Democratic Sentinel, Volume 11, Number 40, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 October 1887 — THE NATIONAL CAPITAL. [ARTICLE]

THE NATIONAL CAPITAL.

In order to expedite matters, Justice Harlan, of the United States Supreme Court, on Friday, Oct 21, refused to consider the application for a writ of error in the anarchist case alone, but directed counsel to bring the matter before the entire bench. The application was therefore made in open court by General Pryor, who stated the points upon which he relied to show that tho case involved Federal questions. After reciting briefly the history of the case, Gen. Pryor said he would call the attention of the court to only two points which he relied upon to show that the case at the bar presented Federal questions, and that such questions empowered this court to take jurisdiction of it, and to grant the writ of error prayed for. The first of these points related to the jury by which the prisoners were tried. The Legislature of the State of Illinois passed in Maroh, 1874—that is, after the adoption of the fourteenth amendment to the Constitution—a law to regulate and govern the impanelment of juries in tho State courts. By virtue of that law a jury for the trial of a criminal case might be made up in part, at least, of jurors who had formed an opionion with regard to the guilt or innocence of the persons accused—jurors who wore partial and even prejudiced men. The law made it possible to put in the jury box men who had formed an opinion as to the prisoner s guilt which could not be removed except by strong evidence. This, he believed, hud been done in the case under consideration, and the petition asserts that this statute and the effect given to it in the courts below had deprived them of their rights and was about to deprive them of their lives without the “due process of law guaranteed by the Federal Constitution.” The Chief Justice remarked that the only question for this court was whether the statute was constitutional. If the Court erred in its administration of the statute that was a question for the State courts. Gen. Pryor replied that the action ot the State court was the action of the, State. If the statute was administered unfairly it was a State action, and that brought it within the jurisdiction of this court. Mr. Pryor s second point was that the petitioners had been compelled in the trial court to be witnesses against themselves. Sonia of them were on the stand, and in spite of the protests of their counsel they were compelled to submit to an unrestrained eross-examination and tqcriminate themselves. Compelling a man to testify against himself is not due process of law. Furthermore, after their arrest the police, without any process of law, broke open their private desks and extracted from them letters and other criminating evidence, and these letters, got without due process of law, were used against them. When their objection was raised it was overruled and an exception was taken. A Washington special of Sunday says: “The Supreme Court met yesterday afternoon in consultation, and took up the application made yesterday by the counsel of the condemned anarchists. The consultation was not a long one, but the agreement was reached that the earliest moment at which tho appeal could be argued would be Thursday next ' That will afford the State time to send its representatives here to be prepared to answer the arguments of Messrs. Butler, Pryor, Black and Tuckor. As soon as the court had reached its decision word was conveyed to the defendants’ counsel, and the clerk of the court was instructed to notify Attorney General Hunt, in order that he may attend. The general opinion among lawyers here is that the case, as presented by God. Pryor for the condemned, i 3 a weak one; that as presented it was wrapped up in a great deal of language that will be easily stripped off, and that the only point really to be decided is as to the constitutionality of the Illinois jury law.”

President Cleveland and party reached Washington, on Sunday, the 22d inst. The President expressed himself as heartily glad to get home,though as heartily glad that he went away. During the three weeks of his journey he traveled forty-five hundred miles, passed through seventeen States—crossing three of them twice—and saw and was seen by several millions of American citizens. There were no brass bands, no committeemen, no crowds at the station in Washington, and it is nothing uncomplimentary to the people whom the President has visited to say that every one of the tourists was glad of it After breakfast the President and Mrs. Cleveland drove out to their country home at Oak View, where they spent the day.