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~BLIC been a smashed ‘ate and -on the merican deserve n inter- Reds in . Attor- , Subject yal per- lent; so se. 1p enegy Oxnai dang: nn ed of what _ -sident’s ses for with of tic asso- s totali- chat the or nota | .t shows ant will history ake the zround. ttle the for that -fnment th sub- of giv-. - to the nats, I dic one — action; iked in . Lhave ne, and ervants re reper e APRIL 14, 1947 | ~ are members of the same téam and are neither scouting nor stooging for another. In 1798, this country went through a Red scare simi- lar in some respects to the one we are experiencing today. The French Revolution which had recently taken place frightened conservatives in this country quite as much as the Russian Revolution frightens them now. The Alien and Sedition Laws of 1798 were designed to have sub- stantially the same effect as the recent presidential execu- tive order, except that they affected people in private life as well as those working for the goverament. They pre-_ scribed fines and imprisonment for those who combined to oppose any measure of the government, impeded the operation of any law, intimidated any officer of the United _ States in the discharge of his duty, or uttered or published false, scandalous and malicious statements.tending to bring the government of the United States or its officers into disrepute, or to excite the hatred of the people for that government. In so far as President Truman's executive order tends to punish people for their beliefs and not for their acts, it goes even farther than the laws of 1798; but what was done under those laws remains a shameful blot on our national history. Editors of papers supporting the polit- ical party out of power were jailed, or ruined with heavy fines, for writing editorials critical of the Administration. _ People were . prison: for heckling pro-Administra- ‘ tion apeekeFot public meetings. Among those who pro- tested these laws were Marshall, Hamilton and Jefferson; Z and it is probable that the existence of these statutes con- - tributed to the overthrow, at the national election two‘ years later, of the party that had been in power. ust after World War I, we had another period of hysteria which, in retrospect, seems to have been .' equally inexcusable. A group of Socialist members of the — New York State Asscmbly were expelled solely on the ground of their party affiliation. Magazines were held up in the Post Office; others had their mailing privileges ‘revoked entirely. Teachers and ministers were muzzled. Under federal or state laws, people got long prison terms for belonging to “‘seditious” organizations even though it was proved in court that the individual in question was not aware of the “seditious” purpose of the group. The situation was well described by Katharine Fullerton Gerould in Harper's in 1922: America is no longer a Free country, in the old sense; and liberty is, increasingly, a mere rhetorical figure. ... No think- ing citizen, I venture to say, can express in freedom more than a part of his honest convictions. . . . Everywhere, on every hand, free speech is choked off in one direction or another. The only way in which an American citizen who is really interested in all the social and political problems of his country can preserve any frecdom of expression is to . TS President's executive order seems to me a> choose the mud that is most sympathetic to him and to | under the shadow of that mob. : In our present welter of fear and confusion ther’ a few Propositions to keep before us—propositio:.. indisputable 4 in the science of social behavior as tho ~ Euclid in geometry. 3 We must not forfeit our democracy in the effc’ preserve it, Aristotle knew that the way to offsct JF : quality is by the use of its opposite. Hunger is foug 8-4 food, cold by heat, intolerance by tolerance, hyster -§ 8 calm, totalitarianism by democracy, Onc cannot at* the ideas of terror and secret police by the use of , and secret police. tion of the fundamental safeguards of Anglo-£., justice in that it provides for no hearing in a reg, constituted court, no trial by jury, or review or appe the existing higher courts. On the contrary, the exec. of this inquisitorial mandate is placed in the han? people who, on a basis of past record and public + ance, have certainly not been conspicuous for * sympathy with the ideals of freedom of thought: expression. : All past history supports the prediction that any hunt which receives official blessing such as is giv the President's exccutive order is bound to injure +: innocent victims. It is undesirable not only fron] standpoint of fundamental American ideals of fair’ but on the narrowest grounds of self-interest. If the~ rity of the nation is in danger, if our welfare is at - we need more good public servants, not fewer. | many self-respecting men of ability, however deep’ love of country, will suffer the risk of being besmi., by individuals like some of those now most active i effort to separate sheep from goats? The current witch hunt will tend to drive from 7 r service the man who has ever read a book, had an supported the ideals of Roosevelt or fought fascis . the President and his advisers are right, it will not 7 out of public service the Communists, who are, w told, so sly and devilish that they can elude detecti, will work against the non-Communist liberal; he: think twice, and more than twice, before he risks 1-” caught in the net which is flung so widely. The new hunt will inhibit the free flow of thought and interct of ideas which are so vital to national security and ress in a rapidly changing world. We have little to fear from communism if we . our democracy work, if we keep our countey fully’; ployed, prosperous and at peace. This is not an easy. perhaps that is why so many men find is more to” taste to spread hatred, fear and dissension. But ea} not, it is our task. Let us get to it. 3. 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