Evening star., 1948-12-01

!, When the Ole was cast, Cne UnlCeO
Press warned Mr.. Noyes that when
he came back asking for United
Press news again-which, he was
!, assured, would be the case-it would
cost The Star all 1t earned.
1T is hard to realize after the
passage of SO many years the in
tensity of feeling at that time in
newspaperdom," Mr.. Noyes said. 1t
was that intensity of feeling that
led to Mr.. Noyes' involvement in a
libel suit with Dana of the Sun
which became something of a ma
tional sensation. Mr.. Noyes had, in
truth, become a crusader. He went tc
Baltimore and got the Sun and the
American to join the A. P. crusade
From there he went to Philadelphia
and got the Public Ledger to 60
along. His activities in proselyting
for the A. p. brought him into the
A. P. as a director and incurred the
hostility of the New York Sun.
Controversy With Sun.
On February %. 1895, Dana's Sun
started of its editorial page with a
commonplace editorial on George
Washington. But the second edi-
torial was a humdinger under the
title: "The Work of Rascals" For
a column and a half it blasted the
Associated Press and all its works,
running in a sentence-from the
context it appears almost as. an
afterthought-which stated: They
(the members of the A. P) may see
their way to making such a thor
oughly dishonest director as F. B.
Noyes of Washington, for instance
refund to them the amount of the
extra assessments out of which they
have been buncoed."
That same afternoon The Star
ran a brief editorial "' These
ventings of impotent spite
might ordinarily be contemptuously
disregarded; The Star would
not now dignity the matter by notice
if the Sun had not turned aside
from its billingsgate assault upon
the Associated Press in general to
lyingly inpute dishonesty to the
director who represents The Star
in the A. P. management. For this
malicious, personal libel, committed
without shadow of justification or
excuse. the Sun shall be made to
suffer if there is any virtue in the
criminal law Of New York"
The old Washington Times and
the Washington News (no connec-
ton with the present Washington
Daily News came gallantly to the
editorial defense of their fellow
townsman and the Post joined them
in criticizing the Sun for its attack,
advising Mr. Noyes that "he can
well afford to let it pass without
notice of any kind"
Dana Criticized for Attack.
There followed comparable edi-
torials from all parts of the country,
the vast majority of them criticizing
Dana for the attack. Rig Sun
SpotsAMr. Dana Turns the Worst
Side of His Paper Out. A Malicious
Attack Upon Frank B. Noyes of
Washington. The Big Editor May
Be jailed" ran the headlines in the
Plain Dealer of Cleveland. And the
Boston Traveler-"Big Spots on the
Sun. Editor Dana's Scurrilous At
tack on F. B. Noyes of Washington. ;"
The New York World-"To Prose-
cute c. A. Dana. F. B. Noyes An
nounces That He Will Have the Edi-
tor Arrested" Our Jails," pro-
claimed the Louisville Commercial,
And How 1t Feels to Be Put in One
Editor Charles A. Dana May Now
Have q Chance to Write an Article
From Personal Experience So
they went, from coast to coast.
The New York Sun characters
tically noted the results of its edi-
torial. Quoting a tribute to Mr.
Noyes from the Baltimore American,
the Sun spoke as follows: THE GRIM
inals of the New York World have
certified to Mr.. Noyes' high charac-
ter, and 1t is seeming that he should
also get a certificate of excellence
from that Decayed Pierrot of fraud
ulent journalism, the alleged editor
of the Baltimore American" which
prompted the Atlanta journal to
remark: If this wicked old
man DanA doesn't look out, he will
wind up in the calaboose."'
A few weeks later Dana was in
dicted by a Federal grand jury in
Washington on charge of criminal
libel. Again the headlines scared.
And then sentiment began to
change. Under the indictment, Dana
would be served in New York and
extradited to Washington for trial
Under the Maryland common law,
followed In Washington, criminal
libel was an extraditable offense.
Editors. began to think about the
possibilities. Perhaps one of them
might be indicted by Washington
jury and hailed here (the seat of the
Federal Government for trial!
Some papers which had defended
Mr.. Noyes and attacked Mr.. Dana
now reversed themselves and de-
Tended Mr.. Dana and criticized Mr..
Noyes. Freedom of the press, the
editors felt, was endangered. What
happened to Mr.. Dana might. at the
instigation of the politicians In
Washington, happen to them. But
the papers had lot of fun pictur-
ing Dana as headed for jail. THE
Walls of Billingsgate" was one head
line. Dana Under Arrest" blared
the Chicago Tribune, Editor of the
Sun Prisoner for About Four Min
utes"-referring to his appearance,
and release on his own recognizance,
before United States commissioner
in New York.
Criminal Action Thwarted.
Dana hired Elihu Root as his chief
counsel and the legal arguments in
the extradition issue filled the news
columns. The Sun printed every
word of the proceedings, which came
to a pause when the Federal judge
Addison Brown-ruled that Dana
could not be extradited and that the
suit should be brought In New York.
But II Dana came to Washington,