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responsibility for allermy «'opv. especially in the case of torfeiture and other leiral
not ices*1D It is, t h ere fo n •. imperative that such notices be clearly written, particu
larly as regards names and dates.
THE ARABIC INCIDENT
Whether or not one takes the view of cx-President Roosevelt,
that the sinking of the Arabic is Germany’s answer to America s Lusi
tania note, it must be realized that the incident presents a situation of
the gravest nature. When President WMson said to tae German govern
ment that “repetition by the commanders of German naval vessels of
acts in contravention of those rights (the use of the open seas by neu
tral nations) must be regarded by the government of the United States
when they affect American citizens as deliberately unfriendly, uittied
what may fairlv be presumed to be the last word of friendly negotia
tion.
In the case of the Lusitania the excuse put forward by the Ger
man government was that she was a carrier of war matenal to her
enemies, and thus was subject to be treated as a war vessel. Theie is
no such palliative in the case of the Arabic, as she was on the westward
voyage. Jhe statement is conveyed by the cables that she carried a
consignment of gold, presumably for payment to American munition
factories; but this fact would scarcely be put forth to justify the de
struction of the vessel. There appears to have been a studied con
tempt of the American protests against the submarine warfare, and this
is borne out in a ' German Press Service dispatch received through
the Sayville wireless station, immediately following the publication of
the American note of July 21. It is as follows:
BERLIN, via Sayville. July 'JL -Beyond the bare statement that the note has
been received at the foreign office, but little notice has been taken of ihe latest American
communication to the German government concerning the submarine warfare. The few
papers offering comment express Gut little interest as to the contents, aside from one or
two of the more radical puldicat ons. which openly assert that the Gorman people care
nothing at all for the American representations, or the likes or dislikes of the American
government.
Discussion of the crisis that exists in the relations between the
United States and Germany develops the fact that the attiude of the
United States is not thoroughly understood, or if understood, is not
properly appreciated. The principle at stake—the freedom of the
seas—is one that, under different circumstances, Germany would as
sincerely contend for as does now the United States. There appears
to be no more reason in international law why United States vessels and
United States citizens should be compelled to recognize the waters sur
rounding the British isles as a closed area than there would be if Great
Britain declared the Pacific ocean closed to commerce, or even the At
lantic. There is just as much possibility of Great Britain maintaining
an effective blockade of those waters as there is for Germany to effec
tively blockade the British isles under present circumstances. As stated
by the President, “the rights of neutrals in time of war are based on
principle, not upon expediency, and the principles are immutable.”
Critics of the administration have assumed the position that the
United States, even in the loss of life of its citizens and in the destruc
tion of American property, has not sustained injury sufficient to justify
armed protest, and that our citizens and commerce should be kept out
of the danger zone. This is an indefensible and pusillanimous policy
at best.
The United States, as the most powerful of the neutral countries,
has a duty to perform to the world. To sit ldlv by and allow tire rights
of America, as well as those of the rest of the world, to be violated
without a struggle, is to imperil the interests of the neutral nations for
all time, and even endanger the sovereignty of those nations. The non
belligerent world looks to the United States as its spokesman in the
present crisis, and we would not be true to ourselves and our obliga
tions to humanity were these continued offenses tolerated.
The death of Charley Larson comes as a personal bereavement
to every member of the community. A true Northerner, with all the
lovable traits that term implies, he was a general favorite in the com
munity in which he had made his home since its establishment, and
where his children were born. His stricken widow and children have
the sincere sympathy of our people, who mourn with them the passing
of a good man.
THE FRANK CASE
_
To every right-minded and patriotic American there must come
a feeling of shame and resentment at the tragic culmination of the
Leo Frank case. To these the fact that the sovereign state of Georgia
was unable or unwilling to protect the decrees of its legally-constituted
authorities against a mob consisting of a mere handful of men engaged
in a lawless act must come as a reflection on the state and its citizens.
The brutality and fiendishness of the crime with which Frank was
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charged was not more appalling than the work of the mob which
wreaked its vengeance on the helpless prisoner at Milledgeville.
