The American people should view with alarm the propagation of any organization, the result of which has been the establishment of _one_ unit which assumes to itself the secret regulation of law enforcement. Yet, when one studies the ritual and the oath of the Ku Klux Klan but little blame can be attached to the men in Beaumont for obeying what seemed to them the teachings of the "Invisible Empire." They had sworn to "use any and all justifiable means and methods" and, taking the literal construction of the oath, they saw what appeared to them a bad condition existing in their community, which they proceeded to rectify. The prime responsibility for the Beaumont case rests upon William J. Simmons for having solicited men to take an obligation that is in itself a violation of the letter and spirit of the laws of this country. His action in revoking the charter was forced by the publicity given to the case, and by the frankness and openness of his followers in assuming the blame for their acts. Speaking in ordinary street parlance, the action of the "Emperor" was merely "passing the buck" to his own people who had been "caught with the goods." When men are given a dangerous explosive to play with, the blame for the explosion that follows should be placed upon the person or corporation that gave it to them. CHAPTER XV SUGGESTED LEGAL REMEDIES The task of ridding the United States of the "Invisible Empire" will not be an easy matter. The people are prone to wait until the horse has completely disappeared before they begin to look after the security of the barn door. Until public sentiment is thoroughly aroused over the dangerous possibilities of an "Invisible Empire," such as is now being developed, it is unlikely that even the first steps will be taken toward suppressing it. The idea is so foreign to all the established order in this country that people will be slow in realizing what it is all about. Appreciating this fact and knowing that I possessed but limited facilities for bringing the matter to public attention, I felt prompted to turn over to the _New York World_ all the information I possessed, and have that great newspaper inaugurate a nation-wide investigation followed by a publicity campaign that would make the "Invisible Empire" visible. Exposure of a system, however, marks but the first step in eliminating that system. Publicity must be followed up by official action aimed at the accomplishment of concrete results, for unless this is done, the public mind is soon diverted from the subject, and the exposure becomes merely a newspaper episode. In the present instance, exposure of the "Invisible Empire," without legal action, will have the effect of advertising it without harming it in the slightest degree--and swelling its ranks with thousands of new recruits.