New-York tribune., 1920-03-31
Majority of Committee
Holds That Party Is
Composed of Traitors
Seeking us. Overthrow
Minority Reports
Ask Law Be Upheld
Roosevelt and Adler
to Fight Plan to Com
plete the Case To-day;
Sweet May Win, 85-65
From q Sto6 Co,respondent

report, signed by seven members of
the Judiciary Committee, recon-
mending the unseating Of the five
suspended Socialist Assemblymen
and the enactment of legislation
outlawing the Socialist party, was
submitted to the Assembly to-day.
Five other members of the commit
tee filed individual reports recon-
mending the suspended men be re-
seated Assembiyman James M.
Lown, of Yates, the thirteenth men,
ber, filed report urging the reseat-
ing of two,~ Samuel De Witt and
Samuel Orr.
Asscmblyman Louis NJ. Martin. chair
man of the committee, which sat for
eight weeks, moved that the documents
be made special order for to moro w.
Objections were made on the ground
that a. least two days should be given
the members of the Assembly to famil-
iarize themselves with the reports.
These wene ua2vailing.
The majority report was signed by
Chairman Martin, George H. Rowe, of
buffalo; Edmund B. jerks, of Broome;
Charles NJ Harrington, of Clinton; Ed
ward A. Evelett, of St. Lawrence; Ed
ward j. Wilson, of Westche ster, Re-
pubhcans; Louis A. Cuvillier, of New
York, Democrat. These for the reseat-
ing of all five were William w. Pellet,
nf of
lyn; Harold f. Blodsett, Schenectady,
Republicans; Maurice Block, of New
York, and William S. Evans, of the
Bronx, Democrats.
Adler Opposes Majority
Majority Leader Simon L. Adler, who
al the request of Speaker Sweet offered
lists, said tonight that he was op-
posed to the majority report.
Are you going to lead in the fight
fer the reseating of all hve?" Mr.. Ad-
Ter was asked.
Z am now inclined against unseatng
them,' WAS the reply. II prefer to wait
until tomorrow to say what shall do
Assemblyman Theodore Roosevelt, it
is said, Will vote in the Assembly for
reseating the five and make speech
urging his stand. But Roosevelt and
Hulef are llrtle late.
Both. as announced in The Tribune
when the prosecutions case collapsed
were prepared to move to reseat them
AT that time, two months ago, Roose-
welt and Adler could have led a sue
cessful fight Then one of the signers
OF the majority report was with them
But for reasons never made public
they did not carry out their plans.
Since then Speaker Sweet has whipped
more than majority into line, and
when the final vote is taken, unless
the. unforeseen happens, all five So
cialIsts will be expelled by vote of
at least S5 to 65
Old Arguments Revived
All the old arguments, hashed and
rehashed during the trial which fol-
fowed suspension of Assemblymen
Siaessens, Orr, We Witt, Solomon and
Waldman, were the basis of the vari-
Gus reperts and opinions
Ihe majority report, which had but
SIX votes until Sunday night. when
Harrington made his decision, holds
mat the Socialist party is "dsloyal
20 20 the government of the United
states and the State of New York" and
mat the fact that the five Socialist
Assemblymen arc members of the party
warrants the expulsion of all five.
Inc report characterizes the Socialist
party as disloyal organization, COM
posed exclusively of traitors, which
masquerades as a political party to
overthrow the government.
Assemblymen Pellet and Stitt, who
wrote the minority report, insist that
notnlng the five ousted men did war;
rants their expulsion, and that against
.wo OF them-Orr and De Witt-not a
single overt act has been charged.
They hold that the Socialist party is
BONA fide political party, and while
sohdemning its attitude during the
AAar, maintaining that it was un-
n.um!erlcan and unpatriotic, declare that
.his attitude, as shown by the evidence,
was negative Withholding of aid and
..om1ort to the United States rather
snah q positive position of giving aid
ana comfort to the enemy
Recognized as Party, They Say
otitt and Pellet point out that the
socialist party has been recognized as
q. political party by previous sessions
o.. .. the Assembly presided over by
speaker Sweet in which members Of
snat party sat as Assemblymen. They
aiso point out that the Socialist party
nas mad its representatives in Con-
rlf the Legislature cannot by statute
prescribe membership in political
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