The responsibility for this blot upon the fair name of the state
of Georgia must to a large degree rest upon the authorities. From its
inception the case presented some extraordinary phases, which re
quired the cool-headed and decisive action of strong men; instead they
appear to have been met by officials of vaccillating character and sub
servience to mob clamor rather than to a sense of duty. The judge
before whom Frank was tried for the murder of Mary Phagan is quoted
(after his death) as being convinced of his innocence; and yet he al
lowed a verdict which is alleged to have been influenced by the pres
ence of a mob which filled the court room and surrounded the halls of
justice to stand. In spite of the fact that the prisoner was not in the
court room when the verdict was rendered, through fear of mob vio
lence, the supreme court of Georgia found nothing upon which to base
a reversal of the judgment. The supreme court of the United States
could find no ground for interference, and at the eleventh hour Frank’s
neck was saved from the noose by the action of a timorous governor
who now claims to have been thoroughly convinced of the innocence
of the accused. The commutation of sentence was made on the eve
of the retirement of Governor Slaton, and he practically became a
fugitive from the state of which he had been chief executive. Governor
Harris, who also appears to have been convinced of Frank’s innocence,
started out with the determination to uphold the majesty of the law at
all costs, but allowed his vigilance to so relax that a mob of seventy
five men, organized many miles from the scene of Frank’s incarcera
tion, was allowed to swoop down on the prison and, apparently without
opposition, to kidnap and lynch the unfortunate victim.
It would be presumptuous at this distance from the scene, even
with the voluminous accounts of the case afforded by the public prints,
to declare that Frank was innocent of the crime of which he was con
victed. There were apparently circumstances not brought out at the
trial which inflamed the mob spirit and possibly influenced the verdict.
However, one does not like to believe that all the machinery of justice,
state and national, was helpless to save an innocent man. The courts
decreed him guilty. The Georgia executive, either from the tremen
dous pressure brought to bear upon him from all parts of the country,
or through honest conviction, admitted doubt as to his guilt by com
mutation of the sentence to life imprisonment. However, whether the
man were guilty or innocent, the stigma which must attach to the state
will remain chargeable to the mob spirit which has so frequently
brought shame and disgrace to the nation. It were better that the
victim had paid the forfeit of his life under the decree of the court,
even with the suspicion of a miscarriage of justice, than that the mob
should have set at naught the constituted authority of the state.
THE DANBURY HATTERS’ CASE
A Danbury, Conn., dispatch of June 26 stated that notice of in
tention to foreclose had been hied there by attorneys for D. E. Loewe
& Co. against 138 defendants in what is known as the “Danbury hat
ters’ case.” Of the individual defendants against whom decrees of
foreclosure are asked, 1 1 1 own property in Danbury, seventeen are
owners of property in Bethel, and ten have property in Norwalk. United
States marshals were expected to begin the service of papers upon each
of the defendants immediately.
Thus will be written the final chapter in a case which no doubt
will take its place in American jurisprudence alongside the famous Dred
Scott case, and in some respects its influence will be as far-reaching.
The 138 defendants who are to lose their homes, in many in
stances the net result of a lifetime of toil, are members of a trade union
against whom judgment was rendered for damages for boycotting a
firm of Danbury hat manufacturers. Their action was held to be in
violation of the Sherman anti-trust law, and especially that section re
lating to restraint of interstate commerce. The action has been bit
terly fought on both sides, the American Federation of Labor standing
behind the defendants, and the rich and powerful American Merchants
and Manufacturers’ Association assisting in the prosecution.
At the time that the Sherman anti-trust law was passed by con
gress, some twenty-five years ago, friends of organized labor in con
gress were anxious to have inserted a proviso to the effect that the act
should not be held to include trades unions in its restrictions, as it was
contended that they were in no sense trusts, or if such, were in the na
ture of “benevolent trusts,” under a designation later used by the
supreme court. The sponsors of the measure pointed out, however,
that to exempt one class of citizens would savor of class legislation,
and might invalidate the whole act. It was pointed out, moreover,
that the act was not intended to cover the operations of trades unions
in carrying out their lawful activities. Some years afterward the deci
sion of an English court in mulcting a railroad employes’ union for dam
ages sustained by a transportation company was taken as a precedent,
and the decision in the Danbury hatters’ case was the result. It is note
worthy that the English decision was the cause of remedial legislation
being immediately enacted by the British parliament, making such
judgments impossible in the future. Attempts to pass relief legislation
in the United States congress have so !(tar failed.
Ihe boycott is a weapon which, contrary to genera! opinion, is
not exclusively used by the trades unions. It originated in Ireland dur
ing the land reform agitation, and it has been adopted by whole com
munities and even nations. The Merchants and Manufacturers’ Asso
ciation, which in time of labor troubles assumes a holier-than-thou at
titude and prates of the “un-American boycott,’’ has used that weapon
on occasion more effectively than ever did a body of wage-earners.
