The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-08-01
GRAF TIERS Of
SAN FRANCISCO
Continued from Page Nine.)

prosecution is the attitude assumed by
the various newspapers of the city.
One might we'll think that an ugly po-
litical and moral situation which has
confronted San Francisco for several
years past, and which has given her an
evil name throughout the civilized
world would bring the newspapers to
the support of those who are endeavor-
ing to cleanse it of its grafters. On
the other hand, however, but two pa
pers out or five are fighting tooth aud
nail for the prosecution, while the rest
are either Indifferent or set stolidly
against the reform forces as represent
ed by the prosecution, while at the
same time they have editorially advo-
Gated the falling of every political
felon and "higher-up' who has been
guilty of transgressing the law. In
other words the forces are really on
the same side of the fence but fighting
among themselves, which one might add
is a peculiar characteristic of San
Francisco life in all its walks, and one
of the few unpleasant things about the
city. 1t shows, however, that opinion
is so strong as to the guilt of those
under Indictment that no paper in the
city would dare to state that they were
not guilty, unless perhaps it were some
small weekly, bought outright by the
grafters, but these need hardly be
counted in the reckoning; and it fur
Their goes to show that the prosecution
is cordially hated in some influential
channels, which heretofore always have,
and no doubt will in the future, stand
for clean politics and clean city, but
at present they will not stand for the
prosecution. and in that regard they
are simply more outspoken than many
of the citizens.
The fight goes on with each paper
trying to outdo the others in the matter
of getting news about the battle wag
ing between the forces of righteousness
and sin, and should one journal succeed
in getting a tempting morsel first the
others pooh pooh the entire story to
the best of their ability.
A striking example of this was
shown recently when one prominent
newspaper uncovered what is evidently
going to prove most important clue
in discovering the identity of those
-h~ l.
visor Gallagher before he finished Civ.
ing important testimony to the pros
ecution, and who finally ended up by
blowing up his. houses. Two Greeks,
John and Peter Claudianes are suspect,
ed of doing the work and one is in
custody and has involved Abe Ruef in
his testimony, which is not valued very
highly owing to the fact that the Greek
in custody is weak minded and an in.
veterate liar according to his attorney,
who abandoned his case after a few
other brother who is suspected of doing
the dynamiting is still at large and a
large force of detectives are now busy
securing California and Nevada in at
tempts to find him. Should he be
caught an endeavor will be made to
force him to tell who paid the money
for doing the dynamiting, and it is
presumed that if the information is
given it viii be startling in its char,
aeter. One prominent morning paper
recently seooped all the other pa
pers and for the first time told the
world what had been discovered about
the dynamiting. The story no doubt
was somewhat exaggerated in its de-
tails though true in the main and
created considerable of a sensation in
the city.
Tt was with some amusement then
that subscribers to the other papers
which came out the next morning read
that most of the story was eoneocted
out of somebody's brain and that there
was little truth to any of the state,
ments made. The general effort of the
papers which had been left out in the
cold were directed toward finding some