The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1912-06-05
TOM WATSON IS ARRESTED
CHARGE is SENDING OBSCENE
MATTER THROUGH MAILS.
Prosecution Grows Out of His Cru
SADIE Against the Roman Cath
Ollie Church.


rant Saturday afternoon for the ar
rest of Thomas E. Watson, of Thorn
son. editor of Watson's Magazine
charging him with sending obscene
matter through the mails in the May
issue of the magazine.
Watson's Auto Meets Officer.
The arrest of Mr.. Watson was
made Monday. United States Mar
shall White reached Thomson about
noon, was met at the depot by Mr..
Watson's automobile, and carried to
Mr.. Watson's home for dinner.
After dinner they made their way
to Augusta in Mr.. Watson's automo-
bile for the appearance before Com
missioner w. H. Goodwin. The case
was postponed on account of the in
ability of District Attorney Alderman
to reach Augusta before Friday.
There were fully one hundred
friends of the former populist leader
at the federal court building when
the party arrived. When the ques-
ton of bond was raised more than
two dozen asked to be honored with
going on it, but only two were per-
mitted to sign the bond, these being
w. w. Ramsey and DR.. w. w. Rus
sey, prominent business men of Au
gusta.
The warrant is the outgrowth of a
series of articles printed in Watsons
Magazine on the usages of the Ro-
man Catholic church in which are
quoted alleged extracts from church
dogma for the instruction of priests
in questioning penitents in the con-
fessional. The questions were print
ed in the Latin tongue, and there
are two alleged sets TO be asked, one
for men and one for women.
The editorial in question was a
diatribe against the president grow
ing out of the journey of Major Butt
to Rome, which, it has been alleged,
was for the purpose of carrying and
receiving messages of more than
complimentary nature between the
president and the pope and Cardinal
Merry Del Val, the papal secretary
of state Watson in his editorial
treatment of the incident charged
the president with responsibility for
the death of Major Butt, who was
lost on the Titanic, and called the
pope names.
Mr.. Watson says he has nothing to
fear from the trial. He declares the
matter objected to was simply quot
ed from a Catholic book that was
copyrighted by the United States
and he was using one of the books
printed in the twelfth edition. He
contends that if the government per-
mitted the book to be copyrighted
and twelve editions to be printed he
had a right to use quotations from
it. Continuing he says:
when l began the series of ar
ticles on the Roman Catholic HER
archy the American News Company,
which is under the Cathedral infu-
ence Of New York, threatened me
with a boycott. The articles were
published nevertheless, and the cow
ardly boycott blow was struck. For
the time it destroyed our news stand
circulation. The Washington News
Company, a subsidiary of the Amer
lean News Company, also boycotted
us. Last summer the Knights OF
Columbus held their annual conven-
ton and passed resolutions to the
effect that / should be put out of
business This informa ion was con-
tanned in the Bulletin, a magazine
for private circulation, issued by the
American Federation of Roman
Catholic Societies. A Roman Catho-
lie, who is friend of mine, sent me
this copy of the Bulletin. Another
copy, that of May, 1912, was sent me
by another friend. 1t published the
/ statement that certain Roman Cath
olics were instigating the postof1ce
authorities to prosecute me for VIOLA
| ton of the postal laws
The penalty for sending obscene
matter through the mails is a fine
of not more than $4,000 or impris-
onment in the penitentiary for not
more than five years, or both.
In view of the attacks Mr. Watson
has been making on the Catholic
church the outcome of the present
matter will be watched with great
! interest.
District Attorney Alderman says
this proceeding against Mr.. Watson
will not Interfere with the latter
attendance upon the democratic con-
vention at Baltimore. "Mr Watson