It is not so long ago that a thriving and popular magazine was denuded
of its advertising and thrown into bankruptcy because it had the hardi
hood to expose the crooked methods (jf “big business,” and this same
club is being held over the heads of numerous publishers all over the
country today. The latest instance of its application is announced in
The Pioneer’s news dispatches this week, which state that big Eastern
business concerns have decided to boycott the city of Atlanta unless
a certain policy is followed by the officials there. It appears that the
boycott is an illegal weapon only when used by workingmen organized
for their own uplift and that of their fellows.
Perhaps the sacrifice of the Danbury hatters may yet result in
the enactment of legislation which shall make all men equal before the
iaw in this respect, and in that event their sacrifice will not have been
in vam.
Once more The Pioneer feels impelled to call attention to the
deplorable condition of the “road” to the cemetery. The citizens of
Iditarod, displaying abundant energy and enterprise in other directions,
are unbelievably indifferent in this matter. If civic pride does not
prompt a remedy, thought for the comfort and feelings of those whose
sad mission compels their use of the thoroughfare should.
TEXT OF LAST NOTE TO
GOVERNMENT OF GERMANY
WASHINGTON, July 23— Following is
the text of the latest American note to
Germany regarding submarine warfare,
which was delivered to the foreign office at
Berlin today by Ambassador Gerard:
“The secretary of state to Ambassador Ger
ard :
“Department of State,
“Washington, July 21, 1915.
“You are instructed to deliver textually
the following note to the minister of foreign
affairs:
“The note of the imperial German govern
ment dated the 8th of July, 1915, has re
ceived the careful consideration of the gov
ernment of the United States, and it regrets
to be obliged to say that it has found it very
unsatisfactory because it fails to meet the
real differences between the two govern
ments and indicates no way in which the
accepted principles of law and humanity
may be applied in the grave matter in con
troversy but proposes, on the contrary, ar
rangements for a partial suspension of those
principles which virtually set them aside.
Recognition of Sea Freedom
“The government of the United States
notes with satisfaction that the imperial Ger
man government recognizes without reser
vation the validity of the principles insisted
upon in the several communications which
this government has addressed to the im
perial German government with regard to its
announcement of a war zone and the use of
submarines against merchantment on the
high seas—the principle that the high seas
are free; that the character and cargo of a
merchantman must first be ascertained be
fore she can lawfully be seized or destroyed, \
and that the lives of non-combatants may
in no case be put in jeopardy unless the ves
sel resists or seeks to escape after being
summoned to submit to examination; for a
belligerent act of retaliation is per se an
act beyond the law, and the defense of an
act as retaliatory is an admission that it is
illegal.
Inhuman Acts indetensioie
“The government of the United States
is, however, keenly disappointed to find that
the imperial German government regards
itself as in large degree exempt from the
obligation to observe these principles, even
where neutral vessels are concerned, by what
it believes the policy and practice of the
government of Great Britain to be in the
present war with regard to neutral com
merce. The imperial German government
will readily understand that the govern
ment of the United States cannot discuss
the policy of the government of Great Brit
ain with regard to neutral trade except with
that government itself, and that it must
regard the conduct of other belligerent gov
ernments as irrelevant to any discussion
with the imperial German government of
what this government regards as grave and
unjustifiable violations of the rights of
American citizens by German naval com
manders.
"Illegal and inhuman acts, however jus
tifiable they may be thought to be against
an enemy who is believed to have acted in
contravention of law and humanity, are
manifestly indefensible when they deprive
neutrals of their acknowledged rights, par
ticularly when thev violate the right to life
itself. If a belligerent cannot retaliate
against an enemy without injuring the lives
of neutrals, a- well as their property, hu
manity, as well as justice and a due regard
for the dignity of neutral powers, should
dictate that the practice be discontinued.
If persisted in it would in such circum
stances constitute an unpardonable offense
against the sovereignty of the neutral na
tion affected. The government of the United
States is not unmindful of the extraordi
nary conditions created by this war or of
the radical alterations of circumstances and
method of attack produced by the. use of
instrumentalities of naval warfare which
the nations of the world cannot have had in
view when the existing rules of interna
tional law were formulated, and it is ready
to make every reasonable allowance for
these novel and unexpected aspects of war
at sea; but it cannot consent to abate any
essential nr fundamental right of its people
because of a mere alteration of circumstance.
