The daily Nome industrial worker., 1916-07-21
SIR ROGER BASEMENT.

The fate of Easement now appears to be almost sealed. To depend upon the British Kings clemency, which is upon the cabinets clemen- cy. is to depend upon a mighty cold biooded and uncertain quality of mercy.
 It is possible that the government has recovered from its spasm of ter TOT at the Irish revolt, which it SUD- pressed in Dublin, as to be in po- sition to let Easements case obtain some attention.
 There are several reasons why 1t would appear wise to allow Case ment to live. First of all the man comes from a very respectable and aristocratic family who have been ardent supporters of the govern ment which Sir Roger opposes. In the second place all the rest of the family seem to have been earnest and sincere servitors of the govern ment, and to be giving loyal service in the army or in the civil admins tration of the country.
 Sir Rodger is not of common clay. He is not a radical. He is not lm- bued like Connolly with any social ist notions. He has never identlhed himself with the struggle of Labor to better it's condition. He has served Big Business of the British national type very efficiently as Consul of the government.
 It would be really impossible to suggest for any person more power ful reason why ones life should De spared.
 Easement is known and was high ly respected by English Tories. Ills association with Irish rebel thought is regarded as certain symptom of insanity, and it is so absurd to conceive A member of an aristocra- tic Tory family allying himself "lIh any aggregation of economic or ma t.onal radicals, that without doubt 
 ,o men like Sir A. Conan Doyle both as a physician and as rory it is evry reliable symptom indeed of mental alteration.
 However people have heard pe- fore of men and women paying the death penalty pour encourager les autres". and Easement may enjoy the nriyilege of being such an exc cuted encouragement. In that event of course his death will De a svmptom of a governments mental alteration, not from any perversloh of national sentiment, but rom excess of fear.
 Hedged around by subtle foes Germany must enjoy the fact, that it's prowess has struck dread Tn the baart of it's enemies. It was this fear of Germany which made the Irish rebellion such an object oi terror to the British officials, ana that terror found expression in the h,oody execution of it's leaders. The captain who shot Sheehy SKeHihs- ion has been declared insane. but very obviously the court martiais thai directed the "legimate shoot inp' of Pierce and the rest, were carried away by their excess ol dread and to that extent also were mentally deranged.
 It is quite remarkable that the British themselves seem ihcapapio of realizing that. Perhaps that too is another symptom of the extent of the mental Arrangement rom which the nation suffers by reason ,f the terror of war. We often see analogies of this in quieter ana more neaceful times. Many man giorles in certain characteristics whlch aro merely the vicious stigmata or oe- generacy, he would, were he approx imately normal, be rather anxious to conceal.
 At any rate we know that there can be just now no such thlhg as 2 reasonable exercise of the quanty of Mercy. During these dark ana gloomy days, the quality or Mercy is exceedingly strained, and IS as rare as the rain from Heaven On the desert of Sahara. Men have cu' such blessings from their souls' ana D .fn the heart of every man Terror is lying still'. But 1t is gratifying