Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-12-17
BERGER RAB|0 HUN
FRIEND DURING WAR
Milwaukee Socialist Deflantly
Championed Boche, Sedition
Trial Discloses.

Chicago, Dec. IA mass of docu-
mentary evidence IN support OIL the
governments charges that victor -.
Berger, of Milwaukee, violated the
espionage law in the antI-war campaign
he carried on as editor of the Mliwau-
keeSocialist daily newspaper. ne Leader.
was presented to the jury IN Judge Lands
Court Yesterday in the trial OF hve SOCIALIST
party chiefs.
Extracts from numerous anti-War
editorials which Berger caused to be
published in The Leader were read into
the record by District Attorney Charles
+. Clyne.
]. L. Harris, formerly managing edi-
tor of The Leader testified that he re-
signed his position in May. 1917. be-
cause of dispute with Berger over an
order received to print for the second
time the proclamation and war pro-
gram of the st. Louis Socialist convcn-
tion.
II talked it over with my assistants.
said Harris, 'and we consulted the
Federal district attorney, who CN
pressed the opinion that if would bc
dangerous to print the platform. We
then prepared a statement which We
presented to Berger, declaring that IN
our opinion the platform was sedltious
and that those responsible for publish
ing it might be liable to prosecution by
the government.
Berger said he was the responsible
head of the paper and insisted upon II
being published again. | then told hIm
| would resign He expressed regret,
because the only two men in the office
he would consider for the position were
pro-allv.'
The witness said he previously had
been criticised by Berger for the way In
which war news had been handled at
times.
BERGER FAVORED BERLIN REPORTS.
MY instructions from Berger were To
usc the Berlin dispatches as leaders in
the war news, said Harris He al
WAYS said that the Berlin stories were
more reliable. because the news from
London and France was censored. Ber-
ger never wanted anything printed that
might offend German readers He oh
iccted To stories which referred 70 the
Germans as Huns or BochcS
On cross-cXamination Harris admit
ted that Berger had on numerous occa-
sions printed editorials attacking the
Kaiser and the Junkcr class in Ger
many Judge Lands refused to allow
the witness to answer q question al
lcging that Bergcrs attacks on thc
kaiser had been responsible for his de-
feat in his race for Congress IN 1911
District Attorney Clvnc then rrad
extracts from a number Of anti-war cdl-
iorials published by Berger N the Mil
waukcc Leader
One OF the articles SAID that the Ger
man Social Democracy was infinitely
more democratic than the democracy Of
President Wilson The article inquired
what the German people had ever done
,' thi, country that the United States
anlld send large armies abroad to Kill
them and be killed.
mother editorial read into the record
expressed the opinion that the persons
vlio opposed the war were the true,
genuine Americans
In another article it Was declared
that the war was unpopular. despite the
cfforts of the capltalistIc press T. make
j, appear popular.
The sclective draft was described as
national shame in another article.
which added that war was the price the
people paid Tor having rejected Social
i~m.
tnother article was read entitled
War and Insanity IN which it was
'atcd that in an army Of | .00OO00 men
10000 soldiers might be driven insane
LETTERS or ANOTHER pEFENpANT
number OF letters taken from the
office OF " lliam I kIu>e. national seq
retary OF the Young Peoples Socialist
League. one 81 the defendants were Of
fcrcd in evidence by the government
Most OF them were in reply 10 IN
quIricS from Socialists asking iof advice
IN regard Ia the army draft.
4 probably shall refuse 10 register
~ serve. and many of our members VIII
sla The same krusc wrote To one fi,end
would not advIse vou on fhc subject
- that would he treason
In another letter the advIce was gwen
Il be prudent without being coWardly