of Florida,
requesting the Attorney General to iE
form the House as to the amount of
evidence in peonage cases and alse
making inquiry concerning the capacity
in which Mrs. Mary Grace Quackenbos
was employed and the amount of money
paid her. The resolution, he declared
was intended as an unnecessary attack
on the department of justice for doing
its duty. ITO think" he exclaimed
that human liberty can cost too much; ;
that the department of justice can be
too vigilant on behalf of human lib
erty."
The department, he said, had been eX-
ceedingly conservative in it's actions.
Indeed, it had done its full duty, and
d righteous act" when in response to
a long list of complaints of peonage the
Investigations were made. Had the de-
partment done otherwise than it diG
he said, it would have been derelict in
duty.
Mr.. Caulfield denied that peonage
prosecutions injured the property of a
state. 1T is not the prosecutions" he
said, amid applause, but the acts OF
the men which make the prosecutions
necessary"
The department of Justice, Mr.. Caul-
field said, was carrying out republican
policies, when it dignifies and eman-
cipates labor, and" he added, that II
one of the policies we did not steal
from a democratic platform"
Replying to Mr.. Caulfield, Mr.. Clark,
the author of the resolution de
nounced Attorney General Bonaparte.
He does not know the law" he
charged, "and he is unworthy of MS
high place at the head of the depart
ment of Justice He produced court
records tending to show that in the last
five years "the name of Attorney Gen
oral Bonaparte does not appear as
COunSel IN any case III the SuplciiN
court of the United States.
Mr.. Clark said further that for ten
years previous to entering the Cabinet
Mr.. Bonaparte had appeared only ID
times out of 3400 cases in the Maryland
court of appeals; in three of these
cases he was a party to. the suit, and
in one of them the question at issue
was rs cents for repairs to a spigot in
one of his houses he had rented to d
poor woman belonging to the laborilg
class"
"rhis man. he exclaimed, ''is not fit
to be Attorney General because of his
ignorance of the law, and he is not ft
TO hold his office because of his admis-
sion that he is furthe herng a conspiracy
to invoke the criminal law to warn pco-
Die against dangerous communities
II say to this man Bonaparte; l say
to this man Russell his assistant at
torney general l say to the female as
sistant and all the horde that follow
in the wake of Bonaparte he said
come down with the immigration com
mission and let the facts be brought {
out and the truth be known. We beg
to say we are ready for it!'
He would be content, he said, with
the fact that his former resolution for
an investigation had been adopted and
the present resolution could lie on the
table if 1t was desired
On the vote being taken, the resolu-
tion was tabled and the incident was
closed.