The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1910-02-03

For Attacks On Former President
Roosevelt And President Taft
Quashed BY Judge House On The
Ground That Federal Statute APP
piled Is Not Sufficient In Author
ity And That The United States
COURT Lacks Jurisdiction.
New York Especially The indict-
ment against the Press Publishing
Company, publishers of the New
York World, charging Joseph Pulitz-
er and others with criminal libel
against Theodore Roosevelt, -Presi-
den. Taft and others. was quashed
in the United States District Court
Judge Hough ruled that the statute
upon which the indictment rested
was not sufficient in authority, or.
IL other words. that the court had
no jurisdiction.
Delaney Nicoll. counsel for the
defendants, interpreted the decision
as a signal victory for the freedom
of the press. The curious and in
genious mind.' he said, that
brought to life. for the first time in
80 years, the law under which this
prosecution was begun has retired to
private life, but has left this legacy
behind 1t.
The statute under which this suit
was brought was drafted to punish
offenses not covered by the laws of
the section in which they were COM
mitted. In constituting the statute
it is not for us to consider what
a fair-minded attorney general
might do under it; it is for us to
consider what can be done with it.
We had better have the sedition law,
or even the star chamber, again than
such monstrous practice as the
government advocated in this pro-
ceeding."
Roosevelt's Scathing Words.
President Roosevelt, in his mes
sage of December Is, 1908, to Con-
gress, thus characterized the publ
cations of which he complained:
1T is idle to say that the known
character of Mr.. Pulitzer and his
newspaper are such that the state
ments in that paper will be believed
by nobody; unfortunately, thousands
of persons are il-informed in this
respect and believe the statements
they see in print, even though they
Mr.. Pulitzer.
These statements are false in ev-
cry particular from beginning to end
The wickedness of the ISLANDERS is
only surpassed by their faulty. SO
utterly baseless are the stories that,
apparently, they represent, in part,
merely material collected for cam
paign purposes. and. in part, stories
originally concreted with view of
possible blackmail.
II do not believe we should con-
cern ourselves with the particular
individuals who wrote the lying and
libellous articles. The real offender is
Mr.. Joseph Pulitzer. editor and pro-
prietor of the World. 1t should not be
left TO a private citizen to sue Mr.
Pulitzer for libel. He should be pro-
secuted for libel by the governmental
authorities. There is nothing to
choose between a public servant who
betrays his trust, publil servant
who is guilty of blackmail, or theft |
or financial dishonesty of any kind.
and man guilty as Mr.. Joseph
Pulii y has been guilty in this in.
stance 1t is, therefore, a high ma
tonal duty TO bring to justice this
rilifier of the American people,"
Belongs In State Courts.
Judge Hough in rendering his de-
c!sion said. in part:
1t is charged here that the crime
OF sending libelous matter through
the mails is punishable at the place
OF destination of the libelous matter.
If it is so held that the offense OF
libel on federal territory is a crime
cognizable in the federal courts, the
question is broad one. In this
case we have an alleged libel that
was published in New York City and
sent out into Orange County But
we find that in the distribution made
in Orange County it happened to
be disseminated at West Point. a
territory ceded to the government,
and, therefore, the action comes up
in this court
"lt cannot be denied that by the
same act crime may be committed
cognizable by the State and the ma
tion. but this affords no reason TO
confine the punishment of the Of
fender to one jurisdiction. The law
which has been invoked here is,
take II, simply territorial convent
ence, and. therefore, in this case. IL
any crime has bcen committed, IL
Is to be regarded rather as an Of
tense against the State OF New
York, which happened to be COM
mitted On government land, 'haT an
offense against rhe government un-
der The statute.
The burden OF proof rests upon
the prosecution TO show that II was
the intent OF Congress to intrust to
the courts OF the United States the
punishment 6i ofanses other than
ia sc primarily committed on limited
states territory "