corporation lawyer)as saying:"We must have no criticism now."A few months later it quoted him again that "there are men walking about the streets of this city tonight who ought to be taken out at sunrise tomorrow and shot for treason.At the same time. Theodore Roosevelt was talking to the Harvard Club about Socialists,IWWs,and others who wanted peace as "a whole raft of sexless creatures." In the summer of 1917,the American Defense Society was formed.The New York Herald reported:"More than one hundred men enrolled yesterday in the American Vigilante Patrol at the offices of the American Defense Society....The Patrol was formed to put an end to seditious street oratory." The Department of Justice sponsored an American Protective League,which by June of 1917 had units in six hundred cities and towns,a membership of nearly 100,000.The press reported that their members were "the leading men in their communities.,. bankers...railroad men...hotel men."One study of the League describes their methods: The mails are supposed to be sacred....But let us call the American Protective League sometimes almost clairvoyant as to letters done by suspects....It is supposed that breaking and entering a man's home or office place without warrant is burglary.Granted. But the League has done that thousands of dines and has never been detected! The League claimed to have found 3 million cases of disloyalty.Even if these figures are exaggerated,the very size and scope of the League givesasle to the amount of "disloyalty." O The states organized vigilante groups.The Minpesota Commission of Public Safety, set up by state law,closed saloons and moving picture theaters,took count of land owned by aliens,boosted Liberty bonds,tested peoplefor loyalty.The Minneapolis Journal carried an appeal by the Commission "for all patriots to join in the suppression of antidraft and seditious acts and sentimen The national press cooperated with the government.The New York Times in the summer of 1917 carried an editoriak is the duty of every good citizen to communicate to proper authorities any evidence prsedition that comes to his notice."And the Literary Digest asked its readers "to clip and send to us any editorial utterances they encounter which seem to them seditious or treasonable."Creel's Committee on Public Information advertised that people shourd "report the man who spreads pessimistic stories.Report him to the Department of Justice."In 1918,the Attorney General said:"It is safe to say that never in its history has this country been so thoroughly policed." Why these huge efforts?On August 1,1917,the New York Herald reported that in New York City ninety of the first hundred draftees claimed exemption.In Minnesota, headlines in the Minneapolis Journal of August 6 and 7 read:"DRAFT OPPOSITION FAST SPREADING IN STATE,"and "CONSCRIPTS GIVE FALSE ADDRESSES."In Florida,two Negro farm hands went into the woods with a shotgun and mutilated themselves to avoid the draft:one blew off four fingers of his hand;the other shot off his arm below the elbow.Senator Thomas Hardwick of Georgia said "there was undoubtedly general and widespread opposition on the part of many thousands...to the enactment of the draft law.Numerous and largely attended mass meetings held in every part of the State protested against it...."Ultimately,over 330,000 men were classified as draft evaders. In Oklahoma,the Socialist party and the IWW had been active among tenant farmers -and sharecroppers who formed a "Working Class Union."At a mass meeting of the
corporation lawyer) as saying: "We must have no criticism now." A few months later it quoted him again that "there are men walking about the streets of this city tonight who ought to be taken out at sunrise tomorrow and shot for treason." At the same time, Theodore Roosevelt was talking to the Harvard Club about Socialists, IWWs, and others who wanted peace as "a whole raft of sexless creatures." In the summer of 1917, the American Defense Society was formed. The New York Herald reported: "More than one hundred men enrolled yesterday in the American Vigilante Patrol at the offices of the American Defense Society. . . . The Patrol was formed to put an end to seditious street oratory." The Department of Justice sponsored an American Protective League, which by June of 1917 had units in six hundred cities and towns, a membership of nearly 100,000. The press reported that their members were "the leading men in their communities . , . bankers ... railroad men .. . hotel men." One study of the League describes their methods: The mails are supposed to be sacred. ... But let us call the American Protective League sometimes almost clairvoyant as to letters done by suspects. . .. It is supposed that breaking and entering a man's home or office place without warrant is burglary. Granted. But the League has done that thousands of dines and has never been detected! The League claimed to have found 3 million cases of disloyalty. Even if these figures are exaggerated, the very