The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-12-06

OF The PUBLIC FOR THE SCANDAL OF PRIVATE
LIFE The morbid taste exhibited by newspa-
per readers for the prnrient details which are
occasionally disclosed in the trial of divorce
cases, renders the task Of the journalist often
delicate and difficult one If he were to con-
suit simply bis sense Of right, be would sup
press every thing which has a tendency to de-
moralise the public mind, by familiarising it
with vice; but II he takes into consideration
bis own interests, he will do as others do, and
leave the task Of moral reform to some more
disinterested and chivalrOus member of the con-
fraternity. The public are but too apt to re-
gard newspaper as o mere vehicle OF intelli-
gence, without reference to its higher and no
bier purposes, and the journalist who takes .
different view of il must be prepared to make
large sacrifices to his consciousness. Ii he
omits from his reports Of the proceedings OF the
law courts details which are not only revolt
ing in themselves, but poisonous in their inhu-
ence on The public mind, he not only gets no
thanks for his scrupulousness, but differences are
drawn from the fact uDfavorable to the Dusi-
ness character Of his Journal. The results, as
who may be disposed to agree with him in
opinion, form, unfortunately, but SIN III
fraction of newspaper readers; and were
he to address himself merely to their tastes,
he would soon find his less punctilious
contemporaries Outstripping him in the
race of public favor. But few jour
Dslists have moral courage enough to face
this consequence; and thus it is that the news
paper press is so frequently made the unwilling
vehicle of much that is detrimental to the
public morals.
We have been led to make these remarks by
the publication few days since, in our paper,
Of The disgusting incidents Of one of those Ca
tastrophes in domestic life which destroy the
happiness of 20 many families, and which, ua-
happily, notwithstanding all the puritanism
and cant which have become the characteristic
features Of Our New York society, seem, like q
gangreDe, to be only spreading the more rapid
ly from the efforts made to cloak them. TWAS
entirely through an inadvertence of supervision
on our part that the details Of this case were al
lowed to make their appearance in our columns,
for the position in life of the parties did not ne
cessitate our deviating from our usual rule of
giving as little publicity possible to such mat
ters We regret the circumstance, as tending
to encourage bad precedent, which it would
be tor the advantage of the public, Is well as
for the peace of individuals, to abolish a. soon
rs possible.
As long as the public themselves, how
ever, hold out premium to the pub
location of the filth and obscenity dis
closed on these trials, we confess we Go
not see much hope of their efectual
suppression. The keen competition and
Jealousy which exist amongst the conduc-
tors Of the newspaper press, will always pre-
vent any general harmony of action amongst
them on the subject. They will abandon no
part Of the recognized province Of journalism
which may give an advantage in point Of cir
culation to their rivals. Unfortunately, the
features to which we allude are amongst those
which crafty most the common failings Of The
human mind, and it is therefore not to be ex-
pected that they viii prove any exception to
the rule. One or two leading journals whose
influence is built upon . more solid basis may
endsavor to discourage by their example
practice which they justly hold to be fraught
with pernicious consequences This will not,
however, cure the evil. 1t is from the public
themselves that the remedy must come. We're
there no readers to hunt after and gloat over
these deplorable revelations, there would be no
journals ready to supply them.