Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-07
EDITORS.
They Meet in the Bayou City-ThOse
Who Started Early Get There.
Many of the Beet Looking Editors Water
Standardization to Attend the
Spring Palace Accepted.


eleventh annual session, R. NJ. Johns
ton of the Houston Post president, and
Frank NJ. Robinson of the Huntsville
Item, secretary. About one hundred
| delegates are in attendance, half that
number being water bound west. We'll
coming addresses were delivered by
! Mayor Scherf and w. d. Cleveland
and were responded 10 by members of
the association.
The executive committee made its re-
port, the burden of which was the ne
cessitY of a libel law. The question was
advocated by W. L. Malone of the Fort
Fort Worth Mail, R. G. Lowe of the
Dallas Galveston Newses and others.
Mr.. Senter read the following address,
which was received with loud applause:
The ordinary criminal knows or may know the
exact measure of the obligation he incurs to the
law by the infraction of any of its provisions.
1t has always been the policy OF an enlightened
and its penalties certain. The meanest and
lowliest Of its offenders ought not to be left n
such ignorance that he may unconsciously COM
NIT a crime. So careful have our
own lawmakers been 10 preserve the strictest
equity toward the criminal classes that in one
brief statute they Topped off the criminal legis-
code known as the common law, and stipulated
that in Texas no man should be punished Grim
inally unless the published law expressly said,
'thou shalt moi"
The first article of the Penal Code declares
that its object is Ito define in plain language
every offense against the laws of this state
In the face of such scrupulous and just regard
for the rights of even the law-breaker, it is re-
markable that under our system class of
ofenses should exist which, though not neces-
sarily involving immortality or bad faith, or
even negligence, should subject the offender to
graver penalty than would ordinarily follow
attempt to murder.
The conscientious publisher, who has criti-
cally examined every article prepared for his
paper and who has tempered every line with the
fullest measure of charity, cannot know that he
is free of crime, serious IN the view of the
law to visit upon him financial ruin, until
every product of that thoughtful work has faded
into yellow relic.
However careful may be the supervision,
however intelligent the service, it is an acct
dent il every press does not grind out with each
revolution q publication susceptible of being
made the basis of libel suit, with its principal
element claim for exemplary damages.
The conditions under which news is gathered,
distributed and published by the press of to-day
present material fact in considering the obi
cations and duties of the press.
The daily newspaper with = state wide circu-
lation employs in the aggregate two or three
hundred news collectors. In the appointment
of these agents self-interest and the dictates of
ordinary prudence constrain the publishers to
select the best material available. The daily
product of this army of men in divers and far
telegraph office at night to an agent
who hnrriedly edits and arranges it. In his
solitary chamber, removed tens and hundreds of
miles from the scenes of occurrences reported to
shfln with no personal knowledge of them, and
handling scores of reports within the space OF
six or eight hours every night, the telegraph
editor necessarily accepts as true every state
ment which does not bear internal evidences of
falsehood.
Such are the channels through which usu-
ally come the matters whose publication leads
to libel suits.
While not denying the existence of these con-
ditions, nor charging personal nor moral COM
plicity upon the publisher in the alleged wrong
for which the suit is brought, the plaintiff seeks
heavy punitory damages against the publisher
alleged to have coursed libel. Those who de-
fend such suits declare that publishers should
exercise greater caution in the selection OF mat
Il is apparent that both the suit and the apol-
ogy for it challenge the right OF the
newspaper II also as trde that the e1 isT
of libel, as handed down to us by the interpre-
tation Of ages without printing press, is pro-
proper for the newspaper to tell OF crimes, fail
ures, wrongs, abuses of public and OF priv ate
trusts, in reporting them publisher can be
guilty of no wrong without intending to wrong.
No man who kills another is held blameless in
law If the killing were unintentional; and if the
accident were not the result OF inexcusable neg
ligence a civil suit for damages could not
be sustained against the slayer. Thus the law
comedies defense to the murderer that IT re-
fuses to the publisher who has incorrectly re-
ported the failure of a business firm. Upon the
principle of the former case, if the publications
were in good faith, and without negligence, no
damages should be allowed, and though negh-
gence should appear in the transaction, and
bad intention were wanting, the recovery should
be limited TO actual damages.
The charge of carelessness in the collection of
news could rarely be substantiated, unless it is
based upon the assumption that publisher
should make judicial investigation OF every
circumstance before reporting it.. The present
reportorial system is inseperable from the pres
sent newspaper. If it be admitted that the lat
ter is an essential part Of our civilization, which
denied that it, should be the policy of the
law to protect it in all legitimate fields, rather
than TO encourage its harrassment, and to pro-
vide the weapon for its undoing.
In every state where special enactments do not
protect the press against the hardships of the
common law, the strange spectacle is presented
OF an intelligent public demand upon the press
for matter that is quasi criminal under the law.
A newspaper that does not take daily risks, under
demned by public sentiment for the condonat ion
OF wrong-doing, and as worse than useless.
The common sense of every intelligent man
must rebel against such onerous restrictions
upon what is in fact, and is universally con-
ceded to be, public service.
Exemplary damages are bottomed upon wilful
binary measure OF damages. Vindict-
i've damages are allowed to punish guilt. Such
is the theory of the law, unbroken in its appii-
cation except as it touches the press. It alone
may unconsciously commit a civil crime. To
the publisher alone is imputed the malice of the
agent. 1t is true there are many conflicting de-
cisionS upon the reach of original malice In the
publication, and upon the proper measure of
damages, but measuring the law by its verdicts
and not BY its rhetoric we have stated it cor
rectly.
The common law Of libel as applied to news
paper publications is o grotesque misht. 1t Is
the outgrowth of,condidons utterly unlike those
which surround the emanations from the daily
press, The Hbels with which the fathers of the
common law had totdeal were simply aggravated
ISLANDERS proceeding from individual controver-
sizes, and wholly personal in their nature.
AnonymouRsassaalts, upon private character
were common, Hnkl< 6fen the, literature OF the
age was msrredaby discreditsle chickering's and
courts. The do6rine OF presumptive malace /
was the natural output OF suchcon ditions. The
man who wrote or Published anything falsely, :.
the tendency OF which was TO injure the reputa-
ton or the business of his nelghbor was justly
held TO have moved from malice because
the offender acted in a personal capacity and
was without reasonable excuse for publishing
Progress has bfed vocation that is as far from
the business of the ancient hbeler as the railroad
from the ancient highwayman. II a fatal acct
dent results from the operations of a railroad it
is not followed by forfeiture Of franchise-the
civil death-nor by any punishment OF
the actual damages that may result to those de-
pendent upon the victim of the accident. Cir
cumstances. it is true. might warrant penal
damages In such a case, but they DO not ordin-
aTily exist. The newspaper represents 8 BUSH
ness as legitimate and as essential to the well
other industry or pursuit. Without boast
ing it may be fairly claimed that
OF sn the Developments of modern civilization
it is the ideal public servant 1t serves every cit