Show NOVELIST FACES LIBEL CHARGES Jury to Decide Deci e if Obscenity Obscenity ity Exists in ill Story of School Days NEW NEWYORK NEW YORK Oct 4 By 4 By The As N.- Associated 1 Press The The state of ot mind of ot the community represented by a Jury is the Judge of ot what is obscene Judge Knox Knot held in n United States district court Monday in excluding expert tes testimony t I timon in the governments government's suil sul suit against John Hermann for libel ir in In connection with his authorship of ot the novel What Happens Customs officials seized copies of at the book look which was printed in innee France nee in the English language on its t arrival here The novel no purports to describe the life Ute led by boys and girls sirls of ot high school age and Hermann as asserted as as- asserted the conditions were not over over- overstated overstated overstated stated and that they actually exist at present Passages es calling a spade a spade as counsel for the Government ex expressed ex- ex expressed expressed pressed It were read to the jury Her Her- Hermann's Hermanns Hermanns Hermann's manns mann's attorneys denied the passages were an attempt to do anything ex except ex- ex except except present the truth in a frank trunk lit literary lit lit- literary crary style or that their client was actuated by any to cater to de debasing debasing basing basini thoughts or sentiments The Jury represents a state of ot mind of ot the community and andIC we IC are going to submit to them the question oi ot whether or not the book is obscene Judge e Knox ruled ho wh a n number of ot witnesses were offered as literary ex experts ex- ex experts experts by the defense On that point there is no necessity for the calling of ot literary experts Hermann formerly a n student at the University of Michigan and George Washington university lives at New Preston Conn |