The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1905-06-08


we may regret the existence Of evil /
1t cannot be said that it would be |
best to exclude the account Of it from
the public press. Publicity is a foe
to crime It ls one Of the means by
which the way Of the transgressor |
Is made hard Il is a part of the retri- |
button Of sin Many a grave wrong
has been unearthed by the faithful
reporter and the criminal thereby
brought to the legal condemnation he
deserved.
Thus the newspaper treatment OF
evil becomes a sareguaEd % society
On the other hand. it pust be remem-
bered that danger may lurk in the
treatment Of crime and vice by the
press. While nothing but praise
should be given to those papers which
deal with sin simply. briefly and as
an aid to justice, there are no words
too strong to express the loathing with
which we should regard that so-called
yellow journalism which by SEN
sational exaggeration caters to the
morbid appetite Of a degene'Nts por-
tion of the public 1t is the duty OF
the pulpit to condemn, and OF all
right thinking persons to exclude from
their homes, those papers which by
such means exert a debasing inhu-
ence upon the morals of the young
Newspaper Readers as jurymen.
while on this subject Of crime and
publicity it is well to mention another
phase of it which appeals directly to
every newspaper publisher. 1t is the
effort so often made to exclude from
iuries men who have read something
of the matter about which they are to
sit in Judgment. This is virtcally a
nremlum to ignorance in the makeup
Of iuries. for it is q safe proposition
that all intelligent men Of this day
, read newspapers Consequently
7 Jury made up Of non newspaper read
+ ers is a jury remarkable only Tor the
e density of the ignorance of those
l. who compose it. Boause you read
Z some of the details of either a clVi
e ,r a criminal matter it is no indica
ton that youy mind is so warped one
II wav or the other that you will be un
Is able to reach a correct conclusion ate
n the matter has been presented TO yo'
% in due and legal form while sittinl
n as iurvman. II ought to be the eai
y nest desire Of all connected with tn
IS administration Of the law to secur
IS the most intelligent consideration o
all matters presented, yet it must D
said that 1t is too often the case tina
gs studious effort is made to exclude Il
d teuigence from the jury box. In mos
an of our states intelligence is a prerequ
h site to voting, it being deemed esseI
all tial to minimize the evils of yotin
10 ianorantly and Unfortunately
S. not the sitting in Judgment upon III
te and property equally as important
ne voting. and intelligence equally esse
t. tial?
er "In the celebrated McCue trial
he Virginia a few months ago one OF Il
os- Jurors when impaneled was asked
tn he had formed an opinion on the cas-
dy to which he replied that he NJ
on formed an opinion on newspaper e'
M dence. He was asked next: In 20
ar nresent state of mind could you
cir on that Jury starting out with the pl
,ur s,mntion of innocence in your mlnc
ian He answered: I could not say th
the could. for the reason that ma
lille road this evidence. Naturally the
ho some impression on my mind ?
ire cannot saw that IT is biased or pre-
ian diced When the case was appear
will the highest court in Virginia held
regard TO this juror, who was accept
nv the trial court: II the courts "a
to an extreme position upon this suol'
ear aud hold that every opinion shall VIC
ing a disqualification for service as
de- ror the administration Of justice
the be conhded not to the most inte
.ely gent but to the most ignorant OF
ling citizens In this instance the y
able einia court Of appeals took the I'll
nee nosition. If the courts generally
ond exercise discrimination in the SCI
so tlon of Jurors the administration oil
ana tice will not suffer.
in The Newspaper as Moral Eore'
e 1t ~ is as a moral force that the u
ped ouehly honest newspaper and It's
? all terances are most powerful and Il
rom measure necessary part of our IL
avn distinguished member Of cong'
the a wear or two ago said that If IL "
r 70 not for the newspapers the jobs WI
no would 60 through congress are t'
7 DO ble TO contemplate and he added
con- II there we're no newspapers he We
man he afraid to trust himself alone
light the house OF representatives, lot
were teen minutes The mere act Oh
was licity is, of course, a great detrin
plen- - eyn hut followed up EDITORIAL
be great public sentiment is aroused "
ircu- nnds expression at polling places
defeats men who indulge In 81
rime. transactions. It is beyond Ques
men, that the fear Of exposure from al
H.