Martinsburg statesman-democrat. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1906-1921, 1913-02-21


sion anent the Charleston episode, Il
is not disposed to applaud the de-
nouncement of this cleyerly planned
and carefully played tragedy
It is not as if the detectives had,
by the legitimate exercise of their
powers and rights as officers Of the
law, discovered acts of bribery,
wherein the giver and taker were
both In earnest and both equally to
blame But we have, instead of this
condition, the spectacle of men con
spring with men OF high position
and publicly aspiring for Sin high
er perferment, to play upon the weak
ness of legislators as yet unoifend-
ing, and by persuasive arts and prom
ises OF fabulous sums OF money i'll
ducing them to take step into ruin.
1t is an undisputed fact that the
chief of the Burns agents, acting In
the supposed capacity Of campaign
manager for Mr. Edwards, was Law
ish in his entertainment OF human
quarry, and that he even persuaded
two OF the intended victims to this
great moral coup to accompany him
on a trip all the way to Washington
where they were regaled upon the
fat Of the land, and shown the most
distinguished attentions 1t was by
the employment Of this method OF
persistence and by constantly dang
ling before the eyes of these men Wis
ions of sums of money which to them
ia their impoveri she'd condition,
menat wealth that they We're finally
inveigled into the trap which caused
the country to ring with their dis
grace Whatever may be said to the
contrary, the Herald-Dispatch main
tains that the end does not always
Justify the means. and that the
means employed in this case were
reductive and treacherous and more
powerful as incentives to the com
mission of crime than useful or hon
orabe in its detection. The thing
conjures up the spectacle Of men for
money and notoriety preying upon
the Weaknesses of other men and
bringing them down to disgrace and
ruin, not that they were attaiRted OF
any initiative i'll crime or yenality,
but because somebody wanted to
catch somebody, and was willing TO
pay price to have weak msn laid
low in order No attach to himself
little brief glorifcation. The de.
toctlve is a mighty useful institution,
ana the Burns agency has done some
good work. But it occurs just here
that the legitimate aims of the detec
tives calling may be prosituted to
mN orthy purposes. To entrap men
to induce them 10 commit themselves
to dishonorablc steps for the sake of
money, is to aid aud abet the crime.
There can be no seller unless there
is a buyer,
Let this point be made clearer:
No man who can be proven guilty of
d willingne IS to take bride money
for his vote deserves any compass
SIGN. But the practice of persuadng
men to take laise steps for the mere
glorifcation of others, by the offer
of great monetary reward, is repre-
hensible in the extreme. These
agents, as We UNDERSTAND it, did not
DISCOVER BRIBERY. THEY CON
NINED TO LEAD MEN TO AC
CEPT BRIDES. OF course the law
holds the givers guiltless, and the
admrne throng will attribute 70
them fine strategic genius while their
victims, if formally convicted, will
suffer ignomiuy and ruin in consc.
Quences Of the coup css9yed TO prove
that members OF the West Virginia
Legislature could be bought 1t Was
not a case of one candidate employ
ing detectives to cutrap his competi-
tors i'm guilty alliance with purchas
able lei ilators. Ii was, rather an
instance tending to yaunt mans
own virtues to the skies at the eN
pcuse of q states disgrace and the