The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-08-10

ACROSS Kearney Street from
n Portsmouth Square, unkempt and
Uttered with old newspapers, squats
the Hall of Justice, dirty grey, I'M
kempt and Uttered with cops, ball
bond brokers, judges, stool-pigeons,
cheap crooks, cheap politicians, and
added to these now a sprinkling of
would-be vigilantes and American
Legion toughs. Upstairs in the city
Jail are 500 Migrants" There are
ITS hunks in the city jail for the
500 Migrants; after the hunks
we're taken they still had to sleep
somewhere so they slept on the iron
floor. They have been sleeping on
the iron floor upstairs for four
days, some of them for five. The
lieutenant in charge of the jail
boasts that there have never been
so many people here at one time,
even during the war. For most of
them the bail has been set at 81 900
cash or $4,000 bond; some have even
been booked as zen route to Los
a neat arrangement which
makes release on bail impossible.
The cases finally commence to
sift through the Municipal Court.
The first defendants are appearing
before Judge Steiger, San Fran
cisco's Webster Thayer. Behind his
horn-rimmed glasses Steiger's eyes
light up. When he smiles 1t is a
dead giveaway that the sentence
will be the limit. "Order must pre-
vail" is Steiger's motto.
George Anderson, the attorney
for the International Labor De-
Tense, is demanding an early jury
trial for one Of the defendants.
Steiger looks down at him and then
says to Anderson: IT thought this
man would be client of yours, he
looks so defiant" Anderson again
demands a jury trial for the de-
PENDANT. "Sit down." snarls Steiger.
Anderson again makes demand
for trial. Again and again he is
ordered to sit down. Steiger APP
parently notices for the first time
that Anderson is a blond. Where
we're you born" he Snarles, "in
Denmark" Anderson answers that
he was born in America and once
more demands an immediate trial
for the defendant. The case is con-
tinued until the following week and
the defendant goes back upstairs to
the iron floor to wait.
The judge is now considerably
annoyed. He looks around the court
room and spys Elaine Black, Sec
rotary of the LID. Since the early
days of the strike she has haunted
the courtrooms of the Hall of JUS
tice, and for good reason. Now she
is out on bail after having spent
four days in cell in the Hall of
Justice. What are you doing here?"
Steiger shouts. 81 see you here every
day." With a fine flourish he orders
the bailiff to remove her from the
courtroom, so that the sight Of her
won't bother him for a while at
least.
Three men are being brought
down to the courtroom; they are
met in the corridor just outside by
Steiger who is leaving after hay
ing adjourned a session. "What1l
do with these three" their escort
starts to ask the judge. The judge
is in a hurry. They're all three
Reds he says. "lock 'em up again.
Ninety days apiece"
IN Lazarus court it is slightly diff
ferent. The defendants are "re-
spectacle but poor, not Comrnu-
nists," and rounded up by mistake.
He attempts to buy them off at
fifty cents head: trying to make
them forget that they've been stuck
in jail for four days for standing
on the street corner; finally run
ming out of silver, he sends out a
clerk to change bill for him. 1--WE
must be calm" he announces, "the
sheep must be separated from the
goats-the goats being the known
agitators with records. They're the
ones who will be punished. We have
held them this long in order to al
low time for thorough investiga-
ton of their activities"
For this display of judicial 'im-
partiality" he is Immediately re-
buked by the Chronicle and Hearst's
Examiner. The next day at court,
reporters from the Examiner corner
him before the session opens and
when he finally takes the bench he
is hopping his forehead nervously.
II can't sentence these people just
for being Communists, can 10" he
appeals to the courtroom. you'll
have to get something more definite
that can be proved against them"
The session gets under way and
at last witness for the defense is
allowed to say something. 1.-THE
raids on the Workers School were
an outrage" the witness says, "and
there are two thugs in this court
room today who took part in those
raids-and I can identify them.
He swings around and points
straight at them. There they are
Lazarus looks at the two men
and then at Police Inspector Lucy
He gets no help from the inspector.
Bring the men forward" Lazarus
orders. When the two thugs are
standing in front of him he looks
over at the inspector again and
makes request: See if there is