﻿Stigma On The Fair Name Of California 

By T-BONE SLIM 
 
Inspiring scene, the Mooney and Billings Day cheerfulness at the San Francisco Civic Exposition Auditorium; pipe-organs groaning somewhere which I first mistook for Oscar Ameringer making a speech—happily I was located on the balcony from where I could shy eggs at Oscar in case he struck any false notes, in case I had any eggs to shy. 
Mother Mooney takes a seat on the stage, hair white: The monotony of her griefs temporarily dispelled by the evidence of people willing and anxious to do something for Tom, in this late day. 
We hear a great songbird in La Traviata recently returned from triumphal European tour—didn’t catch the name. 
Fremont Older was in good voice, size and logic. Rupert Hughes’ article on Scape-goat read and enthusiastically received—article never has the prestige of personality. 
Lincoln Steffens got up and “done his thinking” right on the platform. According to Steff. justice and democracy are in the economic field. 
Point: Justice to Mooney of course can not be done; nothing will erase injustice—but injustice can be discontinued and Mooney be freed. Fred Moore made one point in particular, “the courts have failed to measure up to established rules”, in Mooney-Billings case. 
Note: Writer believes, according to California laws, through the failure, inability of courts to correct their own errors, every man convicted is in prison ILLEGALLY.—Have Moore or Walsh look this up—”powerlessness.” 
Subbornation of perjury was also stressed by Attorney Fred Moore as an important phenomenon in this case that is now beginning to rebound. “Righting the Wrong” brought great applause. Old gentleman introduced or gave OSCAR AMERINGER away. 
Oscar was the most consistently logical man on the platform and registered laugh-and-half per minute and applause every two minutes—reader please note: Oscar had all the advantage: none but a humorist can picture the antics of capitalism in full possession of all its insanity. 
Ameringer has an idea Mooney is held in the can by God and that that God is Dollar; Almighty God; All-Powerful Dollar—he took up a big collection of dollars and for the once it looks as if God is on Our side. 
It was the pipe-organ that hit the false note; a cold in the nose probably. 
Chairman Whitaker; Auditorium crowded. Hold the Fort and Internationale; vocal and nasal Notes by T-bone Slim. 
P. S. These notes are none too clear so I may as well come again: Frisco was taken for a ride on the matter Auditorium accoustics: Robert Whitaker, the chair, had occasion to use the word “privilege”—it sounded like a busted steampipe. “Pleashure”, Rob’t, is the word. 
Mooney-Billings case now has national aspects and will grow more national, as California balks. 
In re similarity of Mooney-Billings and Centralia, Washington case let me say the similarity begins and ends with the incarceration of innocent men. 
In the Mooney-Billings case a crime was committed and innocent men were convicted. In the Centralia case no crime was committed yet men were convicted. 
Now in Mooney-Billings case the courts proclaim to the world their inability, “powerlessness”, to correct their own errors. In that case, every man convicted is held in prison ILLEGALLY, for verily, law thereby nullifies itself. 
Coming, as it does, from the sagacious courts is more than passingly strange when the courts themselves set themselves to nullifying the law, what can be expected from the people? 
Any sixth grade schoolboy can debate this question with any judge before an intelligent body and win the argument. Courts have put themselves in the hole by exceeding the limits of law to convict—the same situation obtains in Washington and any criminal in Walla Walla is illegally held in view of the fact law is nullified by the conviction of men in the absence of crime.