The rights of neutrals in time of war are
based upon principle, not upon expediency,
and the principles are immutable. It is the
duty and obligation of belligerents to find a
way to adapt the new circumstances to
them.
Humane Conduct Feasible
“The events of the past two months have
clearly indicated that it is possible and
practicable to conduct such submarine op
erations as have characterized the activity
of the imperial German navy within the so
called war zone in substantial accord with
the accepted practices of regulated warfare.
The whole world has looked with interest
and increasing satisfaction at the demon
stration of that possibility by German naval
commanders. It is manifestly possible, there
fore, to lift the whole practice of submarine
attack above the criticism which it has
aroused and remove the chief causes of of
fense.
“In view of the admission of illegality
made by the imperial government when it
nleaded the right of retaliation in defense of
its acts, and in view of the manifest possi- j
bility of conforming to the established rules 1
of naval warfare, the government of the
United States cannot believe that the im
perial government will longer refrain from
disavowing the wanton act of its naval com
mander in sinking the Lusitania or from
offering reparation for the American lives
lost, so far as reparation can be made for a
needless destruction of human life by an
illegal act.
Rejection of German Suggestion
“The government of the United States,
while not indifferent to the friendly spirit
in which it is made, cannot accept the sug
gestion of the imperial German government
that certain vessels be designated and agreed
upon which shall be free on the seas now
illegally proscribed. The very agreement
dl,uwob n-esfitr-Ame ( o etaoin shrdlum
would, by implication, subject other vessels
to illegal attack and would be a curtail
ment and therefore an abandonment of the
principles for which this government con
tends, and which in times of calmer coun
sel every nation would concede as of course.
“The government of the United States
and the imperial German government are
contending for the same great object, have
long stood together in urging the very prin
ciples upon which the government of the
United States now so solemnly insists. They
are both contending for the freedom of the
seas. The government of the United States
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will continue to contend for that freedom,
from whatever quarter violated, without
compromise and at any cost. It invites the
practical co-operation of the imperial Ger
man government at this time, when co
operation may accomplish most, and this
great common object be most strikingly and
effectively achieved.
Mediation Offer
“The imperial German government ex
presses the hope that this object may be in
some measure accomplished even before the
present war ends. It can be. The govern
ment of the United States not only feels
obliged to insist upon it, by whomsoever
v.olated or ignored, and in the protection of
its own citizens, but is also deeply inter
ested in seeing it made practicable between
the belligerents themselves, and holds itself
ready at any time to act as the common
friend who may be privileged to suggest a
way. In the meantime the very value which
that government sets upon the long and un
broken friendship between the people and
government of the United States and people
and the government of the German nation
impels it to impress very solemnly upon
the imperial German government the ne
cessity for a scrupulous observance of neu
tral rights in this critical matter. Friend
ship itself prompts it to say to the im
perial government that repetition by the
commanders of German naval vessels of acts
in contravention of those rights must be
regarded by the government of the United
States, when they affect American citizens,
as deliberately unfriendly.
“LANSING.”
ALASKA LEGISLATOR
WANTS TO DIVIDE TERRITORY
The Verstovian, the publication issued
by the Sheldon Jackson school at Sitka,
has published a speech delivered by Repre
sentative Arthur G. Shoup of the First divi
sion. in which he advocates the separation
of Southeastern Alaska from the remainder
of the territory, and favors the “full terri
torial form of government” for the new
territory thus formed. Mr. Shoup said in
part:
“We have local problems here in Alaska in
which is vitally involved the future of this
great virgin empire; problems which very
soon will demand the attention and deci
sion of every citizen of Southeastern Alaska.
“Notwithstanding everything that has
been said to dispute it, the limitations
against self-government in Alaska are more
numerous than have ever been found in the
organic act of any other American territory.
“Southeastern Alaska is composed of some
fifty thousand square miles of wonderfully
favored country. To the stranger who en
ters this scenic wonder of the world for the
first time the beauties of nature unfold in a
panorama of unrivaled splendor. Fascina
tion for the country grows upon people who
live here.
