Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1909-08-13

I!ienus ana for some OF the very
sensible statements contained, we
give below part of the speech
made in open court by Fred D.
Warren of the Appeal to -Reas-
on, ON the OCCASION of his being
sentenced by Judge Pollock in
the federal court at Fort Scott
!. recently in the famous case
(which has hung fire for a long
time. The excerpt of the speech
is as follows:
This case has dragged its wea-
~ way through this court for ov-
er two years, continued from time
NO time a the instance of the
government. submit from these
fact THAI 4 am NOT prosecuted
for having violated any federal
law but purely because of my pO-
litical opinions and my work in
behalf of the working class of
thas nation.
This prosecution is not uDax-
pected to us. As plainly stated
by the government official to
whom our attorney taAked while
in Washington it lis evident that
secret service agents of the gov
eminent have been camping on l..
trail of the Appeal for 10, these
many years.
Is it not pretty conclusive ev-
idence that we have observed
rehgiodsly the laws and regula-
stions governing the conduct Of a
+ newspaper when after ten years
of effort the government is able
i. to find only this lone and pal
! try alleged violation?
Personally l feel proud Of
this record. | feel no sense of
guilt nor will the world approve
this conviction wlten the truth
prevails and the facts are
known.
The governments witnesses ties
8 titled here ON that stand that ]
submitted to them a copy of TIN
matter I expected To mail and
asked whether in the postmaster
judgment it constituted a VIOLA
ton Of the federal law. That
official after looking the matter
up said 4. DID net. sud | want IL
say that during the ten years
of my connection with the AppHa
tO Reason | have had frequent Oc
casion to consult with the post
master at Girard on matters re-
lating to thr rustai laws and in
no instance was his judgement
over at fault. He assured Inc
that in his judgement the matter
| proposed mailing was identi-
tai in character, with the thOus-
ards CT postal cards mailed at ms
office by In" 81, IF. the marsha
and the officers Of tn Anti-Horse
Thief association.
In submitting to this court these
postal cards mailed by bankers
it Is my intention thst the gov
eminent should proceed against
these men on the. evidence furn-
:. iShed by me. | know these gen-
q emen are immune from prOsecu-
'tiOn because they represent the
dominant class in society today.
The rewards which they offer are
I. for men. who have committed
crimes agaisnt property and in
the prevailing social system the
property of the rich is of vastly
more consequence than the Life
and liberty of the poor.
= On the other hand the editor
who has espoused the cause of
the wage slave today, has in the
eyes Of the ruling class, commit
ted a crime against existing insti-
'tutiops for daring to offer re-
. ward for the apprehension of an
influential member of the, domi.
nant political party.
I have also dared to criticize a
:: decision of the highest Judicial
Tribunal in the United States
Judge West, the assistant district
attorney who assisted in my prose
cutiOn in his argument veal
. ago last November after present
ing his reasons why the demurrer
in this action should be overuleG
closed his argument in a burst o:
passion. with the statement thai
'As a matter of fact this Int
erature was sent out for the pur
!. pose of bringing into contemp
. and discredit the supreme cOur
OF the United States" Is crit
'cism a crimei And is it for thi