The record-union., 1899-03-02
VOICE OF The PRESS.
EXTRACTS FROM. EDITORIAL
EXPRESSIONS.
State and Coast Opinions on SUBJ
jects Of Living News
Interest.

ring, beaten in open fight, is trying to
sneak a bill through the Legislature
which will authorize Trustees and
Boards Of Education to purchase books
from the ring. There is big bug
carefully and ingeniously hidden away
in the substitute for Senate bill 36, per-
tanning to the School Department and
school books, and legislators who are
opposed to the ring cannot examine that
substitute too carefully.
SWAPPING AT HIS HEELS.
Kern Standard: That yellow journal
istic cur yclept the Examiner" is still
yelping and swapping at the heels OF
General Shafter, and the General, as
BELTS true greatness, still calmly lg-
nores it. It is hard, however, for the
Generals friends, knowing the animus
that prompts these brutal, false and
disgraceful attacks (Shafters unkind-
ness to the yellow press in Cuba) to let
the cur snarl without some attempt to
perforate it's moth-eaten hide. 1t is,
however. as great an honor to have in
CURED the enmity of the EXAMINER
as to be the hero of Santiago. Secure
in the esteem of his countryrnen and
high and honorable place in his 'coun-
try's history, the General can afford to
be lenient with the ours at his heels.
THE LICENSE OF THE FELLOWS.
Redlands Facts: The Facts" is not
shedding any tears on account of the
passage of the law; will not shed any,
should the law prove constitutional,
which is doubted in some quarters. It's
effect will be felt almost entirely by the
1t 49, ,if.t1
have outrageously abused the liberty
given the press by the people. The
yellow" journals are especially con-
eerned, and if the law will act in COM
Polling decency upon their part, it
would seem to be a wise provision
Often it happens, in order that the
great test good of the greatest number
may be conserved, that we are obliged
to give up some of that liberty which
everyone holds dear. 1t is a necessary
concomitant of society, which renders
some laws needful, which seem to bear
harshly upon some of its members We
must each give up something, that the
general good may be enhanced. yet
low" journalism, both in pictures and
in words, has been carried to such an
Infamous extent, that sooner or later
repressiNe measures We're bound to be
enacted. Possibly, it is well that ac-
ton has been now taken and in the
present form. We say possibly" for
we have no copy of the law as amend
ed and signed by the Governor and
consequently can not speak from 'the
letter. We doubt not, however, the
general public will approve of some
on tot r,1ao Of ,@x~,x-
been terribly abused
MR.. JOHNSON. OF INDIANA.
Stockton Independent: Mr.. Johnson
of Indiana has failed to read the signs
of the times. He is an honest and
capable man of conservative nature and
positive convictions, who has become
soured and despairing because the
country, the Administration and Con-
gress have refused to take the gloomy
view of affairs that he has taken. He
is rather to be pitied than blamed. His
convictions are primarily sincere, but
have been warped into exaggeration by
his own temperament Were it nee
esseary to make Mr.. Johnson seem rid
lculous it would only be necessary to
quote his speech made in the House last
spring, when the country and Con-
gress were crafty shouting war and
President Mckinley was calmly. firmly
and prudently holding the mad pas
sions of his eountrymen in check until
he could exhaust every resource of d.
plomatic negotiations in behalf of hon
orable peace. Then Mr. Johnson
thought the President was strona patri-
otto and humane. He declared that his
course was above criticism and that the
time would come when Congress
would regret that it had forced wise
and just Executive into a war;
This all goes to show that Mr.. John
son is the weak man, that he judges
the quality and sincerity of others by
the degree of their agreement to his
views and that his perception is not
keen enough to discover two sides to a
question so vital as the future place Of
the republic among the nations and in
the civilization of the world
MR.. JOHNSON'S ACTION.
Santa Rosa Republican: Grove L.
johnson of Sacramento did the hand
some thing in the Assembly Thursday
morning. When his bill repeating the
law requiring a bond of $500 in insti-
tuting libel proceedings against news
paper was reached on the third reading
file he stated that he had become con-
WINGED that it would injure the rural
press OF the State, and therefore asked
consent for its withdrawal.
Consent was granted and the measure
was stricken from the file. This was
graceful act on the part of Mr.. John
son. If the issue had been forced
there is little doubt but the law would
have been repealed Because of the
vicious course pursued by the metro
politan press, strong anti-newspaper
sentiment prevailed in the Assembly.
Mr.. Johnson had the good sense and
the fairness to control this sentiment
by an adroit speech by which he paved
the way to the action finally taken
A WATCHFUL EYE.
Oakland Tribune: That Governor
Gage is keeping a very watchful eye
upon the legislation that is in progress
in the chambers above him is shown
by the business-like messages with
which he disoses of the bills reaching
his hands of which he desires to voice
his disapproval. 1t is a tolerably sure
thing that very few bugs concealed
in measures that reach the executive
Office succeed in getting away alive.
GAGE IS A GOOD ONE.
Stockton Mail: There has not been
in the Governors chair since Bartlett
a man who Would have shown the
and courage exhibited by Gov
ernor Gage recently when he signed
the Works anti-cartoon bill.
The bill was aimed at the unscrupu
lous press. which had already marked
for its disapproval in the usual un-
scrupulous way those who ventured to
support the measure, and it had been
fl,,f