“When one pauses to consider the mar
velous bounties which nature has heaped
upon this region he naturally feels that he is
especially favored by the privilege of living
here. He sees no poverty in mass; he sees
no congestion and greedy strife—but every
where a rich land, occupied by a high
minded. big hearted and democratic people;
a land supplied with natural arteries of com
merce such as can be found nowhere else on
earth; a land in which the potential re
sources are so abundant that no mind can
fully realize their magnitude. He under
stands vaguely that our present mineral in
dustries, which challenge the attention of
the world, are but an incomplete index to
those which are yet uncovered. In fancy he
sees our untouched water powers converting
the great forests into paper and lumber and
other products, working the many vegetable
and mineral resources cf the sea into the
useful commodities which science tells us
they are subject to. and reducing to a state
of usefulness our iron 3nd copper and other
riches of the earth. The resident of this
cmirtrv knows that if the many varieties
of splendid fishes in those waters have proper
protection they will furnish great measures
'f food to manv generations yet unborn.
He knows that this country is a vast repo-i
torv and a storehouse of untold wealth,
waiting to pour forth its treasures to a free
and independent people.
“What ;s the situation in this division
fodav? The interests of all of Southeastern
Alaska r.re identical, and we are perma
nently sefHod. An astonishingly large per
centage of the taxable property of t^e terri
tory is found within its borders. Approxi
mately 50 oer cent of all public funds col
Wtpd in Aiackfl during the year 1914 came
from this division.
“It is almost entirely foreign to the rest
rf Alaska in climate, resources and needs.
It is isolated by vast natural barriers. It
has none of the characteristics which are
usually associated with Alaska. It and its
people are regarded hv the other parts of
Alaska with jealousy and suspicion. It is
precluded by its very virtues from anv hope
of ever obtaining direct representation in
con^re^s so long as present conditions exist.
“Ladies and gentlemen, if Southeastern
Alaska is granted the separate autonomy
to which it is rightfully entitled, we will bp
able to maintain an American territory with
all the rights and privileges to which we
people of this nation arp accustomed. We
will be able to do this cheaper than we can
pav our pro rata of operating the present
unwieldv territory, under an imperfect and
unsatisfactory law. We will be able to de
velop a sovereignty that will soon be wel
comed to the American sisterhood of states.
Professional
Michigan, 1881 Alaska, 1910
Kentucky, 1891
George Woodruff Albrecht
COUNSELOR AND LAWYER
IDITAROD, ALASKA
The Pioneer Attorney f.r Iditarod
E. M. STANTON,
Attorney at Law
Office: Corner Willow and Second Sts.
Id turod Pioneer Building
Chins. E. TAYLOR,
Attorney at Law
DANK BLOCK
First Avenue Iditarod
DR. MOORE,
PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON
DR. H. E. AURINGER,
Physician and Surgeon
Office: Flat City Hospital, Flat City
Consultation Hours in Forenoons ar*d by
Appointment
DR H. SEHLA
DENTIST
Appointments by Telephone
FLAT CITY
11 OPEN DAY AND NIGHT
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‘In the meantime we must make the
use wc can of such instruments of gov
ernment as we have. We must each take
i our part in public affairs with an earnest
1 desire to improve the general welfare—to
i enact and enforce laws for social and ma
i terial betterment, laws framed for a health
i ful development of our splendid country."
SECURES HIS FREEDOM
BY CLAIRVOYANT POWERS
(St, Louis Globe Democrat)
What is believed to be the most remark
able exhibition of clairvoyant powers ever
demonstrated was witnessed at a hearing in
the court of general sessions, New York,
June 29, before Judge Rosalsky, who was
■ presiding. Professor Bert Reese had been
j convicted by a magistrate as a fortune teller
1 and had appealed against his conviction. To
prove that he was not a fakir, but a sci
1 entist, the professor volunteered to give a
I demonstration in court.
; The judge wrote the questions. “M hat
was the ruling in the Shelley case ’ “How
much money have I in the bank ? 9
and “What is the name "f my favorite
school teacher?” The demonstrator not.
only ’old what the questions were, but in
forme 1 his honor that $15 was in the bank
to his credit and that his favorite school
teacher wss Miss O’Connor. Reese has given
many exhibitions before the crowned head.-'
of Europe and some of the world’s greatest
scientists. Thomas A. Edison has tried vainly
to solve the secret of his powers. He says
that the question? and answers Hash them
selves on his mind without any effort on bis
part._,
For Working Clothing, see Boas, Flat.
GROCERIES FOOTWEAR
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GENERAL MERCHANDISE
FLAT CITY
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