The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-01-07
AT rr AGAIN, AND WORSE.

1ONbkAON SDhy PaSE>~A AA~eee~ ought to be pennywhistie--seems deter mined to make himself both contempt ible and ridiculous with respect to the newspapers of his State. Two years ago he procured the enactment of a so-ca1led libel law which was really intended as a muzzie on the press of Pennsylvania. It raised such indig- nant protest and condemnation from the newspapers of all parties that 1t was practically a dead letter, and about its only effect was to bring down on himself a storm of criticism that might have blistered less impermeable hide than his.
 Now the Governor has again broken loose, and really worse than ever, de- claring that the State needs further protection against criticism of her of- ficials." That is the burden of his cry. He wants the public men of Pennsyl- vania, especially one Pennypacker, to be immune from all criticism by the newspapers of his State. He cites the case of Tillman, of South Carolina, who murdered Editor Gonzales and was &C., quilted. and says by implication that the assassination was justifiable be- cause of the editors criticisms.
 The Philadelphia Press is a Republi- can paper. but 1t Is as severe on the Governor as the Democrats are. It declares that Tt is humiliating to the Cov, or-anlth to haya oe axac,,tiva man capable of such infinite littleness," adding that fin no other State has there been any effort or any thought, to gag the press. as in this State under the present executive. No other State has a Governor who would dare to pro- pose such an utterly indefensible and tyrannical law as he proposes. In no other Stae would there be an instant's doubt about hooting it out of all con- sideration. Pennsylvania Is alone in the ignomlny of witnessing even the presentation of such a measure and of a Governor capable of seriously sub mitting it."
 The Press is right for we hope and believe that no other State of this Union has a chief executive who would resort to such means to wreak ven- geance on those who have criticised him as he deserves. We have not seen the text of the bill proposed by him. but The Press thus summarizes its na- ture, and at the same time hits the Governor a few:
 The bill submitted to carry out this object lis so fantastic that 1t is difh- cult to treat 1t seriously. It is a legal absurdity and a moral monstrosity. The process of confiscation and extinc- tion Is made as simple as 1t is prepos- terous. Six persons present a petlrJon to the Attorney-General giving the name and acts of tue newspaper that is to be punished as nuisance. The At General files Dill in equity in the Court of Common Pleas praying for abatement. The court hears the case and makes decree directing the suppression of the publication! No jury! No defense!' No appeal! The six petitioners can be picked up in any creature of his creator. Then, given a Pennypacker as Governor and a Pennypacker as judge, the Alpha and Omega of the prosecution' and the packer as Governor and we have had Pennypacker as judge; but the law does not yet permit the two places to be held by the same person at the same time, and the salvation is that 1t would be impossible to find two Pennypack- CTS in the State!
 Let no one risk the prediction that a Pennsylvania Legislature will not pass this monstrous bill. The major ity of that body Is of his kind and will probably do anything he wants done. Already it proposes to practically bar representatives of the press from its sessions by as- signing them, as The Record expresses 1t, ''to small cages in the galleries. from whose perches a Few of them, perhaps. can see the Senators and Rep resentatives gesticulate, . but where hardly sound of the voices below can be heard" and The Record declares that such a proceeding "is equivalent to excluding them altogether"
 Samuel Whitaker Pennypacker, who wants to assume the powers of the Czar of Russia, may succeed in getting his desires carried out by a super serviceable General Assembly, but we do not believe that the people even of Pennsylvania will submit to the gag ging of the newspapers. If his bill should become law 1t is safe to pre- dict that all over the State there will be found newspapers which will defy the law and the courts will be congest- ed with suits which can never be pros ecuted to a successful conclusion. It will be the kind of litigation that the newspapers and the lawyers will be delighted to engage In. and we doubt if any editor will be punished.
 Newspaper editors and writers should enjoy the same freedom that other citizens enjoy. no more, no Iess Liberty does not mean license and should not be so construed. The right of a newspaper to express it's senti- ments fully and fearlessly does not mean that 1t may deal in islander or abuse any more than any other man may do, and the same laws which pun ish libel published by another should apply also to the editor, but that is all. The Pennypacker idea is mon- strous, and no free people can sub init to 1t.