The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1919-10-24
SLACKERs ARE NOT
BEING SET FREE
Law Is Being Carried Out by
Secretary Baker.
PENALTY TO BE ENFORCED
Recommendation for Ciemency by
Reviewing Boards and Good Con-
duct Have Served to Reduce
Terms of Some.

Washington, Oct. 20.-Between the
efforts of the amnesty committee in
Chicago and the civil liberties bureau
in New York to bring about the re-
lease of conscientious DIRECTORS from
the military prisons and disciplinary
barracks in which they are confined,
and the protests of the various posts
of the American Legion which desire
to keep them in, the war department
is striving to maintain strict neutral
ity in the carrying out of the law in
each case made and provided.
Only those conscientious directors
who refused to cooperate with any OF
the regulations framed especially to
provide for them as sufficiently war
like to earn for them the status of
general prisoners" are now held at
LeavenwOrth, Alcatraz, Fort Douglas
and other prisons, the plan at present
being to concentrate the recalcitrants
at Fort Douglas.
Penltents Get Modification.
Several of these since the armistice
have modified their resistance by con-
senting to work and otherwise to con-
form to the rules governing their fel-
lows, thus bringing about material re-
auctions in their sentences and in
number of cases their release. Review
OF cases and recommendations for
clemency, coupled with good conduct,
have served to reduce the terms OF the
majority of directors.
No disposition toward clemency ex-
lists, however, in the case of agitators
and propagandists, who of their own
V0IitiOn or as missionaries of societies
organized to encourage resistance to
authority, have sought to convert 9TH
ers to their own peculiar views.
Apparently in this the war depart
ment is following the attitude adopted
by the department of justice in deal
ing with viOlators of the espionage
act.
Atkinson i'm for Keeps.
There is no indication of any desire
on the part of war department officials
further to mitigate the sentence of
Brent Down Atkinson. the Chicago con-
scientiOus objectOr who was court
martialed for deserving after persist
ent and defiant refusals to appear
when drafted. He was finally taken
from Washington to Camp Grant I'M
der guard and contaminated. receiv-
ing a sentence of Is years at hard la
Dor. Eleven years were subtracted
from this sentence by special Glenn
ency board q few months ago, and it
is highly unlikely that anything short
Of positive orders from the secretary
of war will relieve him from serving
the remainder of the term.
200 Still General Prisoners"
Of approximately 500 conscientious
DIRECTORS who became general prison
ers," about 200 are still serving terms
ranging fer the most part from two to
ten years.
The only directors released from
prison and hOnOrably discharged with
pay and allowances were those. 10 in
number, released from LeavenwOrth
last January. after examination by
Judge Mack and Dean Stones, who
found them sincere and would have
recommended them for farm furloughs
had the plan been in operation at the
time of their Imprisonment.
While no general Jail delivery is
contemplated of those DIRECTORS who
are still serving, with more or less ac-
tive resistance. the terms imposed by
the courts martial acting on their
cases, recommendations for clemency,
communication of sentences, ana even
for release, are having their effect,
though not all the cases reopened for
consideration result in action favor
able to the obiector.