The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1910-06-29
MUCK.RAkERS.

While the exposure of corruption
and dishonesty among public officials
Is one of the Important duties of the
press, an excess Of zeal in that direc-
ton sometimes results in doing Unjust.
ice to the individuals affected and af-
fords good cause for resentment and
complaint. In the case of profession
al muck.rakers-men who write seusa.
tional articles for newspapers and
magazines-whose alleged exposures
Of wrong doing r not justified by
facts which they could readily as.
certain, stronger and more effective
methods of suppression should be used.
No mar in public Life today has
been so viciously assaulted by the pro.
f~essional muck.rskers az Richard Bal
linger, secretary of the interior, who
recently commenced suit for libel
against one of his most bitter and per.
sistent traducers. In the current is.
sue of Leslie's Weekly, the profes.
sional muck-raker is given q deserved
roast by MI. Ballinger, his remarks
being in part to this effect:
''Thou shalt not bear false witness
against thy neighbour" is no part of
the creed of the professional muck.
raker; quite the contrary. Again, 1t
seems to be unfortunately true that the
interest Of the public in wild and
groundlees charges is creating q sup.
ply which Is more than equal to the de.
mand. OF course every public officer
must assume the rick of criticism and
of misrepresentation, also the perady
of ambitious political enemies; but,
standing securely upon his conscious
rectitude, he may defy his enemies
and console himself with the hope of
ultimate justice from q people who
look through the dust of calumny and
see the true man beyond. The mis-.
chievous effects, however, of muck
raking public officers often result in
their being intimid ated and frustrat.
ed in their endeavor to perform their
duty.
"Muck.raking, when animated by
the spirit of purging the public service
of unworthy public officials, ia laud.
able in so far as the muck.raker reach
es muck and removes it from the public
service. But the muck.writer who
seeks to place slime upon q worthy
public official Is the greatest criminal
OF the age-barring, of course, his mas
ter, the muck.publisher. The muck
writer may be likened unto a bee that
stings, but lays up no honey. He is,
in the extreme sense, an assassin OF
character and drives his pen as near to
offending the law Of libel and slander
as he dare. He is essentially q cow
ard, because he strikes without warn.
ing and gives no chance to parry the
blow. It matters not what sacrifices
the public officer mayi,have made in
assuming his Office. 1t matters not
what the burden of difficulties of ad.
ministration or official oblig alton may
be, or with what courage, integrity or
zeal he may pursue his work. These
do not mitigate, but rather intesify
the villainy of his traducers.
SIT is only men of iron nerve who
can stand against these fires set about
them. The effect, as has been said,
on most men is that they spend some
Of their time in the performance OF
official duties, and the remainder in
explaining why they did what they
should have done. OF course, the
explanation being a mere recital OF
the ordinary and proper acts of ar
official, attracts no attention; but the
highly colored insinuations of oficiaI
wickedness are read with wide.opeu
eyes. This is the essence of the muck.
raker's art and the methods mos
usually adopted of d%iscrediting the
public officials"