Evening star., 1922-07-19
PRESIDENT URGED
TOFREE PRISONERS; n |::.|;| 5
Amnesty for Wartime Con-
victs Asked by White
r House Delegation.

Amnesty for pfiSoiiefS Soh'
violating wartime laws was askeo
of President Harding by delegation
of more than fifty representatives vi
various societies throughout the couh-
,rx on a personal visitation to the
President at the White House at noon
today.
netition represented as containing
more than a million names. was car
RED by a few women. leading the
delegation, in a march from the Wes
cato entrance to the White House
Grounds and into the executive Of
Aces. to be presented to the President
The petition was said to have peeh
gathered from all parts of America.
Including Alaska, Hawaii ana other
island possessions.
There was no prediction 1ortncoiu
ing as to the attitude of the admin
istration from the White House as
the delegation entered, put IT, was
learned authoritatively in other err
cles that the government doeS not IN ,
tend to allow appeals for general am
nesty for all prisoners TO intert ere
with the orderly process of reviewing
their cases. one by one. on their IN
diyidual merits.
Eighty Prisoners Stiti Held j
At the Department OF Justice. where
the delegation was scheduled thiS
afternoon it was indicated that al
ready several prisoners had been re-
leased on parole and Il number grant.
ed executive clemency. There are
in round numbers about eighty Pris-
oners still in custody. it was said.
Practically all of those who have
applied for executive ciemency nave
had their cases considered, 1T was
learned and before long it was
thought that the entire number of
those who had asked for executive
clemency would have been reviewed
a small clientele. it was represented.
had refused to ask for executive
clemency. This group presented a
peculiar problem to the government.
which had yet to be solved, II was
those who had not applied foi
clemency. should their cases be form
ally appealed by themselves or thei
friends might receive consIderaol'
attention .by the authorities.
Taken on Two Chief Charges.
Prisoners jailed for violation oi
wartime laws were principally con
yicted under two counts, it was SAID
conspiracy to violate the selective
service law. for which the pehal.S
was two years. and the consplracy
10 violate the espionage act, tor
which the penalty was from five to
ton wears The sentences We're con-
current. Most of those now IN
custody, it was learned. are there on
account of the espionage act
The petitioners at the White House
were said to represent thlrty-seven
societies. The speakers were intro
duced by Father P. A. McGowan:
They included P. F. Brissenden OF
Mauier of the State Federation OF
Labor of Pennsylvania John Harvey
of the Society of Friends, Jack Brad
don. national vice president OF tne
L
der of Boston, of the Federal Councll
of Churches: Morris Hilquit,. New
York socialist, and Mrs. Robert La
Toilette, wife of Senator La Toilette
Members of Committee.
The delegation asking amnesty was
planned by the general defense COM
mittee to include Mrs. Robert La
toilette. Mrs. George Odell. past ma
tional chairman of the Womens In
ternational League: Rosa Yates For
rester. district chairman of the Wom-
ems Trade Union League; Rachel Da.
yis-Du Bois, executive secretary or
the Women's International League:
Mrs. William Vaughn Moody of Chi
cago, Mrs dorado Taft of Chicago,
Ruth Verlenden. Pennsylvania chair.
League; Estelle Lauder of the Con.
sumers' League, Philadelphia: Ida G.
JafYe of the Young Democracy Forum.
Philadelphia; Rev. Doremus Scudder
of Boston, officially representing tne
Federal Council of Churches; Morris
Hiliouit, of New York, officially rep
resenting the socialist party of Amer
lea: Sidney Hillman of New York,
president OF the Amalgamated Cloth
ing Workers of America; Rev. r. A.
McGowan, officially representing the
National Catholic Welfare Council;
j. A H. Hopkins of New York. ma
tionai chairman. Committee of Forty
Eight; James H. Maurer. president
of the Pennsylvania Federation of
Labor: former Representative John
M Baer. Henry Wadsworth Long
fellow Dana of Cambridge Mass;
Francis Fisher Kane of Philadelphia,
former United States district attor-
ney of eastern Pennsylvania; Dr.
James p Warbassc of New York.
Prince Hopkins of New York, pub
Usher of Labor Age; Paul +. Brissen-
den of Columbia University, econo-
mist and author: Basil NJ. Manly of
the Peoples Legislative League. w.
w. Comfort, professor at Harvard; !;
Franklin Edgerton, professor at the
University of Pennsylvania, and VIII
liam V. Mahoney. executive chairman,
farmer-labor party. -.
Guns were used by the English in