Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1918-02-08
ALL ALIKE.

Anna Goldman and Alexander berA.
man are about to begin the service OF
their Jail sentences Of two years
apiece for conspiring to defeat the
operation of the selective draft law.
they were convicted by the lower
court and sentenced; they appealed
to the United States supreme court
and obtained their liberty pending
that tribunals ruling. The juds-
ment of the supreme court upheld that
of the lower court and the opinion was
notable for the evident contempt with
which the supreme justices viewed
the contentious of the accused and
their counsel.
The wisdom of the CONSUMPTION law
has been demonstrated beyond the
question of a doubt If its operation
could have been criticised under the
original system adopted, all grounds
for objection have been removed by
the adoption of the classification
plan. The law offered the quick,
fair and effective means of raising
large army quickly. 1t dispensed
with red tape. with politics. pull and
the obvious unfairness of the volun-
teer system as well as with that sys-
TENS lack of safety and assurance.
The classification plan promises to
create many vacancies "for the period
of the war" in the ranks of the loaf
ers who frequent pool halls and other
resorts where voluntary ldleness
finds easy Judgment. Months ago. IN
these columns. the hope was expressed
that the draft might reach this class
of useless citizens, and there is salts
faction in the thought that the hope
is about to be realized.
Now if the strong arm Of the draft
law could reach out and gather in the
bootleggers and gamblers who infest
Ottumwa, there would be cause 1or
general rejoicing. OF course, TINS IS
asking too much, for these human
leeches are, for the most part, beyond
the draft age.
There is a simpler method at hand.
but one which is neglected by officials
with police and prosecuting power
who represent county, city and town
ship. Any one of dozen or more OF
these, il he chose to regard his off,
cial oath with anything but gro
tesque disregard Of its gravity. could
make bootlegging and gambling I'M
popular in Ottumwa by means OF
few days well-directed activity.
That these officials do not perform
their duty argues carelessness Of
their oaths rather than ignorance of
conditions. They are making record
which can not but be pleasing and
profitable to the bootlegger and gam
bier But they are going to find it
difficult to explain that record salts
factorily to the STRAIGHTFORWARD citi-
zen who. in this time Of national
crisis. finds himself mulcted for the
money which the patrons OF the boot
logger and gambler divert from
proper channels into the hands of
these law breakers.
Producing nothing, earning nothing,
the bootlegger and the gambler are
parasites in every community which
is burdened with them. The money
they wiring from their dupes would
be used to pay legitimate bills or fat
ten savings accounts If the bootlegger
and gambler we're driven from the
community. That money would in
crease the proportion of citizens
capable of sharing the financial bur
dens of the war. When it is turned
over to the gambler it increases the
proportion of dependents in the COM
munity and compels the loyal citizens
to bear more than their just shares Of
the burdens which patriotism imposes.
They are disloyal-these gamblers
and bootleggers-a and to encourage
them is disloyal-no less so than to
conspire against the draft law as the
anarchistic Goldman and Berkman
have done. The anarchists aimed at
the nations man power. The gam
bier and bootlegger and those who
protect them aim at the nations re-
sources of money, men. industry. eff
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