Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-12-14
PUNISH La TOILETTE
SAYS MINORITY REPORT
Senators Declare He Should Go
Before Grand Jury on
Espionage Charges.
BY Associated Press TO Every Evening

Washington, Dec. I4.-Further pro-
ceeding In The case of Senator Robert
M. LaFollette of Wisconsin, looking to
bis exoncration, censure or expulsion from
the Senate as the facts NAV warrant.
are recommended in a minority report
from the Senate privileges and elections
committee presented IN the Senate today
by Senator Pomerene of Ohio, Democrat,
chairman of the committee
The report signed by Chairman Pomerrne
charges the Wisconsin Senator with vio-
fation of the espionage act by alleged mis-
statements in his address before the Nom
Partisan League at st. Paul, September
10, 1917. The report opposes the pending
resolution recommending that the pro-
ceedings be dropped. Senator Walsh Of
Montana, Democrat, decided not to sign
The mIsstatements alleged 10 have been
made by Senator LaFollette are declared
by the report to be a .slandeS' upon the
government and sufficient cause for
convection IN criminal proceedings.
Specifically, the report urges that
full and complete hearing be ordered
by the Senate TO the end.
First, that the Senator from Wiseon-
SIN can be completely exonerated if the
testimony lustiiies If
Second. that he NAV be exrelIed If
the testimony iustihes It
Third. that the Senate NAV pass a
vote of censure or administer such other
punishment as the testimony NAV Justify.
his Is our duty the report declares.
a duty which we owe to the Senator
from Wisconsin, to the United States
Senate itself and to the public More
we ought not to do, and less we cannot
he expected TO do =
We do not say in the present state
OF the record, the minority report SAYS,
that Senator La Follette should be ex-
pclicd from the senate or that he should
be convicted of criminal offense under
the espionage act: but we do say that
applying the principles OF criminal law,
a grand jury inquiring into the case,
with no other evidence than the speech
Itself and the facts as in this report re-
cited, would have been justified in re-
turning an indictment against him for
violation Of the espionage act And we
further say that with this evidence. and
none other, before a Petit jury, IT would
have been justified IN returning a YER
dict of guilty under this section of the
statute and no court would have dis
turbed it.
IF there IS any reasonable expiana-
hon which can be made OF these utter
ances which would tend to prove an
innocent purpose, such explanation ought
10 be gwen to the end that no injustice
be done and that it may not be charged
that the United States Senate passes
lightly over wrongful speech, when others
are crimnally prosecuted for offense,
IN our judgment, no less severe"
Senator La Toilette in his St Paul
speech, the report declares, wholly
ignored the real cause which led to the
war, and says that these statements
could not have been made by accident
or slip of the tongue because the same
thought if not the very same language
Is reported several times within the space
of few minutes"
The constitutional right of freedom
of speech cannot be pleaded in defense,
the report says Freedom of speech
never justiics the SANDER of the chastity
of woman, or the honor of man or
the cause of country when in the throes
of the most terrific war ever waged