The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-12-30
NO RETRACTION IN
BISMARCK CASE
Continued From Page One.
L. E. Opdyke and Editor F. e. Packard
Of The Bismarck. Times:
To Whom II Nav Concern.

~ V'SHb II way SOHSGFns
1t having been heralded far and
wide in the press of the northwest
that The Bismarck Times had re-
tracted and as a result the criminal
libel suits brought by E. G. Patterson
had been dropped, we make the fol-
lowing statement in self Justification.
The criminal libel suits were dis
missed by Judge Winchester on motion
Of States Atty. w. L. Smith of Bur
leigh county for the good and SUI
ficient reason that he did not believe
that the defendants could be convicted
of the crime charged. We never made
any stipulation touching them nor did
we ever file any retraction concerning
them with w. L. Smith or anybody
else.
On the representation of a friend
Of Mr.. Patterson's we did agree to see
him and secure the dismissal of the
civil damage case. 1t was represented
to us that Mr.. Patterson was very
DESTROYS for business reasons and for
the good of the community to stop the
suit and secure peace in the city and
county. He agreed to drop the damage
suit if we would make some kind of
a statement to save his face. Neither
he nor his gO-between ever demanded
a retraCtiOn. In view of the fact that
Mr.. Patterson has been driven from
political power in the county and the
end accomplished for which The Times
fought. we were very liberal with him
and gave him the benefit of every
doubt. This statement touches upon
but one of the eighteen cases brought
against us and has to do with the
charge of petty grating. h WAS
the only case tried in justice court
and we there won before an unfriendly
justice. In the statement made as the
basis Of the dismissal Of the civil suit,
the irregularities are admitted on
which we based the charge of grating
and nowhere in the article does the
word retraction occur, in fact or in
substance.
There was no retraction in onnec
ton with the criminal case as the
statement of Mr. Smith which is given
below shows and if the statement
covering the one civil case can pos
sibly be tortured into the shadow of a
~retractiOn, we repudiate that portion
of the article. We did not intend to
retract when we signed the stipula-
ton and We do not now either wish or
intend to retract a single statement
which The Times has ever made
against Mr.. Patterson.
Each and every criticism we nave
ever made against him has been made
in good faith and without malice and,
as we believed, for the best interests
of the community and to retract that
which we believed to be true and for
the common welfare would be dis
honorable and despicable cowardice.
While we wish to be fair to Mr.. Pat
terson and to give him the benefit of
every doubt, cannot and will not, re-
tract a single word of h a which We
believe to be true and while we desire
peace in the community, no permanent
good can come from a dishonorable
peace.
Manager of The Bismarck Times.
F. E. Packard,
Editor Bismarck Times.
=. Smiths Statement.
To The Forum: F. E. Pack
ard and L, e. Opdyke Of The Bismarck
Times request me to write you with
reference to the dismissal in our
district court of certain criminal cases
in which they were charged with libel,
Edward G.. Patterson of this place be-
ing the person who claimed himself
to have been libeled.
Will say in that connection that
these cases were really never pending
in the district court as no informations
were ever filed therein. However the
defendants had been held to answer
to the district. court by proceedings
! irregular, in that they were never APP
proved by the states attorney or the
| attorney general as rs required by law.
These officers never approved the
proceedings for the reason that they
were satisfied under the law and the
facts that no crime or crimes had been
committed. The states attorney pre-
sented these facts to the Judge Of the
| district court as the reasons why no
informafions should he filed and ask
ed that the defendants be discharged.
The Judge of the court so ordered. No
agreement or stipulation of my of the
parties concerned in the matter had
anything to do with the actions" of the
states attorney in asking for the dis
missal of the cases. No stipulation,
~retraction or papers of n sort We're
ever filed with the states attorney.
Yours very truly,
w. II. Smith, States Attorney, Bur
| leigh county.