Salt Lake Tribune | 1913-10-21 | Page 3 | Tom Watson Faces Court as Culprit

'TOM WATSON FJCES COURT AS CULPRIT Accused of Sending Improper Matter Through the Mails; Offers His Defense. AUGUSTA, Ga., Oct. 20. Hearing of tho motion of tho dofenso to quash tho fodornl indictment against Thomas E. Watson, editor, publicist nnd politician, politi-cian, chnrgod with sending Improper mattor through tho mails, was continued contin-ued today until tomorrow by United States Judge Kufus E. Foster, in order to give the court opportunity to study the languugo of tho publications alleged al-leged to bo objectionable. Judgo Foster Fos-ter culled tho enso thia morning and directed that a jury be druwii. Upon request of S. G. McLcndon of counsel for tho dol'onso tho drawing of tho jury wns postponed in order that two motions might be presented to tho court. Tho first was a petition asking that tho government bo directed to file a bill of particulars, specifying tho issues is-sues of ''Wutson'B Alngnf.ine," nnd "Tho Jofferfloninn," in which tho alleged al-leged obsceno languogo appeared. By direction of tho court this liumodiatoly was 00m plied with. Tho second motion upon which argument argu-ment is uucoinplotod sought tlio quashing quash-ing of tho indictmout. It was admitted by tho defense that Watson hnd writton and published certain cer-tain attaoks upon tho Ilomnn Catholic church in which the passages referred to in tho indictment returned against him Novcmbor ll, 1912, appeared. Two of thoso passages worn in English and ono in Latin. Mr. McLcndon, nowovor, argued that tho indictment should be jqunshod because tho alleged unmailable matter wns not sot out therein; or names of any peroii8 addrtwsed givoii, bec-nnso the "publication containing the passage is not a book or pamphlet: because be-cause tho lnngunge is not within th meaning of tho statute, bceauso tho su- firemo court has no authority to oatab-ish oatab-ish a standard of obscenity and localise lo-calise the statute itself h indofiuiio in that it omitp tho mention of newspti-pers newspti-pers nnd magaxincs. Ho contonded that the federal statute stat-ute was void because rougref-s had no power to make any act a eriiiic in which tho element of unlawful intent was not involved or io abridge the freedom of tho press. Mr. Melmlon wns in tho midst of thia argument when Judgo Foster interrupted, saying it seemed useless to pursuo further tho historical aspects of the matter. "The United States supreme court has decided." said Judge Foster, "that congress ean exclude obcenc newspapers, newspa-pers, mngaiines or letters. This would not. in rav opinion, trench upon the freedom of the pross, and I eannot understand un-derstand how anv man would bo unable to express his idoj without rceortiag to tho use of filthy language. " Saving that the real minwo of the case was to detenuino whether the language lan-guage referred to in th Sndiclmcnt wn. in violation of the law. Judge Foster Fos-ter adtourned ourt until tomorrow in order to f miliar? himself with the nature of the im.ve3 in fiucstion. It was tM tvnlsht hr Mr. Mrlndon 1 1 T wti'i tl'" nrrn'n-t Mr Watson Mrwtllv U mbmlltci! for arcumenl thn dn-fondant dn-fondant wouh! addreaiK tfee iury In bin own boholf. Ho Is-x hvwyor a ad has ben admitted to pnictiea fn the United States courts.