Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-01-13
rne ANTi.LYNchING BILL

= even IL the WOfst anu IIioSe AiSquCh@
Offenders live In the southern part of
this country. They don't all live in
the South. and in the South as well
rs In the North there is increasing
adherence OF II. But being nation
al disgrace, ana II being the fashion
20 ask the Federal Government to
perform any difficult thing and so
pass the buck"-and Furthermore,
some assert, considering the large
coiored vote-and possibly for other
reasons, u has come about that Con-
rrers IL now considering a bill, the
proponents of which declare will
prevent lynching and impose penal
ties on communities in which lynch
irgs arN no. prevented. This they
wouidsendcavor TO do under the four
tsenth Amendment which provides
that n state shall not deny to any
person within It's jurisdiction the
equal protection Of the laws" Sure
~ who is 10 object TO that?
We'll. for one. comes the distin-
guiEhod representative of the Fourth
Maine District. lie made one of his
Enthusiastically vigorous and able
speeches against the measure on
Tuesday. and was greeted with tum-
pi,uous applause on the Democratic
side OF the House. 1t was evident
that Mr.. Hersey impressed his audi
onco as talking about his convictions
and expressing his opinion of consti-
tutional law rather than yielding to
partisan expcdients.
lie Is n member OF the judiciary
Committee which had the bill before
Il. lie declares IL is his opinion that
the hill as n law would only create
dlstrust and embittcr prejudices and
furthermore would prove ineffective
constitutional by the Supreme Court.
lie seems very sure of that. lie
quotes from Moorfield Story, who ad-
vocatcd the measure as an attempt
10 do justice TO twelve million black
people In this country who are sub
iect 10 the draft and the tax collectors:
~ has seemed 10 mo n very doubt
ful question whether legislation by
Congress against lynching in the
states Is constitutional, but I am
very clcstly of opinion that it ought
90 be tried. At worst the
country will be no worse off if the
experiment fails than it is now"
Mr.. IIcrsey doesn't agree with that
view. lie evidently thinks it will
serve 10 arouse prcjudices which
shouldn't be aroused even if it be
found unconstitutional, and if it shall
be found constitutional, then it's eff
feet upon the nation as whole would
be most unfortunate and disastrous
10 peace and good order in the ma
ton. and MS a law 1t would be neccs-
sarily vicious legislation, unwise, I'M
enforceable and unavoidable"
lie wished II clearly understood
that while some may think it wise to
introduce and favor the measure, so
satisfying the blacks and leaving it
20 the court to declare II unconstitu-
tional. he does not think so; that
neither the Republican party nor the
administration Is pledged to this
measure, and he alludes to the large
aegro voting population in the dis
trict OF Mr., Dyer. who introduced the
bill. and says he is aware Of great
political pressure being brought to
force Republican members to vote
Cor the bill. Instead he would favor
President Hardlng's proposal to es-
iabiish a commission made I'D OF
whites and blacks. Why had that
suggestion been disregarded? He
eontendcd there was no mass Of evi.
donce before Congress to show that
states had denied protection. Why
not establish the commission and get
tho evidence before II IL such evil
dence exists?
'ff We can enact a code Of Federal
law 10 punish the crime OF lynching.
we can pass n code of Federal GRIM
inal law for all the States to punish
every offense now within the juris.
dictlon OF state courts. We could
send host OF new Federal Judges
into every state 10 replace the state
courts. We could infest every state
with a swarm of Federal officers to
punish every crime known to the law,
and the states OF the Union would
have left no rights that politicians in
Congress would he bound to respect"
II II evident that Mr.. Hersey is one
Of those who sees the tendency on
the part OF the Federal government
20 encroach on the State; that a law
which might punish . delinquent Of
ficiai in Georgia for not safeguarding
. convict from the wrath OF a mob,
could reach into Maine on other pre-
texts. Though he says nothing about
q he may have thought OF a law
long In existence but never observed,
which would prevent the Ubiquitous
and altogether unjust representation
under which n white man In the