The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1910-07-21
HARMON HAS
YET To EXPLAIN
Tragedy at Newark Might Have
Been AVeTtGd.
COMMENT OF THE STATE PRESS

Months AGO Would Have Made 1t
Unnecessary to Furnish Pound of
Cure Today - Governors Inquiry
Limited Strictly to Crime Of JuIyS.
1t is regrettable that out Of the
lynching at Newark must come criti-
cism Of Governor Harmon-especial-
ly since Le acted with promTtness
and vigor and with a singleness Of
purpose after the atrocious act of the
mob had fastened the stain of law
lesSness on the state
The governor has. in the pas. been
perhaps too fond of eXtolling home
rule. Home rule worked out to its
last analysis means for each COM
munity, and finally for each indlvid-
ual, to elect what laws shall be obey
ed and what laws shall be ignored
The policy OF non-interference is too
frequently the harbOr of refuge of he
who does not dare. Governor
Harmon did make a Tentative show
of interference. to prevent a wild
west show On Sunday at Oakley but
when his orders were dsrespectfully
ignored, he took 10 step to resent the
affront to the dignity of MS high
office.
The inquiry now under way will
fix the legal blame for the crime, and
the laws penalties will be exacted
from the mob-leaders. But there is
moral blame, as well, which the
Bellaire Independent calls to mind.
Locking the Barn.
Every official" it says, who, in
the slightest degree, is responsible
for the enforcement of the law in
Newark is now trying to shift the
blame for Fridays shameful rot and
lynching upon the others shoulders.
The people of Newark are not con-
tented with the excuses of the mayor
and the sheriff, nor the people Of
Ohio with the action of Governor
Harmon. The removal of Mayor Ath-
erton and Sheriff Linke will not sat
isfy Governor Harmon's constituents.
Anyone knows enough to lock the
pdlu dIIGl Tie nOl SS Is SlOlel
The Pound of Cure.
To the East Liverpool Review, it
appears that Governor Harmon's
handling of the Newark case may be
all the more vigorous because of his
mastery inactivity in the face of con-
ditions which he knew to exist there
and at Zanesville 20 miles away. The
governor can hardly fail to realize
now that the ounce of prevention ad-
ministered months ago would have
made it unnecessary to furnish the
pound OF cure which he is dosing
Newark with now"
Waiting For Bloodshed?
The Coshocton Age, reviewing the
failure of GAINESVILLE complainants tG
interest the governor in the law vio-
lations in that city, asks: Does not
the governor act unless there is
bloodshed? Or is he playing two
kinds of politics. and giving Zanes-
vile a dose Of one and Newark a
dose of the other? If his action in
the GAINESVILLE case was right, then
he is wrong in the Newark case; ana
if he is right now, then he was rad
ically wrong with GAINESVILLE. Perhaps
the governor of the great state of
Ohio will stop playing botn ends
against the middle long enough to ex-
plain his motive and modus oper-
andi."
That Newark and GAINESVILLE are
| not alone in openly disregarding
liquor laws is frankly admitted by
the Salem News, which says: That
Columbiana county and Salem have
escaped the dire results of ignoring
law, which are shown so stcikingly
at Newark, is due more to the tenn
permanent of our people than to the
good fortune of having the suprem-
acy and dignity of the law constantly
exemplitied"
Time to Enforce Law.
The same paper adds: "A most
grave duty has been placed at the
| door of the chief executive of this
state by this incident and the good
| people of the commonwealth, regard
less of political feeling or of opinions
touching the merits of the various
temperance questions, hope he will
rise to the occasion and put down
| the insolent spirit of anarchy"
Anarchy is strong word that is
| generally avoided by Ohio papers.
but the Pittsburg Gazette Times
holds that the lynching was the out
come of studied defiance of the law,
and the whole incident was redolent
of anarchy. Having no respect for
the supremacy of the law as it re-
lates to the sale of liquor it was but
natural that the next step of the
offenders should ignore the law
touching the rights of prisoners in
the county jail and from that to
open contempt for the law which is
supposed to protect human life in
volved but one more stage in the
degradation of city and common
wealth"
No Virtue In Late Action.
The Mansfield News hesitates to
believe the story that Governor Har-
| mon uaS f,,lly advised as tn tne con-