Evening star., 1924-12-14
GIRL PROVOKED BY s'CYTHEREA''
NEARLY JAILED FOR CRITICISM
Remarks Written Margin of Public Library Book
by High School Miss Traced to Author by
Misspelled WOrd.

Her disapproval of "Cytherea," Jo-
seph Hergesheimer's novel whose screen
version recently was shown here, nearly
got Washington high school girl into
the District Police Court and Jail last
week.
incidentally, she caused lot of work
for the district attorneys office, shared
in by handwriting experts there and
from the Treasury Department, and by
DR.. George F. Bowerman, librarian of
the Public Library. and members of his
staff
The young woman has not been ar
rested. These lines of type will be first
to bring the glad news to her that the
district attorney has decided not to is
sue a warrant, though she confessed in
his office the offense of having glaringly
defaced library book-"Cytherea-'
Gordon Explains Leniency.
The following letter from Mai. Pey-
ton Gordon to DR.. Bowerman explains
why there is to be no prosecution:
Mr.. -- will have told you the re-
suit of the investigation by the district
attorneys office into the defacing of the
library's copy Of Hergeslleimer's novel,
"Cytherea," examined by me.
''Of the apparently two) persons
guilty of this offense, one confessed
after having fatty denied any knowi-
edge of how more than so pages of the
book came to be written on in pencil
and ink
"She is 10 years of age, pupil in one
of the city's high schools. She admitted
having written most Of the defacing
comments "of protest on the margins
and between the printed lines.
$1,000 Fine Possible.
Under the Federal statute, with
which you are familiar, this young
woman can be arrested and prosecuted.
The maximum punishment provided is
one years Imprisonment in Jail and d
fine of 81 900. She, and her mother as
well, have been so informed by me. No
inducement was held out for her confess
sion.
In considering the issuing of a
warrant these circumstances were
weighed: The young woman appears
to be honest in her plea that she did
not realize she was committing an un-
lawful act in defacing the book, and
there is no evidence to disprove her
statement that this is the only time
she has thus abused a library book
lent her on her card. She appears to
be deeply penitent. -.s.
THE disgrace Of arrest, the cost of
legal defense, and the hardship of
punishment would fall heavily upon
the mother as well as disastrously
upon the daughter. The parent is the
widow of a workman who was killed
while an employe of the Government.
She is a poor woman, apparently a
good mother, who by years of hard
work has provided for a family of
five children, and now has paid off
the final installments on her small
home.
Temper Justice With Mercy.
"The daughters offense is estab-
lished and the law Is plain. Yet it
would seem that here is a case where
mercy can properly go along with
justice; and 1 need not be assured
that none will be more prompt to
support such sentiment than yoX
Intelligent persons who enjoy the
privilege of borrowing public books
will do well not to misunderstood
any 1eniency shown in this case as
extending to any other cases of abuse
OF library property in the District.
The district attorneys office is in
formed that the present is only one of
many more or less fragrant instances
of Public Library books defaced by
borrowers, impudent or foolish
enough to presume to add their rel
suggests that they have not known
about the punishment the law pro-
vides for such misconduct. \
Ignorance, however, Is no justifi-
cation for breaking the law, and
trust that the plight in which this
young woman now finds herself will
serve as a warning to all persons who
need it. Further cases of book-de-
facement will be prosecuted and,
upon conviction, punished.
Saved From Punishment.
Under all the circumstances in this
case, 1 feel that the ends of justice
will be best served by saving the
young woman from public punish
ment, and / shall, therefore, not cause
her arrest. Very truly yours,
(SigneO "PEYTON GORDON,
Attorney Of the United Statesi in and
for the District Of Columbia
In q letter acknowledging District
Attorney Gordon's, Librarian Bower
man says:
"I entirely agree with you that the
circumstances justify, you in your de-
cision not to prosecute the person
who has been identified as the one
responsible for at least. a portion of
the DETACHMENT Of the novel 'Cy-
therea.' @ {.
"I note your willingness to prose-
cute other cases in an effort to break
up this practice, sand we shall take
advantage of such offer when similar
cases occur
Section $40. United states Revised
Statutes, provides as follows: ~
"AAx psrsen yhe shall stsaa EzeaE.