The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1915-03-20
PROTESTING AGAINST
BRIDLINC THE PRESS
Seventh Day Adyentists Through
out Country Fighting Repres-
sive Measures in Congress

Slve Measures IN Congress
Thousands of Seventh-day Advent
lists throughout the United States,
seeing in measures that have recent
ly been introduced in Congress the
destruction of. the freedom of the
press, are engaged in a campaign of
circulating petitions protesting
against these measures. One of these
bills, in brief, grants unto the Post
master General the power to exclude
rilous, indecent, or immoral books,
ings, Autographs, photographs, or
other publications which are, or are
represented to be, a reflection on any
form of religious worship practiced
or held sacred by any citizens of the
bar the use of the mails to any per-
son or his representative engaged "in
the business of publishing any obscene
or immoral books, pamphlets, pictures,
prints, engravings, Autographs, pho
tographs, or other publications, mat
ter, or thing of an indecent, immoral,
scurrilous, or libelous character"
"Both of these bills establish a cen
sorship of the press and place in the
hands of one man, who is himself not
elected by the people, but appointed
by an executive officer, the absolute
power to exclude from the United
States mails any publication which in
his opinion has violated certain pro-
visions, without any opportunity of
trying the case before a properly
constituted court" says Elder A. M.
Perez of the local Seventh-day Ad-
ventist Church. He continues:
"By the power thus conferred, the
Postmaster General could forever ex-
clude from the mails any publication,
even a metropolitan daily, which
should contain in one issue an article
which might be classed as indecent,
immoral, scurrilous, or libelous,' or
which reflected on ANY form of relig-
ious worship practiced or held sacred
by any citizen of the United States
Such control of the press is arbitrary
and tyrannical, and is most f~ar-reach-
ing in it's effects, and would bring dis
aster upon the country.
"We are not defending the use of
the mails for the transmission of
publications of an indecent, immoral,
scurrilous or libelous character
Neither do we approve of the use of
language of this description in any
way whatever, but we most decidedly
disapprove of a method of correcting
any existing abuses by the enactment
of legislation which would absolute
ly destroy the freedom of the press.
"a fatal objection to this proposed
legislation is that it is unconstitu-
tional. Provision was made for the
protection of freedom of the press
in the first amendment to the consti-
tuition, which reads:
Congress shall make no law abridg-
ing the freedom of speech, or of the
press.
Any restraint of the freedom here
granted would be destructive of the
fundamental principles of a free re-
public.
The fathers of this republic had
before them in the current history
of the Old World examples and warn
ings as to the unfavorable results
which attended restriction of speech
and of the press in the discussion OF
religious questions. and they, there
fore, took good care in preparing a
constitution for this new nation, that
the right of free discussion of all
matters relating to religion should be
secured to the people.
These bills give to one man the
power to destroy a large and prospero-
Gus business built up by years of ear
nest labor, without granting to the
publisher the opportunity of exercis-
ing that right SO carefully guarded IN
this Countrywide right of trial by
jury"
The bill introduced by Congress-
mar Gallivan is so manifestly uncon-
stitutional, so sweeping in its conse-
quences, and so evidently designed fol
the protection of one class of relig-
i~onists, that it hardly seems possible
that it will find any defenders out
side a few radical members of thai
church. If this bill should become
law and be impartially enforced, ev-
erv religious publication in this coun-
try would be compelled to refrain
from the discussion of any dogmaS
and practices other than those held by
the church it represented or be ex.
Guided from the mails.
"These bills seem to have been pre-.
pared on the basis that there were
no existing laws relating to the pub.
l1CdllOH VI Q0ldildIOIN VI I1DCAOuO w
terances, although it is well known
that under the statutes governing
these matters any person has redress
in the courts against any publication
which may have DETAINED OF libeled
him. These laws have been found suf-
fcient to meet all reasonable demands
and there is no occasion for this pro
posed legislation"
Each n of the $500 local churches
in the United States has been stirred
to the importance of protesting
against these measures, and Con
gressmen from every state are being
flooded with petitions which have beer
signed by thousands of persons who
are in favor of religious liberty and
freedom of the press.
The ministers are awakening their
congregations as to what these bills
would mean should they become laws,
and the members individually are cal
ling upon other church organiza-
tons to join in the campaign against