Montana labor news., 1937-07-01

the collapse of Burr's reasonable
enterprise, that the Supreme Court,
through its Chief Justice Marshall,
came into the open as the last refuge
of treason against the Constitution
and the country's independence and
unity.
Burr's conspiracy had collapsed
when his confederates among the
high officers of the U. S. Army be-
came frightened and withdrew from
the adventure, betraying their own
reasonable conspiracy to Jefferson.
Burr himself was caught while at
tempting to flee the country to Mex
leo, after his military expedition had
been dispersed. He was placed en-
trial on charges of treason before the
court over which presided John
Marshall. The evidence of Burr's
treason in the hands of the govern
ment was overwhelming and com
plete. But Chief Justice Marshall
was there to protect the traitor in
his treason, and he did his job effec-
lively.
If the flag is the last refuge of a
scoundrel, then the Supreme Court
in all internal questions has been
the last refuge of traitors.
There was but one way to save
Burr from the consequences of his
treason, to prevent the presentation
of the evidence against him. While
Burr was awaiting trial, Marshall
had given him his freedom on bail,
through a legal trick. The Federal
list gentlemen and ladies wed with
one another to heap public honors
upon Burr while he awaited trial. He
was Toasted and lauded in the homes
of the gentry. And in the midst Of
it all, shortly before the trial was
to open, Chief Justice Marshall at
tended a great banquet given in
honor of the traitor Burr, associating
with those who openly defended his
treason. When the trial opened,
Marshall gave a ruling to define the
crime to treason in such a way as
to exclude all the governments evil
dence. In order to do this, he had
to overthrow a previous ruling Of
his own, given but a few months be-
fore, and establish a rule which nc
jurist before or since has ever de-
Tended, and which was later rejected
by the same Supreme Court. But il
served the immediate purpose Of ex-
Guiding the evidence against Burr.
The jury brought in a most unusual
form of verdict: mot proved by the
evidence which has been presented. y
Marshall simply ordered the clerk
of the Court to change the verdict
to 'Not guilty and Burr was re-
leased.
Thus did the Supreme Court give
aid and comfort to treason, and save
that traitor whose very name has re-
manned to this day, with that Of
Benedict Arnold, the synonym Of
treason to the unity and independ-
ence of the nation.
In the case of Aaron Burr, and Of
the Federalist Party which aided ano
protected him, we have a close par
allel with the development of Trotz-
ky and the various groups and
cliques which supported him in the
Soviet Union. This case is the COM
plete answer to those Americans like
the Socialist leader, Norman Thomas
who rush to Trotzky's defense in
connection with the recent Moscow
trial of the Trotzkyist Center, with
the cry: ut is incredible that one
who participated in the revolution
should betray it, and betray it to &
foreign power" In all revolutions
there have been those who woulc
later betray it if they could, and ii
the American bourgeois revolution
we have a perfect example in the
case of Aaron Burr. But just as Johr
Marshall could pronounce Burr mo