The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1901-08-18

West to E0ok ~ith approval or this
sort Of ITing
I'm Hot dwelling particularly OF the
injured husband in the case. TIE
proelgzts nOblszAn who EAve her
the title and The levels. and vko
speus on her and other actresses
something ike Sass. re for mere
frivolities. We wilI leave him out oE
the case. though doubtless he was =
less selfish person than May YOKE
and Just as good morally.
This IS rot either 70 discuss the
morals OF May yohe alias Lady
Hope They don't seem 70 be worth
mentioning. much less discussing.
There's rot enough Of them There's
no particular reason why they should
be discussed. anyway We don't dis
cuss the morals of women OF the
half-world-
But it is said that this Lady re-
fused a divorce from her husband.
Lord Hope. because she would have
to give up the Hope jewels II she
were divorced. as well as the chance
Of one day becoming the Countess OF
Hopetown. That shows her schem
ing. brutal. selfish creature
Following this refusal of q divorce.
she takes the lover Of her choice
and goes gallivanting over the coun-
try with him like the open wanton
that she is. and her doings are de-
tailed at length as matters OF the
gravest import TO society, without one
single. disappearing note to indicate
that this is not exactly the ordinary
way in the wild and wholly West
don't wonder that some mothers
dread TO have their young daughters
look at a newspaper. can under
stand why other mothers never per-
nit one to remain in a child's hands.
It is not the recording of crime
that hurts a newspapers readers
1t is dressing up ugly facts in such
a way as to make them alluring
and interesting.
To tell the simple facts about
Lady" Hope and her lover as mat
ter of news. in a simple way. calling
her by the name that would be given
poor, plain Mrs. Brown. vcul be
shock to the reading would. but 1t
would be infinitely more wholesome
and less dangerous than this ideali-
zing of a wanton's doings with delicate
sentences, full of reserve. flashing her
Jewels in the eyes II daZZled youth.
and dwelling on the luxury that s1r-
rounds her.
We have been used to saving with
a smile of jerision that the world
damns a woman when she is found
out. This pretty way OF holding the
gilded mirror up to nature suggests
that it's all right to be found out.
too. if you've only money enough,
or Jewels enough. or title. And
that messieurs, is the impression Civ
en- youth by these stories. That Is
the moral influence of this sort OF
things on the girls whose moral fiber
is not of the strongest.
at doesn't sound so terrible to be
bad and to have your name in the
paper when it is put in In such a
pretty. romantic way, and it can't be
so very bad to do these things, when
the newspapers pass over them and
treat them like pretty book story
without a moral" reasons the silly,
young thing.
! | never was a prude, and / have
I xx-fTh Cirge Who nnGr
| first have every book they read ex-
purgated. Still if one believes in the
| influence of a good book for higher
things. one must admit the posi-
bility of bad books having at least
a fraction of the power of a good
one but in the other direction. And
so though the reading Of such news
paper literature may hurt no parti-
cular girl, its tendency IS to lower
the tone of the entire body of young
people. It is more pernieious than the
/ yellow covered novel because this
is woven out of fact and its set
ting is right here at home. where it
NAV be verified and looked upon.
The question is: Can we afford to
gid vice to make it pleasant reading
when we know it harbors a grinning
skeleton? Can we afford even as
bright, up to date purveyors Of news
and newsy literature to make evils
alluring to young people and throw
the newspapers power on the wrong
side? Can we afford 10 take down any
moral bars in California and make
any easier the way that leads to the
devil? / think not. The way seems
pretty broad and easy now. and the
whole moral atmosphere in need of a
| thunderstorm.