The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1911-11-25
DUBLIN TO COMBAT
IMMORAL LITERATURE
Public Meeting Held to Protest
Against Circulation of Yellow
Newspapers
Publishers Asked not to Print De-
tails of Crimes and Divorce
Court Proceedings.
Irish Papers Show Willingness to
Co-Operate-London Papers are
Worst Offenders.

In the city of Dublin where there is
without a doubt less immoral litera-
ture in circulation than in any Amer
lean city of equal size the people are
up in arms against the spread of the
plague of immoral newspapers and
post cards. A couple of weeks ago
a public meeting was held in the Irish
capital for the purpose of devising
ways and means for checking the
traffic" in immoral literature which
Is carried on to so great an extent.
A number of prominent speakers were
present who reviewed the situation
and urged prompt and determined ac-
ton in the matter.
Rev. Miles Roman, spiritual director
of st. ColuE.bas Branch of the Cath
olic Young Mems Society, said that
''the time has come for the formation
of a Dublin vigilance committee to
defend our people against the insidi-
Gus attempts of modern journalism to
corrupt thenl.' He said they were as
sembled to enter upon great cru
sade, a holy war, against the enemies
of Christian morality, and against
their diabolical campaign carried on in
the mischievous publications. of mod
ern journalism. They had long borne
and with a certain amount of shame
this insidous attack, and concealed
themselves behind closed doors. Some
of them had from time to time cried
out in the wilderness, but their cries
found no echo. No longer in the will
derness, but from the housetops, they
must proclaim their war. Coming
down in to the public places they
would give battle to the enemies Of
our Christian heritage. They would
not content themselves with saying.
They would do and act What were
they going to do? He had before
pointed out the necessity of forming a
Dublin vigilance committee It should
be their first duty to single out the OBJ
jectionable papers; those that were
subverslve of morality. When they
remembered, too, the patronage that
had been bestowed from time to time
innocently he believed and without
calculating the consequences, on those
corrupt publications by some of their
public representative men it was time
to bring the matter clearly before them
and point out their sad mistakes. Such
patronage was means of scattering
these publications amongst our Irish
people. The morality Of the Irish
home was a precious heirloom not to
ical consideration. If their people were
corrupted, debased and depraved in
their moral sense no political advan-
tage would compensate the nation for
the loss of the virtuous ideal that had
been transmitted to them through dark
and stormy days. 1t behooved them
then to censure any 1rishman, public
or private, who would defile his pen
by contributing to the columns of any
immoral cross Channel newspapers
The time had come when a
Dublin Vigilance Committee should be
formed to defend our people against
the insidious and mischievous at
tempts of modern journalism to cor
rupt them. With Gods help, and with
the intercession of st. Patrick, they
hoped to Danish these serpents from
amongst them.
The Catholic Young Mems Society
sent out letters to the Dublin papers
asking for the opinion of the publish
ers on the movement. The replies
were very favorable. The Dublin
Times replied as follows:
1.-THE Editor of the Irish Times
presents his compliments to the Chair
man and Secretary of the recent meet
ing Of the Catholic Young Mems So
ciety. The Editor recognizes that the
unrestricted publication of the details
of divorce cases is undesirable in the
public interest, and he is in full SYM
pathy with the Society's views on the
subject. All such reports when sub
mitted to the Irish Times receive
special and careful consideration, and
are never published when their in