The toiler. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1919-1922, 1920-07-23

GO.-CharacterIzlng the meet
ing of the left-wing boilers from the
regular convention Of the Socialist
Party last September as "an agree
meat or conspiracy to advocate the
overthrow Of the government of the
United States and all states of the
Union by force and violance," Lloyd
Hoth, assistant states attorney,
opened the long-delayed trial of TWEEN
ty-four members of the Communist
Labor Party ON July 18th for the
prosecution in Judge Oscar Hebel s
court.
After the monotony of nine weeks
of grilling of prospective jurors, in
the course of which some fifteen
hundred veniremen were summoned,
the actual trial comes as a relief to
all the parties concerned. Of the
twenty four members of the Commu-
mist Labor Party originally indicted,
20 are in attendance.
"We are going to show that the
left wing manifesto nineteen times
advocates throughout its course a
violent overthrow by the laboring men
Of this government and the establish
ment of a dictatorship of the prole-
tariat in its stead" said Prosecutor
Heth.
"We are going to show" he added,
"That in the first paragraph of the
platform of the Communist-Lab Par
ty, the defendants state that they
stand by and declare themselves in
full accord and harmony with the
manifesto adopted in Moscow, Russia
"We are going to show" he added,
"That the congress was composed of
revolutionary socialists from Europe,
Asia, and America! that it was held
for the purpose of forming mani
festo or program that would outline
the means by which constituted gov.
ernmentsi might be overthrown AMI
relationships of the proletariat estab-
lsbed, and all nations be governed
from Moscow"
Other evidence which the prosecu-
tion offers to submit to establish the
guilt of the defendants includes the
following:
Ilb:stt thsy adopted the red flag in
stead of the Stars and Stripes;
That they adopted the seal of the
bo'sheviks as the seal of their party;
That they opened and closed their
daily sessions by singing the "Rel
Flag" and "giving the yell of the
'bolsheviks';"
That they urged the workingmen
to abandon and repudiate forever the
hope of conquering the state by leg
islative means" they urge him to
use unlawful means of any kind and
nature whatsoever that may by ef.
fective in the annihilation of this
government"
1t is evident from the opening state
ment that the prosecution will bring
al the way from Seattle, Washington
and Winnipeg, Manitoba, witnesses 10
picture the awful things that are al.
legged to have happened because the
workers in these cities went on
general strike.
JULY, 14.-To.day was "flag day"
in court, The 131st anniversary of the
taking of the Bastile was the occasion
selected by Assistant States Attorney
Lloyd Heth to attempt to carry the
jury by dramatically unfolding a red
flag which his agents seized at the
home of defendent Edgar Owens,
Moline, H., last January. Heth sought
to show that Owens had carefully
preserved the red flag, which was
found at his home in search, while
"the American flag was crumpled up
in corner of closet along with a
lot of rubbish. :"
Heth is tall young man with the
traditional prizefighter jaw He ap.
parently takes himself very seriously
and constantly comes over to the