Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1919-1980, 1922-10-27
The I.W.W. Fiasco

ne 4. w. W.. F1aSCO
The spirit Of intolerance now abroad in the land,
heritage Of the war is manifested not only n religious mat
societies. eliminating in the effort to abolish church and
private schools but I j. ago u soa @ ana
rights at Portland by the mayor and city officials, in the
wholesale arrests and Imprisonment Of real and supposed
members of the Industrial Workers Of the World
Several hundred strikers workmen and floaters were
arrested suspicion thrown into JAIL fingerprnted for
future Identification as criminals and otherwise treated IN
shameful The only crime Of many Of these vic
Tins Of official hysera consisted in being poor and out of
work and In looking for employment The absurd presump
ton that few of vagants could overthrow either
federal state municipal the given
for the installation Of martial law
Some of politicians affect to believe that the country
is threatened with radicasm Nothing further from the
truth AS matter of fact the country suffering from an
overdose Of reaction We have not yet restored the
balance which the ship of maintained from its first
exstence-t still lists badly During the we attained
the heights Of deasm people and since the we have
gone as far the other way
we hold no brief for the W. w. do believe in
counenance their philosophy OF direct actobut all history
BY persecution and maryrdom Force yet suppanted
reason and when does the republic will have run its course
On the rights Of humanity, for which the nation was
founded preserve Thomas Jefferson his first inaugural
address as president speaking Of the necessity for tolerance
and the preservation of the rights of mnores, said:
this principle, that
majority II al to prevail that VIII to be ghtfuI must
equal law must protect violate would Let
harmony without
reflect that having from our land that religious
mankind
and capable Of bitter and bloody prosecutions.
Yet today there organized effort to restore that
banished century and half ago
Jefferson defined the necessities for the preservation of
liberty the diffusion of information and arraignment of all
abuses at the bar Of public freedom of religions free
dom OF press and freedom of under the protection
of the habeas corpus and trial ures mparay selected
These principles he said form the bright constellation which
revolution and reformation The wisdom Of sages and
blood Of heroes have been devoted to their attainment
civic instruction the touchsone by which to try the services
OF those trust; and should wander from them in
moments OF error or alarm let us hasten to retrace steps
and to regain the road which alone leads 10 peace liberty
and safety"
Probably president ever bitterly assaed than
Thomas Jefferson threatened, Notwithstanding
which he refused to take any action curta the freedom
OF press or to resort to form of coercion He did find
to fill the as with the traducers of govern
ment firm in his belief that public opinion would in the long
run rally to the support of authority and the
Of the people assert itself He declared in his second
inaugural:
tnninerestng that an experiment should
power not sufficient for the and protection Of truth
whether government conducting itself in the true spirit of Its
win zeal and purity and doing no act which would be
ana defamation The experiment has been tried
they the force wheh these oupne @
around % their public and when the contq
verdict honorable to those who had served them
control OF his affairs
No restraint censorship is needed today than in
Jeffersons day Whatever the exgences may
necesstated coercion longer necessary The rights
Of the minority and the rights Of the individual again of
paramount Importance to the preservation of the nation
The truth in any political theory cannot be extngushed by
oppression and any theory that cannot survive open dis
cussion is doomed AS Jefferson concludes:
The that reason
have maintained their
false facts the confined TRUTH needs
the public Judgment will reasoning opinions
between the nestmahe liberty Of and its dmorang
cntousness there be still mpoDrietes which this would
restrain It's supplement must be sought the censorship
lie opinion.