size and scope of the League gives a clue to the amount of "disloyalty." The states organized vigilante groups. The Minnesota Commission of Public Safety, set up by state law, closed saloons and moving picture theaters, took count of land owned by aliens, boosted Liberty bonds, tested people for loyalty. The Minneapolis Journal carried an appeal by the Commission "for all patriots to join in the suppression of antidraft and seditious acts and sentiment." The national press cooperated with the government. The New York Times in the summer of 1917 carried an editorial: "It is the duty of every good citizen to communicate to proper authorities any evidence of sedition that comes to his notice." And the Literary Digest asked its readers "to clip and send to us any editorial utterances they encounter which seem to them seditious or treasonable." Creel's Committee on Public Information advertised that people should "report the man who spreads pessimistic stories. Report him to the Department of Justice." In 1918, the Attorney General said: "It is safe to say that never in its history has this country been so thoroughly policed." Why these huge efforts? On August 1, 1917, the New York Herald reported that in New York City ninety of the first hundred draftees claimed exemption. In Minnesota, headlines in the Minneapolis Journal of August 6 and 7 read: "DRAFT OPPOSITION FAST SPREADING IN STATE," and "CONSCRIPTS GIVE FALSE ADDRESSES." In Florida, two Negro farm hands went into the woods with a shotgun and mutilated themselves to avoid the draft: one blew off four fingers of his hand; the other shot off his arm below the elbow. Senator Thomas Hardwick of Georgia said "there was undoubtedly general and widespread opposition on the part of many thousands ... to the enactment of the draft law. Numerous and largely attended mass meetings held in every part of the State protested against it. ..." Ultimately, over 330,000 men were classified as draft evaders. In Oklahoma, the Socialist party and the IWW had been active among tenant farmers -and sharecroppers who formed a "Working Class Union." At a mass meeting of the no profit use only
Union,plans were made to destroy a railroad bridge and cut telegraph wires in order to block military enlistments.A march on Washington was planned for draft objectors throughout the country.(This was called the Green Com Rebellion because they planned to eat green corn on their march.)Before the Union could carry out its plans,its members were rounded up and arrested,and soon 450 individuals accused of rebellion were in the state penitentiary.Leaders were given three to ten years in jail,others sixty days to two years. On July 1,1917,radicals organized a parade in Boston against the war,with banners: IS THIS A POPULAR WAR.WHY CONSCRIPTION? WHO STOLE PANAMA?WHO CRUSHED HAITI? WE DEMAND PEACE. The New York Call said eight thousand people marched,including "4000 members of the Central Labor Union,2000 members of the Leftist Socialist Organizations,1500 Lithuanians,Jewish members of cloak trades,and other branches of the party."The parade was attacked by soldiers and sailors,on orders from their officers. The Post Office Department began taking away the mailing privileges of newspapers and magazines that printed antiwar articles.The Masses,a socialist magazine of politics, literature,and art,was banned from the mails.It had carried an editorial by Max Eastman in the summer of 1917,saying,among other things:"For what specific purposes are you shipping our bodies,and the bodies of our sons,to Europe?For my part,I do not recognize the right of a government to draft me to a war whose purposes I do not believe in." In Los Angeles,a film was shown that deak with the American Revolution and depicted British atrocities against the colonists.It was called The Spirit of '76.The man who made the film was prosecuted under the Espionage Act because,the judge said,the film tended "to question the good faith ofour ally,Great Britain,"He was sentenced to ten years in prison.The case was offisially listed as U.S.v.Spirit of'76. In a small town in South Dakota,a farmer and socialist named Fred Fairchild,during an argument about the war,said,according to his accusers:"If I were of conscription age and had no dependents and here drafted,I would refuse to serve.They could shoot me, but they could not make me fight."He was tried under the Espionage Act,sentenced to a year and a day at Leavenworth penitentiary.And so it went,multiplied two thousand times(the number of prosecutions under the Espionage Act). About 65,000 men declared themselves conscientious objectors and asked for noncombatant service.At the army bases where they worked,they were often treated with sadistic brutality.Three men who were jailed at Fort Riley,Kansas,for refusing to perform any military duties,combatant or noncombatant,were taken one by one into the corridor and: .a hemp rope slung over the railing of the upper tier was put about their necks,hoisting them off their feet until they were at the point of collapse.Meanwhile the officers punched them on their ankles and shins.They were then lowered and the rope was tied to their arms,and again they were hoisted off their feet.This time a garden hose was played on their faces with a nozzle about six inches from them,until they collapsed completely... Schools and universities discouraged opposition to the war.At Columbia University, J.McKeen Cattell,a psychologist,a long-time critic of the Board of Trustees'control of
