Daily Arizona silver belt., 1909-11-05


 The district attorney returned the en. velope to the postoffice inspector with the opinion that there was no ground for action. The inspector In making report to the department at Washing ton marked the case Closed" He later explained to me that this meant that so far as the district of Kansas was concerned no further action would be taken. But soon thereafter word was received from Washington. so the assistant district attorney announced fin the presence of this court, that there had been a violation of the law and that the case must be reopened and vigorously prosecuted.
 "We Are After the Appeal"
 The district attorney's office at To- peka, however. revised its decision after hearing from Washington that there was no ground for action against me. One of my attorneys journeyed to Washington and laid before the de- partment thousands of reward cards similar to the Taylor reward which had been mailed from nearly every city in the Union When my attorney inquired why the Appeal was singled out for prosecution on this fiimsy charge, while all the senders of these other cards. who were equally culpa- ble, were not molested, the representa- tive of the government opened a drawer in his desk and produced an armload of marked copies of the Ap- peal.
 Blue pencil marks designating cer- tain articles in the Appeal indicated that this paper Is pretty closely read by high government officials The gov crnment official shrugged his shoul- ders in reply to Darrow's question and remarked, We are after the Appeal"
 This case has dragged it's weary way through this court for over two years, continued from time to time at the in- stance of the government. I submit from these facts that I am not prose cuted for having violated any federal law, but purely because of my political opinions and my work In behalf of the working class of this nation.
 This prosecution Is not unexpected to us. As plainly stated by the govern ment official to whom our attorney talked while in Washington, it Is evi- dent that secret service agents of the government have been camping on the trail of the Appeal for, 10, these many years.
 Is 1t not pretty conclusive evidence that we have observed religiously the laws and regulations governing the conduct of newspaper when after ten years of effort the government is able to find only this lone and paltry alleged violation?
 Personally feel proud of this rec ord I feel no sense of guilt, nor will the world approve this conviction when the truth prevails and the facts are known.
 Submitted Copy 10 Postmaster.
 The governments witnesses testified here on the stand that I submitted to them copy of the matter I expected to mail and asked whether in the post masters judgment it constituted a vio- lation of the federal law. That official after looking the matter up said 1t did not. and want to say here that dur. ing the ten years of my connection with the Appeal to Reason I have had frequent occasion to consult with the postmaster at Girard on matters re lating to the postal laws, and in TO in. stance was his judgment ever at fault. He assured me that in his Judgment the matter proposed mailing was identical in character with the thou. sands of postal cards mailed at his of, flee by the sheriff. the marshal and the officers of the Anti Horse Thief as sociation.
 Tn submitting 10 this court these postal cards mailed by bankers 1t is not my intention that the government should proceed against these men on the evidence furnished by me. know these gentlemen are immune from prosecution because they represent the dominant class in society today The rewards which they offer are for men who have committed crimes against property, and in the prevailing social system the property of the ricil is of vastly more consequence than the life and liberty of the poor
 Is Criticism a Crime7
 On the other hand, the editor who has espoused the cause of the wage slave today has in the eyes of the rul- ing class committed crime against existing institutions for daring to of fer reward for the apprehension of an influential member of the dominant political party
 have also dared to criticise a deci- sion of the highest judicial tribunal in the United States. Judge West, the as sistant district attorney who assisted in my prosecution. in his argument year ago last November. after present. ing his reasons why the demurrer in this action should be overruled, closed his argument in burst of passion with the statement that "as a matter of fact this literature was sent out for the purpose of bringing into contempt n .1 4 i. Ga.-