The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1911-05-06
MURDER
IS MURDER =.
Roosevelt on the Los Angeles
Dynamiting.
DENOUNCES BOMB PLOT
Former President in Outlook Article
Condemns Union Attitude on De-
fense--Worst Thing They
Could Do for Unions.
DENoUNCES BOMB PLOT

New York, May O., Ex-Presdent
Theodore Roosevelt has a signed article
entitled, Murder is Murder" in The
Outlook this week dealing with the
dynamiting of the Los Angeles Times
and the arrests recently made by Detec-
tive Burns. Mr. Roosevelt says in
parts
"No worse service can be rendered
by labor union leaders to the cause of
unionism that that which they render
when they seek to identify the cause
OF unionism with the cause of any
man guilty of murderous attack of this
nature ] have no idea whether the
men arrested on Mr.. Burns statements
are or are not guilty; the labor leaders in
question have no idea whether or not
thew are. They are entitled to an alb
solntely fair trial If they have no
money to provide counsel for them
selves then II would be entirely proper
for any body Of men TO furnish them
the requisite funds simply as an
incident in securing them fair trial
But it is grossly improper to try to
create a public opinion in favor of the
arrested men simply because the crime
of which they are accused is committed
against capitalist or a corporation,
and because the men who are charged
with committing it are members OF a
labor union.
Undoubtedly there have been in the
past repeated cases where representa-
tives of capital have thus endeavored
to prevent successful assault on
abuses committed in the interests Of
capital; and in every such case, no
matter how wealthy or influential the
offender The Outlook believes that he
should be condemned 1t now takes
the same attitude when the question is
one of identifying the cause OF union
ism with alleged murder, that il has
always taken when the question was
ono Of identifying the cause of cap
ital with alleged corruption; and IT APP
peals to the honest and law-abiding
iaboring man exactly as it appeals to
the honest and law-abiding business
man; for both are, first of all, Amer
lean citizens, whose attitude towards
the fundamental questions Of morality
and good citizenship must be identical.
"The question OF organized labor or
organized capital, or of the relations
OF either with the community at large,
has nothing whatever TO do with this
issue. All we are now concerned with
is the grave and vital question Of fact,
whether or not the accused men have
been guilty Of murder and of murder
under circumstances of peculiar foulness
and atrocity Whether we do or do not
approve of the policy Of the Los An
peles Times-and The Outlook very
heartily disapproyes Of its policy on
certain matters has nothing TO do with
the question. The stern repression Of
murderous violence above all, of muir
derous violence under circumstances OF
such cowardly infamy as always ae-
company the use Of dynamite must Of
necessity be prime need of any eivili-
cation calling itsef such. Whether the
man attacked is a capitalist or a Social
list. wage Garner or professional man
has nothing to do with the question,
and whethr the man attacking him does
or does not belong to any organization,
whether Of labor or capital, whether
social or religious, has nothing to do
with the question. The one and only
question is as to guilt or innocence Of
the men accused. ANY man who seks
10 have have them acquitted if guilty
is also guilty of crime against the
state"