Union, plans were made to destroy a railroad bridge and cut telegraph wires in order to block military enlistments. A march on Washington was planned for draft objectors throughout the country. (This was called the Green Com Rebellion because they planned to eat green corn on their march.) Before the Union could carry out its plans, its members were rounded up and arrested, and soon 450 individuals accused of rebellion were in the state penitentiary. Leaders were given three to ten years in jail, others sixty days to two years. On July 1, 1917, radicals organized a parade in Boston against the war, with banners: IS THIS A POPULAR WAR, WHY CONSCRIPTION? WHO STOLE PANAMA? WHO CRUSHED HAITI? WE DEMAND PEACE. The New York Call said eight thousand people marched, including "4000 members of the Central Labor Union, 2000 members of the Leftist Socialist Organizations, 1500 Lithuanians, Jewish members of cloak trades, and other branches of the party." The parade was attacked by soldiers and sailors, on orders from their officers. The Post Office Department began taking away the mailing privileges of newspapers and magazines that printed antiwar articles. The Masses, a socialist magazine of politics, literature, and art, was banned from the mails. It had carried an editorial by Max Eastman in the summer of 1917, saying, among other things: "For what specific purposes are you shipping our bodies, and the bodies of our sons, to Europe? For my part, I do not recognize the right of a government to draft me to a war whose purposes I do not believe in." In Los Angeles, a film was shown that dealt with the American Revolution and depicted British atrocities against the colonists. It was called The Spirit of '76. The man who made the film was prosecuted under the Espionage Act because, the judge said, the film tended "to question the good faith of our ally, Great Britain," He was sentenced to ten years in prison. The case was officially listed as U.S. v. Spirit of '76. In a small town in South Dakota, a farmer and socialist named Fred Fairchild, during an argument about the war, said, according to his accusers: "If I were of conscription age and had no dependents and were drafted, I would refuse to serve. They could shoot me, but they could not make me fight." He was tried under the Espionage Act, sentenced to a year and a day at Leavenworth penitentiary. And so it went, multiplied two thousand times (the number of prosecutions under the Espionage Act). About 65,000 men declared themselves conscientious objectors and asked for noncombatant service. At the army bases where they worked, they were often treated with sadistic brutality. Three men who were jailed at Fort Riley, Kansas, for refusing to perform any military duties, combatant or noncombatant, were taken one by one into the corridor and: ... a hemp rope slung over the railing of the upper tier was put about their necks, hoisting them off their feet until they were at the point of collapse. Meanwhile the officers punched them on their ankles and shins. They were then lowered and the rope was tied to their arms, and again they were hoisted off their feet. This time a garden hose was played on their faces with a nozzle about six inches from them, until they collapsed completely... . Schools and universities discouraged opposition to the war. At Columbia University, J. McKeen Cattell, a psychologist, a long-time critic of the Board of Trustees' control of no profit use only
the university,and an opponent of the war,was fired.A week later,in protest,the famous historian Charles Beard resigned from the Columbia faculty,charging the trustees with being "reactionary and visionless in politics,narrow and medieval in religion...." In Congress,a few voices spoke out against the war.The first woman in the House of Representatives,Jeannette Rankin,did not respond when her name was called in the roll call on the declaration of war.One of the veteran politicians of the House,a supporter of the war,went to her and whispered,"Little woman,you cannot afford not to vote.You represent the womanhood of the country...."On the next roll call she stood up:"I want to stand by my country,but I cannot vote for war.I vote No."A popular song of the time was:"I Didn't Raise My Boy to Be a Soldier.It was overwhelmed,however,by songs like "Over There,""It's a Grand Old Flag,"and "Johnny Get Your Gun." Socialist Kate Richards O'Hare,speaking in North Dakota in July of 1917,said,it was reported,that "the women of the United States were nothing more