"[69] But
in general the judiciary has been curiously complaisant, and more than
once a Puritan on the bench has delighted the Comstocks by prosecuting
their case for them.[70] With such decisions in their hands and such aid
from the other side of the bar, it is no wonder that they enter upon
their campaigns with impudence and assurance. All the odds are in their
favour from the start. They have statutes deliberately designed to make
the defence onerous; they are familiar by long experience with all the
tricks and surprises of the game; they are sheltered behind
organizations, incorporated without capital and liberally chartered by
trembling legislatures, which make reprisals impossible in case of
failure; above all, they have perfected the business of playing upon the
cowardice and vanity of judges and prosecuting officers. The newspapers,
with very few exceptions, give them ready aid. Theoretically, perhaps,
many newspaper editors are opposed to comstockery, and sometimes they
denounce it with great eloquence, but when a good show is offered they
are always in favour of the showman[71]--and the Comstocks are showmen
of undoubted skill.
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