The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1917-08-04
DUTY OF LOYAL AMERICANS.
Judges Charge to a Federal Grand
Jury in California.

SuA AAA ~AAAAoEn1ds
The Los Angeles Times publishes
the following timely admonition ad.
| dressed by United States District
Judge B. F. Bledsoe to the grand Jury
just empanelled in his court, and the
charge can well be pondered and heed
ed as applicable to all parts of the
country and the people thereof:
''The war with Germany will un-
doubtedly multiply the matters cog
nizable by you. Rumors will be rife,
deliberate charges will be made that
this or that one of our citizens has in
dulged in disloyal act or utterance,
and that punishment through the
medium of the courts should follow.
II desire, particularly, to adjure
you to be prompt, energetic and eff
cient in the investigation of all sucl,
matters, trusting, of course, that you
will see to it that no good and loyal
citizen is the object of baseless at
tack, or made to bear the odium of
unwarranted investigation and criti-
cisn.
Ordinarily in and under a govern
ment such as ours the greatest free
dom of speech and of act not subver-
sive of the general good is permitted
Such freedom is but a concomitant OF
self government. Subject to the laws
of defamation, it is only by giving
ffree rein TO expression ef private
opinion that healthy public opinion
and healthy public concert of pur.
pose and of action can be secured.
''In time of stress and strain, in
the face of unusual and tremendous
emergencies, such a one as now con-
fronts us, the ordinary rules of con-
duct are no longer applicable. The
law of self-defense, which is our au-
thority and justification for getting
into this very war, is itself law OF
emergency; it presupposes that or
binary rules that govern conduct and
actions have been swept aside, and
that the character of the emergency
actually presented determines in a
great degree the character of the
remedy to be employed.
"A few months ago the propriety
of our joining in the war then being
waged was open to debate. Today
the debate has been closed. BY those
constituted to act for US and bind us
to purpose we have become genuine
and active participants in the great
struggle to relieve the world of the
incubus Of autocracy and ruthlessness
"a struggle against the most menac
ing power the world has ever witness
ed; most menacing not only because
it is the instrumentality of an ire
sponsible government which has
thrown aside all considerations Of
humanity and of right, and is run
ming amuck,' but also because Of it:
studied efficiency and its steadied dis
cipline.
"To the forceful prosecution anc
successful termination of this war We
have as a nation, through our chief
executive, pledged our lives and oul
fortunes, everything that we are ant
everything that we have With the
lives and the fortunes of our lovet
ones and of ourselves hanging in the
balance, depending upon complete
unity of purpose, harmonious con
cert of action, we cannot afford, ou
Of consideration Of mere self-defense
to brook opposition to the common
purpose, or to suffer open objection tx
the common intent.
at follows, therefore, that anyone
who may have in times past, for any
cause, been opposed to this war mus
needs now still his voice and his op
position, or else betake himself out Of
our midst and out of our minds. W.
have stern, unyielding and ruthless
enemy to fight abroad; it is our pur
pose, as it is our duty, not to be dis
tracted or dismayed by disturbing ant
dissentient influences at home.
"And so I repeat: Be forceful, eft
fcient, courageous and prompt in in
vestigating all charges of disloyalt.
and of interference with the program
of war. The district attorney will ad
wise you what acts constitute an at
front against our national purpose
your own good judgment acting up
on the evidence will tell you Whel
those acts have been committed"