nor less than brood sows,to raise children to get into the army and be made into fertilizer."She was arrested,tried,found guilty,and sentenced to five years in the Missouri state penitentiary. In prison she continued to fight.When she and fellow prisoners protested the lack of air, because the window above the cell block was kept shut,she was pulled out in the corridor by guards for punishment.In her hand she was carrying a book of poems,and as she was dragged out she flung the book up at the window and broke it the fresh air streaming in, her fellow prisoners cheering. O Emma Goldman and her fellow anarchist,Alexander Berkman (he had already been locked up fourteen years in Pennsylvania;she hadserved a year on Blackwell's Island), were sentenced to prison for opposing the draft.She spoke to the jury: Verily,poor as we are in democracy how can we give of it to the world?...a democracy conceived in the military servitude of the masses,in their economic enslavement,and nurtured in their tears and blood,is not democracy at all.It is despotism-the cumulative result of a chain of abuses which,apcerding to that dangerous document,the Declaration of Independence,the people have the right to overthrow.... The war gave the government its opportunity to destroy the IWW.The IWW newspaper,the Industrial erker,just before the declaration of war,wrote:"Capitalists of America,we will fight against you,not for you!Conscription!There is not a power in the world that can make the working class fight if they refuse."Philip Foner,in his history of the IWW,says that the Wobblies were not as active against the war as the Socialists,perhaps because they were fatalistic,saw the war as inevitable,and thought that only victory in class struggle,only revolutionary change,could end war. In early September 1917,Department of Justice agents made simultaneous raids on forty-eight IWW meeting halls across the country,seizing correspondence and literature that would become courtroom evidence.Later that month,165 IWW leaders were arrested for conspiring to hinder the draft,encourage desertion,and intimidate others in connection with labor disputes.One hundred and one went on trial in April 1918;it lasted five months,the longest criminal trial in American history up to that time.John Reed,the Socialist writer just back from reporting on the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia(Ten Days That Shook the World),covered the IWW trial for The Masses magazine and described the defendants: I doubt if ever in history there has been a sight just like them.One hundred and one lumberjacks,harvest hands,miners,editors...who believe the wealth of the world
the university, and an opponent of the war, was fired. A week later, in protest, the famous historian Charles Beard resigned from the Columbia faculty, charging the trustees with being "reactionary and visionless in politics, narrow and medieval in religion. ..." In Congress, a few voices spoke out against the war. The first woman in the House of Representatives, Jeannette Rankin, did not respond when her name was called in the roll call on the declaration of war. One of the veteran politicians of the House, a supporter of the war, went to her and whispered, "Little woman, you cannot afford not to vote. You represent the womanhood of the country. . . ." On the next roll call she stood up: "I want to stand by my country, but I cannot vote for war. I vote No." A popular song of the time was: "I Didn't Raise My Boy to Be a Soldier." It was overwhelmed, however, by songs like "Over There," "It's a Grand Old Flag," and "Johnny Get Your Gun." Socialist Kate Richards O'Hare, speaking in North Dakota in July of 1917, said, it was reported, that "the women of the United States were nothing more nor less than brood sows, to raise children to get into the army and be made into fertilizer." She was arrested, tried, found guilty, and sentenced to five years in the Missouri state penitentiary. In prison she continued to fight. When she and fellow prisoners protested the lack of air, because the window above the cell block was kept shut, she was pulled out in the corridor by guards for punishment. In her hand she was carrying a book of poems, and as she was dragged out she flung the book up at the window and broke it, the fresh air streaming in, her fellow prisoners cheering. Emma Goldman and her fellow anarchist, Alexander Berkman (he had already been locked up fourteen years in Pennsylvania; she had served a year on Blackwell's Island), were sentenced to prison for opposing the draft. She spoke to the jury: Verily, poor as we are in democracy how can we give of it to the world? ... a democracy conceived in the military servitude of the masses, in their economic enslavement, and nurtured in their tears and blood, is not democracy at all. It is despotism-the cumulative result of a chain of abuses which, according to that dangerous document, the Declaration of Independence, the people have the right to overthrow... . The war gave the