Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1899-04-19
A Yellow Sensation.
(Rpston TranscriptD

tn" yellow sensation published In
yesterdays New York Herald relative
e. the giving 10 the Fitchburg Rail
road docking privileges In tn" Boston
navy yard. in return for certain con-
siderations. is characteristic of the
narrow way in which matters W ma
tionil import are viewed in that town.
That New York should feel chagrin at
her loss of prestige through her rela-
lively declining commerce. year by
year. is not 10 he wondered at. but her
journals should find other ways Of
venting their spleen than In impugning
the motives Of those who are exertiny
themselves to accommodate those ship
pcrs who have got out of patience with
her methods. The motives back Of the
cheap journalistic devices Of the
Herald to connect corruption and poll
tics with the legislation relating to the
wet dock al Charlestown are so trans
parent that they fall flat and simply
bring the alleged great daily in which
they find room into contempt with
both the business circles and naval
authorities familiar in every degree
with the circumstances. As Mr.. Lee
son and Mr.. Bou,elle easily show,
everything was open ana above board.
and the result has been the excellent
bargain which it is conceded by the
naval officials the United States has
made by the transaction. However.
that jobbery and fraud should suggest
themselves u the yellow journalism OF
New York is not to he wondered at.
That a large transaction such as this
should be carried through without the
levy Of adequate tribute. or that its
promoters should be aCtuated simply
hy public considerations. is not within
the comprehension OF people whose
standard Of political morality is the
successful Croker or the powerful
Platt. In the presence Of New York
citys cynical liberation Of open and
flagrant political corruption the nation
hides its head in shame. The higher
circles of finance in Boston do not sit
down and deal regularly with organ
lied blackmail as an institution. The
leading lights of reform here do not
hold even limited partnerships for &C.
casional uses with their respective
party bosses. There is still in Boston
a little Of the public spirit that has lei
men to work for the city and Common
wealth without a thought of personal
and private profit. laborinG early and
late in behalf of great commercial ends
Such thing is inconceivable. perhaps
through no fault of their own, among
the professors of metropolitan yellow
journalism. but their local methods
look very badly when applied to affairs
outside their rotten borough.
The attempt to show a connection
between stockholders of the Fitchburg
road and stockholders of the Bangor
Wing, Congressman Boutelle's paper,
is Of a piece with the rest. The New
York papers Boston namesake. in
handling this matter has been I'M
fortunate in selecting only the two
directors of the Fitchburg road. as
stockholders in the Bangor Wing. thus
implying that they We're there for
purpose. But even the list which the
New York defamer gives mentions
other stockholders of the paper. as f.
S. Converse of Maiden. William F..
Draper of Hopedale, Lieutenant Gov
ernor Crane, Congressman Charles +.
Sprague. II. II. Hunnewell Of Boston,
Alden Spear and others. They Were
all men of means and Republicans,
men who would quite naturally go into
newspaper enterprise of the kind
that Mr.. Boutelle conducts. Our local
contemporary has either; been careless.
or elsesthe Independent and courageous
stand which the Maine congressman
has taken on the question of imperial
ism has not made it anxious to do him
full justice. However, out of all this
hysteria one fact stands clear and dis
tinct, which is, that if the Fitchburg
company has made good bargain, the
state and the nation have made better
ones