Salt Lake Tribune | 1918-06-04 | Page 13 | Governor Lowden Denounces Mob Law

GOVERNOR LDWDEN DEIByiMBlI Believes Jury Should Have I Convicted the Men Who I Hanged Prager. i 1 i ' CHICAGO, June 3. Governor Frank O Lowden today issued the following statement state-ment regarding the acquittal at Edwards-ville, Edwards-ville, Saturday, of eleven men on trial ir connection with the recent Prager lynching lynch-ing at Collinsville, 111.: .. Of course, I was much disappointed , in the verdict of the Jury in the- ; Prager case. Prager was hanged be.- : cause of a suspicion of his disloyalty-, 'to the government. Patriotism was ; the guise worn by the perpetrators of . j the crime. The jury seemed to think" that it could best show its own loyalty, by condoning the crime of those who.! claimed to act in the name of loyalty. , The result was a lamentable failure of. . justice. If juries will not convict in cases , like this, the local authorities; must 1 prevent them from occurring. If in ; , any community they fail in the dis-:. I charge of this plain duty, nothing re- , mains but to declare martial law in", j such community. -.' . Democracy is on trial. Every ac- " tivity of a mob is an assault upon the very principle of democracy. Every man who joins the mob is answerable, morally and legally, for everything the mob does. A true patriot in this crisis , is he who not only helps his country, i to win battles abroad, but who also i , helps his country to preserve order at--, home. .- :