government its opportunity to destroy the IWW. The IWW newspaper, the Industrial Worker, just before the declaration of war, wrote: "Capitalists of America, we will fight against you, not for you! Conscription! There is not a power in the world that can make the working class fight if they refuse." Philip Foner, in his history of the IWW, says that the Wobblies were not as active against the war as the Socialists, perhaps because they were fatalistic, saw the war as inevitable, and thought that only victory in class struggle, only revolutionary change, could end war. In early September 1917, Department of Justice agents made simultaneous raids on forty-eight IWW meeting halls across the country, seizing correspondence and literature that would become courtroom evidence. Later that month, 165 IWW leaders were arrested for conspiring to hinder the draft, encourage desertion, and intimidate others in connection with labor disputes. One hundred and one went on trial in April 1918; it lasted five months, the longest criminal trial in American history up to that time. John Reed, the Socialist writer just back from reporting on the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia (Ten Days That Shook the World), covered the IWW trial for The Masses magazine and described the defendants: I doubt if ever in history there has been a sight just like them. One hundred and one lumberjacks, harvest hands, miners, editors ... who believe the wealth of the world no profit use only
belongs to him who creates it...the outdoor men,hard-rock blasters,tree-fellers,wheat- binders,longshoremen,the boys who do the strongwork of the world.... The IWW people used the trial to tell about their activities,their ideas.Sixty-one of them took the stand,including Big Bill Haywood,who testified for three days.One IWW man told the court: You ask me why the I.W.W.is not patriotic to the United States.If you were a bum without a blanket;if you had left your wife and kids when you went west for a job,and had never located them since;if your job had never kept you long enough in a place to qualify you to vote:if you slept in a lousy,sour bunkhouse,and ate food just as rotten as they could give you and get by with it;if deputy sheriffs shot your cooking cans full of holes and spilled your grub on the ground;if your wages were lowered on you when the bosses thought they had you down;if there was one law for Ford,Suhr,and Mooney,and another for Harry Thaw;if every person who represented law and order and the nation beat you up,railroaded you to jail,and the good Christian people cheered and told them to go to it,how in hell do you expect a man to be patriotic?This war is a business man's war and we don't see why we should go out and get shot in order to save the lovely state of affairs that we now enjoy. The jury found them all guilty.The judge sentenced Haywood and fourteen others to twenty years in prison;thirty-three were given ten years,thre rest shorter sentences.They were fined a total of $2,500,000.The IWW was shattered Maywood jumped bail and fled to revolutionary Russia,where he remained until his death ten years later. The war ended in November 1918.Fifty thousand American soldiers had died,and it did not take long,even in the case of patriots,forbitterness and disillusionment to spread through the country.This was reflected in the literature of the postwar decade.John Dos Passos,in his novel 1919,wrote of the death of John Doe: In the tarpaper morgue at Chalons-sur-Mame in the reek of chloride of lime and the dead, they picked out the pine box that heid all that was left of...John Doe.... ..the scraps of dried visceracand skin bundled in khaki they took to Chalons-sur-Marne and laid it out neat in a pide coffin and took it home to God's Country on a battleship and buried it in a sarcophagus in the Memorial Amphitheatre in the Arlington National Cemetery and draped the Old Glory over it and the bugler played taps and Mr.Harding prayed to God and the diplomats and the generals and the admirals and the brass hats and the politicians and the handsomely dressed ladies out of the society column of the Washington Post stood up solemn and thought how beautiful sad Old Glory God's Country it was to have the bugler play taps and the three volleys made their ears ring. Where his chest ought to have been they pinned the Congressional Medal.... Ernest Hemingway would write A Farewell to Arms.Years later a college student named Irwin Shaw would write a play,Bury the Dead.And a Hollywood screenwriter named Dalton Trumbo would write a powerful and chilling antiwar novel about a torso and brain left alive on the battlefield of World War 1,Johnny Got His Gun.Ford Madox Ford wrote No More Parades
