The Washington herald., 1920-04-07
CAPITAL SEES
WOMAN Filler
ELUDE POLICE
Four Arrested on Charge Of
Offering Violence to
Ambassador.
ILASKEY GIVES WARNING
III. S. Attorney to Prosecute
If Further Acts Offend
| Against Statute. .
LASKEY GIVES WARNING

washington missed out on an op-
portunity to stage something no
other city has yet seen-an air cop
raid-late yesterday afternoon when
Miss Mollie Carroll. an actress OF
Better Ole" fame, one of the wom-
en- advocates OF an Irish republic.
after four OF her companions had
been arrested, took to the air from
College Field. Maryland, and out
witted the police who had been in
structed to prevent further insult
ing" of attaches Of the British EN-
bassy.
Miss Carroll few directly over the
Embassy. circled the Washington
Monument, and dropped propaganda
generally over the Capital City. The
inability Of the police to give chase
through the air permitted further
distribution of literature on the
Irish cause, whatever may happen
to the picket who took on to
carry on.
Arrests Come Quickly.
The women renewed their picket
ing of the Embassy shortly after
noon yesterday and the police de-
scended upon them almost immedi-
ately. Capt. Doyle and Inspector
Sullivan. of the Second precinct, ar
rested:
Mrs. Honora Walsh, OF German
town. Pa: Miss Elaine Barrie and
Miss Kathleen O'Brien, of Phil
adelphia, and Miss Helen OBrien,
of St Louis.
Bail in each case was fixed at
81, ,0o0. but the women declared their
intention to remain in jail until
their case is called his morning.
With four of their number resting
within the confines of the Women's
, Detention Home on l. street, counsel
J for the pickets last night announced
that until the statute under which
they are held was interpreted in
court this morning, picketing would
! be discontinued.
Plan Further Pickcting.
! Preparations for further picketing
continued at headquarters at the
Lafayette Hotel last evening, and
Miss Mary J. Calvin and Miss kath-
( crime McCune. both of Philadelphia,
! are ready to go on duty as soon as
/ the decision has been announced.
Immediate resumption of picketing
has been planned if the four now
| under arrest are freed, and it was
| intimated that the course of action
would be changed little. even if the
I mornings case is lost.
| United States District Attorney
John r. Laskey stated yesterday
that he would no longer issue warn
! ings to pickets, and he has ordered
/ the arrest and prosecution, under
J the law of nations and section 1862
| cf the Federal statutes. of any per-
| son who posists in such acts.
! While this prosecution is dis
| tinctly disagreeable both to the Fed
eral government and the District
Attorneys office, the latter will new \
} ertheless unhesitatingly go the limit
to secure the conviction of persons
| arrested.
Text of Statute.
Section 1862. Federal Statutes,
reads:
! safe conduct or passport duly OBJ
tanned and issued under authority
of the United States: or who as
saults, strikes, wounds. imprisons.
| or in any other manner offers vio-
| lence to the person of public min
| lister in violation of the law of
nations. shall be imprisoned for
not more than three years. and
fined at the discretion of the court"
According to the district attor-
| ney's office the pickets have been
warned. and ignorance of the fact
that such acts constitute violence
! to the person of the ambassador
will be no excuse whatever.
! Even though the British govern
nent is not at present represented
I by a resident ambassador, Mr.. Las
! key stated, there is someone at tho
| embassy with whom the United
| States deals. and that part of the
| Federal statute dealing with vio-
| lence to the person of a public
minister is not inactive on that
the British Embassy is considered,
; in the eyes Of the law, to be q
public minister when it comes to
prosecution for such acts.
Three Years May he Sentence.
Persons who insult the British
! Ambassador and his staff by picket
ing or other annoyance cannot ex-
pect anything else now than prose-
cution, and IL convicted will face
penitentiary sentence of three
years and possibly a heavy fine.
! When. Joseph L. Topper. attorney
for the pickets under arrest, was
informed of the District Attorneys
I