The Washington times., 1921-03-18
MAY
COPYL|NCO[N.
Hapgood Finds Oebs Case Gives
Him Opportunity to Emu
alte Emancipator. !.
BY NORMAN HAPGOOD.

S SSA"Shs gwen Out ~ Jx1D ,
White House does not change the sit
nation in the Debs case. President
Harding asked Mr.. Daugherty to re-
view the case some time ago. There !
Is in reality nothing to review. The
Iacts are admitted. The Supreme .
Court upheld the conviction unani-
mously.
NOT QUESTION OF FACT.
1t is now a question not of law or
OF fact. but of political wisdom. 1t
Is question of amnesty. of peace, Of
recognizing that keeping political
prisoners In Jail so long after the war
has ended is not helping anybody.
President Harding has his chance 10
make Lincolnesque move, ami thes
more promptly 1t is made the moxo
et1ective 1t will be. Hectorins In ths
campaign drove him to say he saw
no more reason :or general aD~-
nesty of political Offenders than Tor
general amnesty nf yexsIpen IN
WILSON HURT HJMsEI.E
The Socialists felt pretty badly over
| that comparison. This Is the oppor-
tunity to show softer spirit. PresI-
dent Wilson hurt hIrdself enormously
by his handling " these cases.
The controversy among the Social
| lists and the paeif1sts AS to how they
| shall treat the present Administratioh
| Is gaining momentum. Lucy Robbins.
! executive secretary of the Central
| Labor Bodies Conference. and chair
man of the Committee on Amnesty
of the American Federation of Labor.
has held conference with Henry
Lang, labor editor Of the Jewish
Daily Norwaerts, and Abraham Tuvin
| in charge of the demonstration being
arranged to be held in Washington on
April Is, the second anniversary OF
the imprisonment of Debs and April
IA, the fifty-sixth anniversary Of the
death of Abraham Lincoln.
OPPOSED TO PICKETING.
1t was the decision of this confer
ence that the piclSeting of the White
House, in any case. ought to be called
| on. The conference thereupon wired
| to Mr.. Branestetter, national secre-
tary of the Socialist party. who IL in
Chicago. urging that the demonstra-
tion be cancelled.
Eugene Debs himself doubts the
| wisdom OF the drive at the present
Administration SO early in its career,
ana Debs is the one OF -all the con-
scientlous objectors now in Jail who
| is suffering most from the excessive
cruelty of punishment with which our
Department Of Justice, our judges and
our juries attempted to suppress
minority opinion during the war.
Among those who have wired 10
Barnstetter. urging him to stop the
demonstration, is James O'Neal, one
| OF the editors of the New York Call.
PRISONER IN BAD SHAPE.
All these developments have hap
pened within the last day or two.
Meantime
over between the Pr esiden: and Mr..
Dougherty and this question of pickett
ing was one of the aspects they dis.
cussed. Another was the state OF
Debs' health. which is pracarious.
The Administration is affected by
various considerations. In the first
place, there is President Harding's
uesire TO get rid OF AS mucn war
bitterness as possible. Thsn there is
the desire not to have the response
bility for Debs' dying in Jail.
On the other hand, there IS in the
Cabinet and among the Pre- siients
advisers generally an element THAI Is Q
moved by a strong feeling agslss. !,
Socialists and pacifists generally snd
this element is made really angsy at
the idea of the CONSCIENTIOUS ob;ees I
tors coming out of Jail.
Even IL the war has been OYER for
two years and quarter. <some 81 4
those interested would like to keep
up the war spirit as long as possible.
REAL FIGHT on HARVEY.
Here, by the way. is an aspect OF
the fight over George Harvey tha' is
being kept under cover. Indeed, TIE
two principal aspects of that case are
being soft-pedalled. The fact that Re
has always been n Democrat is given
plenty of publicity. because 1t is not
dcklish subject to handle. .r.
The things that are ticklish are two
In number. The lesser in importance
is personal, and though 1t is a thing
that naturally displeases Mr.. Hughes,
portance. .-
The other objection has to do with
International conciliation. The bitter
ness with which Colonel Harvey has
proclaimed that Germany ought to be
! an outlaw forever. and that she should
be squeezed dry, with no sympathy
and no calculation of anything in the
| future. in the spirit in which a mad
dog is treated. is the really important
| aspect of the protests. His attitude
toward Russia and toward radicals at
home Is attracting less attention.
HIS VOICE POWERFUL.
or course. as Amba ssador to Great
Britain he would have nothing to do
with home affairs, but would have q
great deal to do indirectly with plans
for handling the German indemnity
and with possible future movements
looking toward resumption of trade
between this country and Russia
Thus the Debs case does not stand
alone. 1t offers to the Administration
delicate question in the expression
of its attitude toward the war spirit
in general. 1t is perhaps, not impor-
tant in comparison with our views on
Germany and Russia, but 1t il insep
arably connected with them.
IL the Administration begins with
a gesture that reminds people of Tin
coin. by a high attitude toward the
million Americans who voted for Eu-
gene Debs, and the million or more
others who did not vote for him but
feel very strongly about the increase
of oppression in this country. 1T will
be creating a psychology that will