belongs to him who creates it ... the outdoor men, hard-rock blasters, tree-fellers, wheatbinders, longshoremen, the boys who do the strongwork of the world... . The IWW people used the trial to tell about their activities, their ideas. Sixty-one of them took the stand, including Big Bill Haywood, who testified for three days. One IWW man told the court: You ask me why the I.W. W. is not patriotic to the United States. If you were a bum without a blanket; if you had left your wife and kids when you went west for a job, and had never located them since; if your job had never kept you long enough in a place to qualify you to vote; if you slept in a lousy, sour bunkhouse, and ate food just as rotten as they could give you and get by with it; if deputy sheriffs shot your cooking cans full of holes and spilled your grub on the ground; if your wages were lowered on you when the bosses thought they had you down; if there was one law for Ford, Suhr, and Mooney, and another for Harry Thaw; if every person who represented law and order and the nation beat you up, railroaded you to jail, and the good Christian people cheered and told them to go to it, how in hell do you expect a man to be patriotic? This war is a business man's war and we don't see why we should go out and get shot in order to save the lovely state of affairs that we now enjoy. The jury found them all guilty. The judge sentenced Haywood and fourteen others to twenty years in prison; thirty-three were given ten years, the rest shorter sentences. They were fined a total of $2,500,000. The IWW was shattered. Haywood jumped bail and fled to revolutionary Russia, where he remained until his death ten years later. The war ended in November 1918. Fifty thousand American soldiers had died, and it did not take long, even in the case of patriots, for bitterness and disillusionment to spread through the country. This was reflected in the literature of the postwar decade. John Dos Passos, in his novel 1919, wrote of the death of John Doe: In the tarpaper morgue at Chalons-sur-Mame in the reek of chloride of lime and the dead, they picked out the pine box that held all that was left of . .. John Doe. . . . ... the scraps of dried viscera and skin bundled in khaki they took to Chalons-sur-Marne and laid it out neat in a pine coffin and took it home to God's Country on a battleship and buried it in a sarcophagus in the Memorial Amphitheatre in the Arlington National Cemetery and draped the Old Glory over it and the bugler played taps and Mr. Harding prayed to God and the diplomats and the generals and the admirals and the brass hats and the politicians and the handsomely dressed ladies out of the society column of the Washington Post stood up solemn and thought how beautiful sad Old Glory God's Country it was to have the bugler play taps and the three volleys made their ears ring. Where his chest ought to have been they pinned the Congressional Medal.. .. Ernest Hemingway would write A Farewell to Arms. Years later a college student named Irwin Shaw would write a play, Bury the Dead. And a Hollywood screenwriter named Dalton Trumbo would write a powerful and chilling antiwar novel about a torso and brain left alive on the battlefield of World War 1, Johnny Got His Gun. Ford Madox Ford wrote No More Parades. no profit use only
With all the wartime failings,the intimidation,the drive for national unity,when the war was over,the Establishment still feared socialism.There seemed to be a need again for the twin tactics of control in the face of revolutionary challenge:reform and repression. The first was suggested by George L.Record,one of Wilson's friends,who wrote to him in early 1919 that something would have to be done for economic democracy,"to meet this menace of socialism."He said:"You should become the real leader of the radical forces in America,and present to the country a constructive program of fundamental reform,which shall be an alternative to the program presented by the socialists,and the Bolshevik...." That summer of 1919,Wilson's adviser Joseph Tumulty reminded him that the conflict between the Republicans and Democrats was unimportant compared with that which threatened them both: What happened in Washington last night in the attempt upon the Attorney General's life is but a symptom of the terrible unrest that is stalking about the country....As a Democrat I would be disappointed to see the Republican Party regain power.That is not what depresses one so much as to see growing steadily from day to day,under our very eyes,a movement that,if it is not checked,is bound to express Nself in attack upon everything we hold dear.In this era of industrial and socialynrest both parties are in disrepute with the average man.... O "What happened in Washington last night"was the explosion of a bomb in front of the home of Wilson's Attorney General A.Mitchetl almer.Six months after that bomb exploded,Palmer carried out the first of his mass aids on aliens-immigrants who were not citizens.A law passed by Congress near the end of the war provided for the deportation of aliens who opposed organixed government or advocated the destruction of property.Palmer's men,on December 1919,picked up 249 aliens of Russian birth (including Emma Goldman and Algxander Berkman),put them on a transport,and deported