Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-12-19
AaLyina Correspondent.

Newspaper men everywhere will ce
for libel which leading Philadelphia
newspaper, the North American, has
Instituted against one Of it's corrc-
spondents. The case is novel both liz
law and in the circumstances which
gave rise to it. 1t is the purpose of
the North American to make what is
known as fake correspondence, es-
pecially when it involves the reputa-
ton of a man. both improbable and
unsafe to the author. The lesson it
proposes to teach will be of irestima-
BILE benefit to decent journalism.
We get the following summary of
the case to date from the Iowa Leader
and Register. 1t seems that, last July,
a correspondent, assuming to write
from Wichita. Kansas, sent to the
North American what purported to be
an account of the arrest. imprisonment.
prosecution, and confession of an IN
dian named White Buffalo, then repre-
scented to be in Jail at Darlington,
Oklahoma, awaiting sentence for muir
der The story recounted the details
Of the crimes for which the Indian was
said to be in the custody of the law.
1t named three white girls whom the
Indian was said to have successfully
murdered and gave the residences
and names of the parents of the vic
tins. 1t also identified the Indian, not
only by name and residence but by
description of his personal appearance
and by the fact that he was a student
of the Indian school at Carlisle.
Some weeks ago complaint was made
to the North American of the faIsity of
the article and the paper at once began
an investigation, the result of which
was that it was learned that the whole
story had been made up. White
charged with murder or any other
crime. was found to be reputable
Indian with wife and family, land
owner and farmer, and also that no
white girls had been murdered and
that no one was in Jail at Darlington
charged with murder. The story was
a fabrication from beginning to end,
gotten up to read as a sensation, and
palmed on the North American and
New York daily at goOdy price. The
North American enlisted the co-opera-
ton of Colonel Pratt, in charge of the
Carlisle school, and also of White
Buffalo, located the correspondent in
st. Louis. where he was at work on
one of the St. Louis daily papers,
asked Tor extradition papers to take
him to Wichita for trial, where the
libel was committed, and had him ar"
rested.
1t is said that this story has been re-
published in eight newspapers and
magazines. To illustrate how well il
was calculated to deceive even the
most cautious publisher the North
photographs of the alleged criminal
and of one of the white girls he was
said to have murdered. The story of
the judicial proceedings, as well as the
location of the Jail in a territorial
town. where the alleged murderer was
said TO be confined after having con-
n al
culated to give an air of plausibility to
the tale,
The North American takes the posi-
ton that there can be no more ag-
gravated criminal libel than this case
discloses. The correspondent not only
attempted to ruin the reputation of &
well behaved and law abiding Indian.
but by inference, he struck blow at
the grea. Indian school at Carlisle. and
at all educated Indians wherever To-
Gated. But entirely aside from this
the mere fact that the story was a
fake and that the successful escape
of it's author from prosecution would
soon encourage others to engage in
the manufacture of news regardless OF
the rights or feelings of their victims
inspires the newspaper to go to the
expense and trouble of this legal pro-
ceeding in a distant state.
The case involves some of the mos
interesting legal proceedings recorded
where the duties and rights of news
papers and newspaper workers are il
question. If that correspondent i:
guilty of all he is charged with, it i
certain he merits severe punishment
Fake correspondence is a curse t.
journalism. There are enough un
avoidable errors in the columns Of tn
best managed and edited papers
without the deliberately manufacture
stories of lying correspondents. Som
papers want such fakes and encouras
their correspondents to send them. bu
they are few in number. and tn