The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-01-30

country, occurred. on the same day, the Nor
folk and the Montgomery tAla.) Nierosi and
Sharpe tragedies in each Of which young
lady was killed by q rejected lover, who then
blew his own brains out.
Since that time these tragedies have become
epidemic. No portlon Of the country has es-
capped. New Orleans was free from the disease
for q time, but few days ago the first case
reached our city. and we shall undoubtedly
soon have as large crop of murdered young
ladies as any city in the Union. The only re-
deeming feature of these tragedies is the effect
they have had upon young ladies. These, par
ticularly in the infected portions OF the coun-
try. are thoroughly terrorized, extremely 10th
TO reject any sutton whatsoever, accept all who
present themselves and trust to some accident
to set matters straight.
ALI the circumstances of these rejected
lover tragedies point to the newspapers as
their cause disconsoate swain who reads
graphic account of how some other mittened
fellow avenged himself, feels irresistibly
drawn to initiate his example and get free
notice in the papers.
But a similar epidemic Of crime In France
places the responsibility for crime even more
| certainly on the newspapers. In the past six
months there have been over sixty persons in
that country blinded by having vitriol thrown
| In their faces. In all of these cases the crime
was committed from the same cause, jealousy.
A few of the offenders were men, but q large
majority Of them were women Vitriol Is owl
IDENTIFY woman's weapon, taking the place of
the masculine pistol.
/ - fipty
the subject thoroughly and interrogatng the
criminals thereon. Marie Antier, living at
Tarn. the latest vitriol singer, was convicted
last month of having blinded her lover, Valat,
with vitriol. She did not intend TO blind him
for life, she said, but only to distigure him, SO
that no other girl could ever love him. When
asked by the Judge II she had ever read novels
or sensational literature she replied:
"No, sir; never read any, but | saw in a
newspaper the story of girl who avenged
herself in this way and that is what gave me
the idea
The testimony of score Of others has been
the same, and the responsibility for tho repe-
tition of this crime undoubtedly belongs to
the newspapers. There is no remedy; the
newspapers have to give the news, and Ii the
mere statement OF crimes cause an epidemic
of them 1t is not their fault When, howev-
err they exceed the bounds of news, collect the
crimes and offenses of all countries, and, not
even satisfied with these, dig up musty New
gate records to feed morbid appetites, they arc
literally sowing whirlwind. Yet this is just
what they have been doing the past few
months. The Pittsburg Dispatch, we believe
naugurated the movement by giving choice
recolections of ancient and happily forgotten
crimes. Since then there has been poured OF
tho country. in the newspapers, such tor
rent of criminal literature that it is wonder
that society is not thoroughly disorganiaec
by it. Puck's picture Of the sensational story
papsrs is true, but how much truer is it of The
sensational newspaper, since the stories of thu
first are wild, ridiculous and impossible, while
the critics. related by the latter are true oc
currences that have been done once and cal
be done again.