The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1810-01-18

This 70as an action for defamation ard
6uSe.
The declaration stated, that the plaintiffs
were good, honest sort Of people, who piled
the old art, invented by Jack Faustus, of
setting Types, by the aid of which they issu
ed public crrcnlar letter, vugarly called a
newspaper; that i'll spite OF the devil and all
his works, they ATTEMPTED TO publish the
frHth; they neither issued praises OF cen
sures upon any individual. unless he dessrv
ed 1t ; that they never arraIgned any man,
as tory, monarchist, or an enemy OF his
country, unless for certain good reasons APP
pearing herewith; that they advocated no
opinions, but what were truly american in
heart and IN principle; that they were not
the hirelng or proiessed advocates of any 70
reign government that they were not of
that party, called in his majesty's parlia-
ment, 1.-the British party" but that in all
that they said and all that they wished, they
had single eye to the good Of their own
country; that ali their principles and patri,
otism were, however, insufficient to sh ED
them from defamation and SANDER; that the
defendants, men of the same metal and cal
ling with themselves, had attacked them.
nnSNi6Hs ct calci6us, with all sorts of abuse :;
had repeatedly styled them ScoundreIs, Vii
laIns, Rascats French Jacobins, French A
gents, and every sort of epitnet, which their
vile Imaginations could furnish; for which
said ungentlemanly and low lived abuse, the
plaintiffs had arraigned the defamere before
the tribunal of the public, and prayed the
Court TO issue against the defendants pro.
per portion of their just indignation and con
tempt.
The plaintiff; proved the truth of their
averment, by the hu6Hc confessions of the
defendants-they proved that they had been
attacked without cause or reason; that the
most degraded epithets were strewed thro'
these pieces Of defamation that the defcn.
dants were not only public defamers of cha
racters, but that they seemed to have lost
sight of all principle and truth that they
were idle and busy headed people, who
forged and divulged false rumours and re
ports on all occasions, contrary to tne Act
OF Assembly in that case made and provided ::
that they stopt at nothing to defame the
measures OF their own Country or to gloss
over the wrongs of Great Britain that this
scurrlcus style of conducting tho public
points tended to introduce biackguardism Sc
abuse into the bosom Of Society, a disrespect
Tor these public fountains of information, and
injurious effects to the whole community
they wonnd up their argument by invoking
the justice ot the court upon these defamers
VINO, they SAID, were as meritorious Candi.
dates Tor public CONTEMPT as the FishwOmen
of Biilingsgatc, or the Postcards of Paris.
In reply 70 these charges, the defendants
confessed gully, but plead necessity in
jusurcation--, hey admitted, that they we're
the " idle, busy headed & scurrilous fellows
which they were represented; that they
were comfriIed, however, by their necessltv
to pursue this course that they were III
Ior nothins eiss but Printing !; and in print
ing, they were III for nothing bu. abuse and
scurrihty; that they could not give any
thing, which they had not 4. that they had no
information to give; no arguments to use :,
no means OF filling up their paper, but by re
curing to the annals Of biilingsgate C,at
they could not think Of issuing a blank piece
OF paper; md that as they had no,king else
to Say, they were forced to employ the most
poignant abuse against the plaintiffs, that they
could devise: that they must not only live
themselves, but that the public prints them
selves wou | grow dull and Hfeless without
defamation that 1t was these ,hings, which
gave life and volatility to papers without
them, they were as doll and fat as small
beer without fixed air; that il was the sauce
to 'he goose, tae zest to public journals: