The Leavenworth weekly times. [volume] (Leavenworth, Kan.) 1870-1880, 1873-06-26


Every profession and every employment
has its code of honor. They are pretty
sharply defined limits beyond which menu
Der Of the profession or branch OF industry
cannot 20 without forfeiting the respect OF
his old associates. This common law Is more
binding than statutory enactment, and Its
moral character is OF incalculable Importance
TO the general public.
The man who works with his hands claims
the right TO cell his services to the highest
bidder, only he must serve faithfully. The
merchant may deal in any goods he pleases,
and with any set of customer, the only re-
striction being that ne shall not misrePresent
the quantity Of his wares nor their value.
The doctor must visit all patients, rich or
poor, and however lOathsOme the disease.
The minister must treat as "equals before the
Lord all persons and classes. The lawyer
must never betray the trust reposed in him
by his client. The editor must advocate or
oppose men and measures according IS in
his judgment the public good demands.
There is an effort being made to Pervert
the anti-deadhead movement into an excuse
forabandoning the high moral ground hitherto
maintained by the letter portion Of the press.
The merchant deals in this or that merchan-
disc, as his interest dictates. The lawyer
takes either side of case offered him, pro-
yided only the fee is satisfactory, doing his
utmost to win his suit. The attempt Is to
make the press take the same commercial
position.
The Missouri editors held an annual meet
ing at Louisiana, Mo-, the other day, at
which they adopted as u set OF resolutions,
which as epitomized by the Tribune Of this
city, if carried out. would make the nevspa-
rers public prostitutes, their advocacy Of a
cause before the bar Of public opinion being
determined by commercial considerations.
Here is the epitone:
These resolutions set forth that n newspa-
per Office is business establishment, in which
editors and publishers make their living ;
that man has rs much right to order sack
of coffee from a grocer, legal opinion from
a LAWYER, or q coffin from an undertaken,
without intending to pay for it, as he has to
expec. gratuitOus services from q newspaper
that all personal and political matter having
for it's objects the promotion Of individual
fortunes or ambition should be treated as 9TH
er business matters; that deadhesding, pOliti-
cal, personal and commercial, ia "Played
out - and that any editor who fails to carry
ont the spirit of these resolutions shall cease
to he member of the Missouri Association.
The plain English of all this is that a
newspaper should be run solely to make
money, and advocate persons, parties, enter.
prises, measures, etc, according TO the pc
cuniary interest of the paper. The editorial
department sh ou!d simply be tender at.
tached to the business-office engine. 1t il,
of coun.e, impossible to associate public and
private interests. No political principal can
triumph without inuripg to the benefit OF
come politicians. The moment a newspaper
accepts pay for political services. on the plea
that the movement involves a personal in
lerest, the door is open to all sorts OF cor
ruption, and the public loses confidence in
and respect for its editor.
In the legal profession it isdeemed honor
able, as We have said, to espouse the canse Of
anybody or anything, provided only the eli
ent pays we'll, and consequently nothing il
rarer than for an attorney to tell a client, Il
think YOU are wrong. and cannot take your
case" But nothing is more common than
for newspaper to refuse to espouse 4 cause
on that ground. We are not claiming spec
ial virtue for editors as compared with law
yers, in a strictly personal point Of view,
but simply pointing ont broad distinction
between The code of honor recognized by the
two professions, and insisting that, if there
il to be any change, the lawyers should come
to the editorial standard. and rice rerN.