The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1908-12-18

living and E5clous editorials. articles
from correspondents Or articles in
the news columns. The real offender
is Mr.. Joseph Pulitzer, editor = and
proprietor Of the World. While the
criminal offence Of which Mr.. Puit-
zer has been guilty is in the form Of
libel upon individuals: the great in
jury done is in blackening the good
name Of the American people. It
should not be left to a private citizen
to sue Mr.. Pulitzer for libel. He
should be prosecuted for libel by the
government authorities.
"In point of encouragement of ini-
guilty, in point Of infamy, of wrong
doing. there is nothing to choose be-
tween a public servant who betrays
MS trust, a public servant who is gull
ty Of blackmail or theft or financial
dishonesty or any kind, and man
guilty as Mr.. Jos Pulitzer has been
guilty in this instance. It is, there
fore. a high national duty to bring to
justice this villifier Of the American
people, this man who wantonly and
wickedly and without one shadow of
justification seeks to blackmail the
character Of reputable private citiz-
ems and to convict the government of
his own country in the eyes Of the ci-
vilized world Of wrong doing Of the
basest and foulest kind, when he has
not one shadow Of justification Of
any sort or description for the charge
he has made. The attorney general
has under consideration the form in
which the proceedings against Mr..
Pulitzer shall be brought"
The president cites the Act of con-
gress by which he was authorized to
pay $4O,OOO,00O for the canal proper
ty, and says it was no concern Of the
president what the new Panama Can
al Company did with the money.
Deal Made by Knox.
"The Panama Canal transaction
was actually carried through, not by
eitenr the then secretary Of State,
Mr.. John Hay, or the then secretary
of war, Mr.. Elihu Root, both of whom
however, we're cognizant of all the cs.
sential features, but the then attor-
ney general, Mr.. P. G. Knox, at pres
ent senator from Pennsylvania. l
directed or approved every action,
and am responsible for all that was
done in carrying out the will Of the
congress; and the provision Of the law
enacted by congress after exhaustive
examination and discussion were ;c:a-
pulously complied with by the exeeu-
tive.''
The action Of the government, he
says, was wholly uninflueneed by any
question Of who we're or were not
stockholders, either in the new or the
old company.
eff, as a matter Of fact" he ex-
plains, "the canal companies, either
or both, had been owned by American
citizens or by citizens Of any other
nationality, it would not have a|;er-
ed in the slightest degree the actl''
taken by this government. Our con-
Germ was to get the canal property
which was owned by the French com'
pany, and to see that the title Was
clear. Our transactions were carried
on openly, and we're published in de-
tail, and we dealt solely $50 far as
the interests of the old Panama Com
pany were concerned) with the liqui-
dator appointed by the proper French
governmental body, the Civil Tribu-
nal of the Seine.
Didn't Manage Distribution Of MCn-
tJ. -.
II wish to make as clear as posi-
BILE, and as emphatic as possible, the
statement that we did not have any,
thing to do with the distribution Of a
dollar of the S40,0G0,00O we paid as
regards any stockholder or bond
holder Of the French companies, save
that we followed out the award Of the
arbitrator appointed in accordance
with the decree Of the French court,
which had dealt with the subject in
awarding a certain proportion to tae
old company and a certain proporti2 l
to the new company.
GAS matter Of fact, there is moth
ing whatever in which this govern
ment is interested to investigate abJ1t
this transaction. So far as this gvv-
ernment is concerned every step Of