Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1876-09-06

their columns, WneIeih
Tilden was deliberately charged
with perjury and with defrauding
the government. With the alleged
facts, more thinly distributed, their
editorial columns were swelled I'M
iii their readers must have almost
began 20 fancy there really was
something in the story, while a
goodly share OF the rest OF their
space was devoted TO the reproduce
ton of comment from other organ
ic sources upon the same all-ao-
sorbing theme. Some of them,
with peculiar proclivities in the
idiotic direction. boldly invented
novel and heretofore unheardof
theories of law to substantiate the
original lie /; and all Of them fol-
lowed more or less trustingly in the
footsteps of the New York Times
in proclaiming that the lie was I'M
answerable. And just as they have
reached this happy stage, comes
the Argus with a perfectly plain,
straightforward tale, and knocks
the whole malicious structure into
"smithereens," destroying at one
fell blow more campaign capital
than the organs have any hope OF
accommodating again during 'all the
time prior to election. Really il
is, as we remarked at the outset
almost a pity.
The lie was such preposterou'
one to begin with that we wonder
so many ordinarily sensible people
were deluded by it for a moment
The explanation is, probably, tina
in the period which has elapsed
since the repeal of the income ia,
many have forgotten the method
in which it operated and accepted
unhesitatingly the theory, so per
sistently promulgated by the in
ventors of this campaign 'roorback,
that every dollar received during
specified year was taxable as
part of the income of that year
That this was not the law was sug
gested, however, from number Q
sources Immediately after the Time
first published its infamous attacl
upon Governor Tilden. The pri
vate secretary of the latter, with
out making any reply to the Time
pointed out in a general way wha
the construction of the law had al
ways been, and the New York Her
aid and Sun both called attention
to the same point. A correspond
ent of the Free Press also pointe
out the absurdity of the construc
ton upon which the incorrectnes
of Governor Tilden's return wa
. taken for granted; and the organ
might, had they been little MOI
! wary, have saved themselves til
frightful exposure to which the
have been subjected.
In its answer to the "bond' fea
! ure of the campaign lie referred t
, the Argus exposure must be Pr
culiarly CALLING to those journa
which have recklessly followed til
r Times. In respect to that featur
:, the Argus shows that the Time
I. must have known it was guilty I
. willful and malicious lying, wha
: ever excuse it could trump up fC
r the rest of its story. 1t shows, to
S that the followers of the Times, e,
y !. ercising an ordinary circumspectio
A must have also ascertained the fac
4 and it convicts them all, therefor
S either of maliciously lying or of
u recklessness in respect to tru'
= which is as criminal as delibera
p falsehood.
a The conclusiveness with whi'
n this fabric has been overthrown al
e demolished, ought to teach the @
gans little caution, for there CT
# be no question that every one
J. them which has repeated &
lie story Of the Times has laid itself
rs able to an action for libel. 1t Dug
, also to teach people how ready I
"a Chandler-Hayes combination is
t. avail itself of any lie, no matt
pr how baseless, in furthering its p;
N tisan scheme for the perpetuati