Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1918-05-09
CONGRESS PASSED
SEDIT|0N BILL
Gives Government Broad Powers
In Furnishing Disoyal Acts
and Utterances
OPPOSED BY SOCIALISTS
Measure Conf. ~ Power Upon postmass
fer General TO Deny Use Of MNils 10
Persons Violating Act

Washington, May Final Legislative
action WIS taken day Or the sedition
bill. giving the go, eminent broad new
powers to punish cisoyal acts and litter
ances. Adopting conference report
already approved by the Senate. the
House sent to the President FOR his sig
nature the measure which has been be-
fore Congress for weeks. assailcd az "
menace to free speech and chainp,oned
essential TO or.ier ut home Gcritp thu
war.
The President ~ exreoscd TO siEr the
kill promptly nTd through vigorous en-.
.orcement of it's provisions officials CT tho
department of justice soy they viii no
able 70 &c mueh :owaie checking tho
wave Of ROB outbreaks for which I'M
punished 1.sloyalty and enemy activity
are blamed
Penalties CT 90 years imprisonment OF
{. fine of $4,000. OF both. arc provided
in the bill for thcss conoicted of utter
ms or printing dsoyal, abusive. pro-
fame, scCrri'ous, contemptuous or abusive
language aLout the United States or tho
government. CT the form Of government.
or the neg. ard for those who are con-
victcd of favoring Germany or her allirs
In the present war.
Only Representative London ~ New
York, the socialist voted against the con-
ference report on the final test in tho
House. Representatives Lundccn Of Min.
:icsota. republican, and Church of Cali
fornia, democrat, voted present.
Representative London sought vainly
to send the report back to conference
! because of the elimination Of the Senate
amendment exempting from penalty those
who in criticism of the government
speak the truth with good motives and
for justhable ends.
Representative Johnson of Washington
attacked Representative London's criti-
cism of the provision against using abusive
language against the Constitution Of the
United States and wanted to know
whether the socialist member approved
the activities of the I. w. w.
when group of constituencies en-
ployers refuse to recognize the right Of
people to organize, they will have to
deal with the l. w. W." Representa-
tive London replied. II believe the
/. W. w. is the working out of the law
of compensation"
II am sternly opposed to having the
Constitution made over along the lines
| of a Karl Marx book on socialism" re-
torted Mr. Johnson, land I am also OPP
posed to making the Stars and Stripes
into a red flag of revolution for the
anarchists. or the I. w. W., or the social.
| lists"
The mail censorship section reads an
| follows:
! THE acknowledgement, may, upon
| evidence satisfactory to him, that any
| person or concern is using the malls in
! violation of the provisions of this act
| instruct the postmaster at any postoffice
| at which mail is received addressed to
| such person or concern to return to the
postmaster at the office at which they
were originally mailed. all letters or
other matter so addressed, with the words
Mail to this address unbelievable under
espionage act plainly written or stamped
! upon the outside thereof, and all such
| letters or other matters so returned to
| such postmasters shall be by them re-
turned to the senders thereof under such
regulations as the postmaster-genera
| may prescribe"
| Penalties under the bill would apply to
ments with intent to interfere with the
| operation or success of the military or
| naval forces of the United States or to
promote the success of its enemies, or say
| or do anything with intent to obstruct
| the sale of government securities during
the war. They would apply to those who
| attempt to incite insubordination or
| mutiny or refusal of duty in the military
| of naval forces, or retard recruiting, or
| to those who speak. write or publish
abusive language against the uniform Of
the soldier or sailor or the flag, or the
| constitution.