The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-11-10
Did Not Hesitate to Spread Before
timony in the Horos Case.
THE SOCIAL EVIL IN ENGLAND
PECULIAR CONDITIONS THAT sUS-
TAIN AND CONTRIBUTE TO 1T.
LenientIy Treated by the Authorities,
Made Entfcing and Attractive,
Causing Decentralization.
correspondence of the indianapolis Journal.

CORRESPONDENCE Of the indianapolis Journal.
LONDON, Oct. 3O.-It is an amazing fact
that for the worst feature of what is called
yellow journalism you have to look not at
the aggressive. devil-may-care papers of
that ilk in the United States, but into the
pages of the conservative, self-righteous
press of the great cities of England. The
English themselves are beginning to see
this. For a long time English editors have
been throwing stones" at their brethren
across the sea, but they will do this less
hereafter for fear of a violent and just re-
taliation from the other side against the
glass houses in which they themselves
have been living. One has but to follow the
verbatim reports of police court and other
cases, as they are spread out in the great
London dailies. to get a surfeit of nasti-
ness such as could be gathered from the
press of no other nation. These papers are
free from some of the faults of both the
American and French press, but in giving
the details of filthy testimony they beat
the world. 1t has seemed as though they
knew Of no line at which the law could
stop them or at which public decency might
be outraged.
But there is an old adage which says that
IL you give the devil rope enough he will
hang himself. The meaning is that evil
may go to such lengths that it will finally
provoke revolt and compel rigorous meas
ures of restraint. Sometimes the evil doer
gets to be so very bad that out of pure
shame he calls a halt upon his own trans
gressions and is reformed from within. and
there is some chance, happily, that this will
be the case with certain debasing features
of the English press. American readers
have probably heard enough about that
scandalous Horos trial. The only justifica-
ton OF any further reference to it is that
it promises TO be pivotal in it's effect upon
the English press as a purveyor of nasti-
ness. This awful case has surely marked
the limit from which there will have to be
a rebound. English law rigidly forbids the
press to comment upon a case in such a
way, but it doesn't seem to forbid the de-
tailed publication of testimony. Certain di-
vorce cases, it is true, may be heard in
camera, if the judge chooses to so order,
but police magistrates have no such option.
The trial must be public, and in cases of
shocking debauchery the English press
gives it to the larger public outside with a
minuteness o. detail which would not be
tolerated in America either by the law or
by common decency.
ONE GOOD RESULT.
But this Horos case seems in more ways
than one to have opened the eyes Of both
the press and public. In brief it is a story
of scarlet shame, involving a man and
woman as the accused and a number of
girls as the outraged victims. To the taunt
that the prisoners at the bar are importa-
tons from the United States one may prop
erly reply, if he wants to give tit for tat.
that, at any rate, they did not think il safe
to ply their vile game in the United States,
but chose, rather, as the scene of their
depredations, the capital of the British en-
pire, that modern Babylon where vice is no.
toriously so free and defiant, notwithstand-
ing all the good there is in 1T.
For eight days this case dragged its
Shiny lengths through the public press. and
the resultant corruption of young minds Of
both sexes must have been enormous. But
still there is more to follow. The magistrate
limited, when he adjourned the further
hearing till next month. that it was hardly
yet more than half finished. In this post
ponement Justice Bennett. whether he in
tended it or not, performed a great public
service in behalf of decency. for by order
ing this respite he gave both public and
press time for reflection, the result being
that already one of the most widely circu-
lated of the london dailies has given no
tice thai from this time its pages shall be
kept entirely free from such stuff, and the
happy promise is that awakened public
sentiment and editorial conscience togeth-
err will compel other papers to conserve
public decency. in the same way. 1t is not
unlikely, indeed, that when Parliament
meets the shameful notoriety of this case
will lead to the enactment OF a law making
such publications criminal.
To be Just TO London one must admit that
a case Of the Horos kind might have oc-
CURED in almost any other big city. al
though its nastiness would surely not have
gained elsewhere the same newspaper pub
licity as here. AT the same time one who
studies London life cannot fail to connect
this case with what it knows to be going
on daily and nightly all about him. Social
vice is unblushingly and attractivelv I'm
evidence on every hand. There is no at
tempt to keep it within restricted quarters
or to drive it's devotees into cover. 1t is an
out-of-door affair in London. Solicitation
goes forward on all the streets as openlv
almost as any trade. Everybody knows that
1t does. Even the young soon find il ont.
They must necessarily do so from what
they read in the papers and, falling that
source OF knowledge. they might easily
learn the situation from the Jealous but
misguided way in which the sins of London
are uncovered and denounced from many
pulpits.
WIDESPREAD DECENTRALIZATION.
There is necessarily a clearance OF the
streets as the night wears into morning.
but even then the evil does not cease alto
gether 10 be a public one. or this one
couldn't help being reminded by what ap-
peared in n certain London paper in the
very issue in which that same paper served
notice upon it's readers that 1t would wash
its hands OF the scandalous Horos case.
This, also. was the report Of a trial. the
testimony going TO show that a man whose
reputation was involved had been seen in