The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-11-30
NOT EXACTLY FAIR.

Among all our contemporaries thero is hardly one that is conducted with moro fairness and ability than The Portland oreg 'n.an, ol one that dis cusses importalt subjects more con- servatiyely. For that reason, we copy entire the following editorial. printed a few days ago:
 The President has declined by cable tc suspend the order of discharge Tor the cofored troops of th 25th regiment. The crime which the regiment as a body has committed is refusal to give up the names of their comrades who were implicated in the riots at Brov rsville. The President expresses the opinion that this refusal struck at the very heart of military justice
 This is doubtful. Whatever the Ist- ter of the law may say, the common sentiment of mankind does not demand of any person that he should turn tl- former upon his comrades or that he should confess his own misdeeds. So- ciety- has in all civilized nations taken upon itself the burden of proving the guilt of accused persons. Enlightened opinion abhors equally all attempts to extort confessions and all tendencies to encourage "delation." This Is really a foreign word. So obnoxious is the practice which 1t indicates that we
 
 comes nearest to the detestable mean ing, but 1t falls little short.
 Justice does not require a soldier to report the misdeeds of his comrades any more than 1t requires a college student to betray his classmates Fa- cplties know enough of human nature rot to expect such a thing. A student guilty of 1t is an outcast and it would be the same with a soldier. If the guilty persons in the negro companies can be discovered. they should be ~un- ished; but to punish the innocent mere ly because they know and will not tell outrages justice instead or promoting 1t. The officers who are responsible for the discipline of the 25th regiment certainly ought to be punished. for they signally failed in their duty; but the common soldier who merely de- elines to turn informer against his comrades is hardly used when he loses his military position and ,hS honor; ss s..s tural sentiment of mankind invariably app!auds !t. If MT. Roosevelt recon sfders his decision upon this matter, nobody will blame him and most men will believe that he has chosen the bet ter part.
 In the first place.. The oregonian Is not exactly fair in saying that common opinion does not require man to con- fess his own misdeeds or turn inform CT against his comrades The argu- ment is not a fair one when used as a condemnation of the Governments course in the Brownville affair. We have also seen in our contemporaries the argument that college and school boys are not expected to be informsrs or tale bearers and, therefore. 1t should not be expected of the soldiers.
 This, we say, is not exactly fair argument. School boys are not in- frequently guilty of little pranks and acts of misconduct which are not crimes, nor even serious faults. The boy who would go to his teacher and voluntarily inform against any or all his fellows who had done slight wrong would be justly regarded with contempt. So.. the very best soldiers are often guilty of little larks and pecadiIloes which are not criminal. and which really injure no one and are not