Evening journal., 1900-11-16
TIE MORNING NEWS CONDEMNED
Senatorial Situation
Watson II. Sperry.

MI W ANNun IL tNltIIgs
Dear Sir: There appeared yesterday
in The Morning News" under date Of
November 14), long and elaborate edi-
torial written by a hand so practiced and
a pen SO trenehant that ! cannot but be-
lieye it was your brilliant mind and clear
and lucid reasoning that dictated ii.
Hitherto your great abilities ana unusual
intellectual parts have been devoted 10
the cause Of right and honor, of integrity
and of purity; and, speaking for myself
as one Of your friends. | cannot but eX-
press to you the shock of astOnishment
experienced when | read the editorial In
question and felt it impossible but to be-
lieve it was you who wrote il. / could
not believe at first that l was indeed
reading "The Morning News" and
again looked at the page to see that was
not mistaken.
/ myself am student untitled by my
avOcations for participation in active ar
fairs. but l cannot refrain from entering
my protest against your subtle reason
ings, nor Though l may not he in the
swim OF life) can | but believe that there
are others of my fellow citizens Of my
way of thinking. For it does not seem 20
| be possible that it is only a student
and an idealist immersed in the solitude
OF his work to whom truth and honor,
integrity and courage are mere empty
terms incommensurate as compared to
the hard fact Of 'expediency."
The more exquisite and clear your
style the more brilliant your pleadings'
the more convincing your arguments,
the more subtle and deadly is. it seems to
me. the injury that you commit against
Il the sense OF right and honor and truth IN
the community in which you exert so
powerful an influence. For no matter
i, how cunningly you may reason, there is
4 and must be one great fact that remains
superior to all reasoning. That fact Is
that that which is right is right, and that
J which is wrong is wrong. Even if those
who believe in the right are in the min-
ority. the right does not then become
! wrong. and if those who desire to dc
: wrong be in the majority, it does moi
then make the wrong to be the right.
Ii cannot be right for any Legislature to
rive TO such man as Mr.. Addicks is re-
puted to be the highest gift in its posses
sion. Ii must be wrong To crown sucl
> nolitical treachery, such as Mr.. Addick
,. is believed by many to have practiced-
r such bribery and corruption, with tn
great honor OF seat in the highest legis
lative body Of the nation. II cannot b'
g right 10 entrust so responsible a position
= as senatorship into the hands OF so ha'
e and so unscrupulous man as Mr.. Ad
= dicks is believed by many Of his fellow
citizens to be- 1t must be wrong to be
u stow that gift upon him, no matter hoV
e great the political majority that clamor
e for il.
# No arguments. however subtle. can al
ter these broad and fundamental facts.
Indeed. your plea OF "expediency ma
- not even the excuse that it had nmetee
- hundred years ago. 1t was then deeme
v bv majority Of those high in authorit
Sc TO be "expedient" that one man shoul
IN die rather than that a whole natio
~ should perish. Your plea is that 1t
n "expedient" that a sufficient number
J.. the Legislature should cruelty their sens
- OF honor that Mr. Addicks may be II
ne warded by seat in the United State
re Senate. The only compensation you of'
is that maybe some honest and reputab
man may go along with him.
.ic Until within the past week or two yo1
:. trenchant pen has always stood for hoi
is esty. for morality, for political purity.
Are Mr.. Addicks' business manipuli
m tions Of an honesty above reproachf
o. Is his moral life unassailablef
go Is it lie that large part Of the con