them to what had becom Soviet Russia.The Constitution gave no right to Congress to deport aliens,but the Supreme Court had said,back in 1892,in affirming the right of Congress to exclude Chinese,that as a matter of self-preservation,this was a natural right of the government. In January 1920,four thousand persons were rounded up all over the country,held in seclusion for long periods of time,brought into secret hearings,and ordered deported.In Boston,Department of Justice agents,aided by local police,arrested six hundred people by raiding meeting halls or by invading their homes in the early morning.A troubled federal judge described the process: Pains were taken to give spectacular publicity to the raid,and to make it appear that there was great and imminent public danger....The arrested aliens,in most instances perfectly quiet and harmless working people,many of them not long ago Russian peasants,were handcuffed in pairs,and then,for the purposes of transfer on trains and through the streets of Boston,chained together.... In the spring of 1920,a typesetter and anarchist named Andrea Salsedo was arrested in New York by FBI agents and held for eight weeks in the FBI offices on the fourteenth floor of the Park Row Building,not allowed to contact family or friends or lawyers.Then his crushed body was found on the pavement below the building and the FBI said he had committed suicide by jumping from the fourteenth floor window
With all the wartime failings, the intimidation, the drive for national unity, when the war was over, the Establishment still feared socialism. There seemed to be a need again for the twin tactics of control in the face of revolutionary challenge: reform and repression. The first was suggested by George L. Record, one of Wilson's friends, who wrote to him in early 1919 that something would have to be done for economic democracy, "to meet this menace of socialism." He said: "You should become the real leader of the radical forces in America, and present to the country a constructive program of fundamental reform, which shall be an alternative to the program presented by the socialists, and the Bolshevik...." That summer of 1919, Wilson's adviser Joseph Tumulty reminded him that the conflict between the Republicans and Democrats was unimportant compared with that which threatened them both: What happened in Washington last night in the attempt upon the Attorney General's life is but a symptom of the terrible unrest that is stalking about the country. ... As a Democrat I would be disappointed to see the Republican Party regain power. That is not what depresses one so much as to see growing steadily from day to day, under our very eyes, a movement that, if it is not checked, is bound to express itself in attack upon everything we hold dear. In this era of industrial and social unrest both parties are in disrepute with the average man.. . . "What happened in Washington last night" was the explosion of a bomb in front of the home of Wilson's Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer. Six months after that bomb exploded, Palmer carried out the first of his mass raids on aliens-immigrants who were not citizens. A law passed by Congress near the end of the war provided for the deportation of aliens who opposed organized government or advocated the destruction of property. Palmer's men, on December 21, 1919, picked up 249 aliens of Russian birth (including Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman), put them on a transport, and deported them to what had become Soviet Russia. The Constitution gave no right to Congress to deport aliens, but the Supreme Court had said, back in 1892, in affirming the right of Congress to exclude Chinese, that as a matter of self-preservation, this was a natural right of the government. In January 1920, four thousand persons were rounded up all over the country, held in seclusion for long periods of time, brought into secret hearings, and ordered deported. In Boston, Department of Justice agents, aided by local police, arrested six hundred people by raiding meeting halls or by invading their homes in the early morning. A troubled federal judge described the process: Pains were taken to give spectacular publicity to the raid, and to make it appear that there was great and imminent public danger.. . . The arrested aliens, in most instances perfectly quiet and harmless working people, many of them not long ago Russian peasants, were handcuffed in pairs, and then, for the purposes of transfer on trains and through the streets of Boston, chained together... . In the spring of 1920, a typesetter and anarchist named Andrea Salsedo was arrested in New York by FBI agents and held for eight weeks in the FBI offices on the fourteenth floor of the Park Row Building, not allowed to contact family or friends or lawyers. Then his crushed body was found on the pavement below the building and the FBI said he had committed suicide by jumping from the fourteenth floor window. no profit use only