United labor bulletin., 1912-06-27
G0MPERS, MITCHELL, MORRISON !
GIVEN SEVERE SENTENCE BY C0URT
Year for Gompers. Six Months for Morrison -mtch6l
Not in Court : Gompers Makes X
Statement


American Federation of Labor, iwas m
| fenced to one year in jail for contempt9
| of court by Justice Daniel Thew Wright
| of the District of Columbia supreme
court, Monday. Frank A. Morrison. sec
retary of the federation, was sentenced
to six months in Jail for the same Of
Tense, Both gave notice of appeal to the
United States supreme court and were
released on $1,000 bail.
John Mitchell, also found guilty of con-
| tempt in the proceedings growing out of
the publication in the American Fedora
zionist of the name of Buck Stove &
Range company Of ST Louis. in an "un-
fair" list, was not present in court and
his sentence was deferred
Because these respondents have
shown themselves ready TO repeat the
seditions of the past, the penalties in
these cases ought TO be in proportion to
the gravity OF the offenses,' declared
Wright in his decision
Wright declared that Eugene v. Debs'
sentence of six months for contempt OF
court was not suffcient, and the offense
or the least of these (NIorrison) was
more malicious than that of Debs"
| Three of Wright's colleagues sat ON
the bench with him while he read the
decision, which was very long. Although
| the justice skipped many pages, his read
ing consumed nearly two hours.
After the decision OF guilty was read.
Gompers and Morrison were ordered to
stand and lace the court. They did so,
very pale, and then Wright sentenced
| them
| John Mitchell was not in court. He II
| travelling in the west 1t was the second
time Wright had passed identical SEN
| fences upon Gompers and morrison for
the same oftense. The rirst sentences
were set aside oy the supreme court and
the case renamed Tor second trial.
| In his decision Wright said that the
American Federation of Labor de
signedly suppressed the truth" in it's
| fight with the Buck company. and pub
| lished false statements about the COM
pany. The justice declared the unfair
and We Don't fatronize" lists are syn
| onymous OF boycott"
ing statement:
an acute manner the contention which
| iaDor has made against the practice
which has been usurped by courts of
equity in dealing, not with property
rights. but with personal relations-nor-
mai personal activities-a practice en-
urely at variance with constitutional
government by law.
In this case, the judge has acted as
the initiator of criminal contempt, ap-
pointed the attorneys OF private htigants
10 prepare complaint, and prosecute it
to a conclusion. The judge has heard
the evidence. He himself determined
the credibility of witnesses. He then
formulated his decision and imposed
prison sentences.
| Facts and the evidence in the case
have been suppressed and perverted and
the purposes of myself and my col
leagues entirely misrepresented
There is not in the evidence nor can
there be found therein or elsewhere, one
single fact upon which to base the state
ment of Justice Wright that We have vio-
lated any law of the state. nation or the
District of Columbia.
We have contended that court has
no right in advance to prevent or enjoin
publication; that anybody who speaks or
publishes anything which is either sedi-
/ tious or libelous should be made to an
swer before the law. and before jury,
but the attempt in advance to prevent
expression OF opinion, either orally or by
publication, is an unwarranted invasion
Of constitutionally guaranteed rights.
| Justice Wright physically lives in our
time, but his decision and sentence dis
close a mental concept of more than two
SeneuiASs aSo "Hen tue Workingnan was
either save or a serf. III Justice
| Wright imagines that by imposing prison
| sentences upon my associates and my
| self, he can stop human progress, he
has missed his point. Long after he lis
gone. after he may have attempted to
silence us, others will speak. others will
be heard. and the principles for which
We are now contending. and perhaps
may suffer will be established beyond
peradyenture. Information just came TO
me that the decision which Justice
Wright rendered was completed more
than a month ago, but withheld until af-
ter the close of the Chicago Republican
national convention. II true. the infer
. amos. 90 ohvfous