The weekly chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Craig County, Okla.) 1905-1913, 1910-10-28
GOVERNMENT MAKES
FINAL STATEMENT
Decision in Famous Panama Libel SUN
May Not Be Handed Down BY
Supreme Court for Weeks.

Washington, Oct. 25.-The final at.
tempt of the federal government to
uphold the validity Of the Indictment
in the New York federal courts ~
the Press Publishing company in a
charge of libel, growing out of the
publication in the New York World
on the purchase of the Panama canal
was made yesterday in oral argument
before the supreme court of the Unit.
ed States. The governments efforts
were opposed by arguments for the
Press Publishing company, designed
to sustain the action of the lower fed.
eral court to quashing the indictment.
Sweeping principles of law were said ,
to be involved. Libelous statements.
it was alleged, had been published con.
cerning the highest officials Of the
land. James C. McReynolds, special
assistant of the attorney general, and
Delaney Nicoll, opposing counsel, have
long been prominent in the public
eye Mr.. Nicoll presented to the court
in dramatic fashion, an argument to
show that the whole history and life
of the country condemn the construc-
tion on the act of congress asserted
by the government.
He dwelt first upon the unpopularity
OF the sedition act of 1889, designed
to punish the publication of articles
with intent to stir up sedition. Then
he came down to 1880, when, he said,
in the very room in which he was
speaking, James Buchanan, later pres
ident of the United States, in the trial
of Judge Peck before the United
States senate, had argued that the
founders of the constitution had been
afraid to give the federal government
any authority over the subject of libels
Finally he took up President Roose-
velt's special message to congress in
regard to the alleged libel He des
ignated it as curious reading" For
the next few minutes his voice rang
through the little court room as he
read a portion of the message holding
it to be high national duty" to bring
to justice him who "wantonly and
wickedly and without one shadow of
justification seeks to blacken the char.
acter of reputable private citizen"
and to convict the government of his
own country in the eyes of the ciyiliz-
ed world of wrongdoing of the basest
and foulest kind"
Following Mr.. Nicoll, Mr.. Reynolds
told the court that the government was
concerned in protecting the people re-
siding in a federal jurisdiction In
rebuttal to the argument that the
prosecution should have been brought
where the alleged libel was printed,
or, in other words, in state courts, he
contended that the offense of libel was
not limited to the mere act of printing
but included acts of making it public.
One of these occurred, he claimed, in
federal territory. He entered into a
colloquy with Justices Holmes, White
.and Day as to what law of New York
state is as to libels.
The entire argument on both sides
was limited to two hours. The court
then took the case under advisement
An opinion may not be rendered for
several weeks. The article in ques
tion, was printed in the heat of the {
presidential campaign in : 1908 1t
charged that Charles P. Taft, Douglas /
Robinson and William Nelson Crowell (
with ]. p Morgan and others, obtain L
ed control of the Panama route for
$4,000, 900, and through their intimacy
with Theodore Roosevelt, then presi s
dent, and William H. Taft, then sec g
retary of war, had sold the property
to the United States at a profit of
IS36,000,000. Much attention has beSt
paid to the case by President RooseI
welt during his administration, event
being made the subject of discussion
in a special message to congress.