The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1906-07-26

Oh tnlS natlOn the press has been one
of the most powerful agencies in
molding public opinion and choosing
the servants of the people in city,
county. state and nation. Eternal
vigilance is the price of liberty and
the newspapers of America have been
| the watchmen on the outer gates ever
on the alert to warn the people of any
| danger to their free Institutions 1t
is no doubt true that often false
alarms were given, but even these
served the purpose of keeping the peo-
| pie awake to the value of their blood
| bought rights and the necessity of
preserving and defending their hertz
! age against any encroachment of
usurpers or tyrants. If at times some
of the opposition press announced the
| coming of a man on horseback" who
| with whip and spur was bent on over
| riding the constitution, the rights of
| the states and the liberties of the peo-
| pie, it did more good than harm by
| making the people look more closely
to their rights, the limitations of the
constitution and the powers of their
public officials
Radical but Effective.
| civilian Lloyd Garrson's Liberator
| was so radical and ribald in its de-
: n 0pi a Of S1o Low nl,n1I
ers that a Boston mob destroyed the
| printing plant and drove the editor
| into hiding. He returned, and a few
years later we find him denouncing
the constitution of the United States
as "a league with Satan and a cove
nant with hell Garrison was erratic,
narrow and uncharitable, but who can
| deny that the agitation that he kept
up for many years bore fruit in Great
, ing an adherence for slavery and
eventually in bringing freedom to the
black race? Perhaps Harriet Beecher
Stoves "Uncle Toms Cabin to
which is given credit for having
brought about the war which resulted
in the freeing of the slaves, would
never have been written if the author
had not been stirred by the writings
of Garrison.
| I'VE have had many recent exam
pies of the power of the press. The
vindication of Captain Dreyfus and
his recent restoration and promotion
as an artillery officer were due to the
fearless championship of his cause by
Emile lola, the famous novelist and
publicst. and others like him.
Press Against Trusts.
"In our own country within the last
year or two we have seen the Standard
Oil trust brought to it's knees before
! the bar of justice through the COM
! plete and convincing exposures made
by Ida Tarbell. We have seen the ap
palIing corruption in life insurance
companies and the larceny of the pol
| icyholders' funds for political cam
paign purposes laid bare by the caus-
tic pen of the bizarre Thomas Lawson.
We have seen the beef trust forced
to submit to government inspection Of
its products from the slaughter house
to the can because of the scathing ex-
posture of it's filthy practices made by
Upton Sinclair in The Jungle.
I'VE have seen the grafters and
boodlers in nearly every state in the
union driven covering to cover by In
coin Steffens' scathing exposures Of
their methods in series of newspa-
per and magazine articles. We have
seen the senate awaken to a sense OF
duty and become more responsive to
the popular will than the lower house
because of the merciless excoriation
of its recreant members by David Ora
ham Phillips in his articles on The
Treason of the Senate
These are only a few of the writer's
whose pens have welded a remarkable
influence upon the minds and lives
of the people. the policies of congress
and the president and the destinies OF
the nation. What such writer's have
accomplished and are still doing IN
uprooting corruption and in erecting
| salutary reforms in our government
cannot be estimated. A wise states
man once said: I care not who may
command the army of a nation If can
but write its songs. We might para
phrase this to read We care not
what party has control of the govern
ment of this nation if we can publish
the truth in its newspapers and maya
zines
1.-The press DER the peoples rights
should an eternal vigil keep;
No soothing touch of Mammon's gold
Should lull its myriad eyes to sleep.
What 1t Does.