The Lansing state Republican. [volume] (Lansing, Mich.) 1855-1874, 1859-03-01
A FALSE RECORD.

His Honor Judge MAgTIS is assailed by the
Free Press and other Locotoco papers, on the
ground that in the case Of Day against Owen,
decided by the Supreme Court in October, 1858,
the status or condition Of the negro, was Judi
cialy fixed, a. inferior to that Of the white man.
This entire assumption is falsehOod, and orig
mated with the Detroit Free Press. The SUI
preme Court made no decision 10 the effect that
negroes not entitled to the privileges of white
men, or that they :..,ght lawfully be treated up
Oh all public conveyanccs ~ an inferior race,
and as suen excluded from the ordinary accom-
modations furnished for travellers, nor did the
Court decide that a regulation by which colored
persons are excluded from the cabins Of steam
ers, is reasonable and legal Yet these state
men,s have been made By the Locofoco Press so
often, and have been 80 pertnsciOusly repeated
and pressed upon public attention, that some,
even among the Republican editors, have come
to allow such charges TO pass r--.Iallenged, or
even to give them our implied or tacit assent.
BY referring to TIE report Of the case of Day
Us. owen, ) E-tiGar Peports, P. $50, it will he
perceived that the only question passed upon 10y
the Supreme Court, was dry question of plead
ing, hot at all affecting the merits of the case, or
in anv MANNER affecting relating To the social
or political status Of the negro. Day sued Owen
for refusing TO give him cabin passage on his
steamer Owen pleaded that by the regula-
tons of his boat, colored persons were excluded
from the cabin, and this regulation he ayerred to
be reasonable. Day denurred to the plea, thus
seeking to make the ressOnablencss of the regu-
Ia,ion question OF lar. But the Supreme
Court say tina; the reasonableness land conse
quently the validity OF such a regulation is a
mixed question of law and fact TO be decided by
the jury the trial, and the Court have no right
to say as matter Of law, that il is or is not rea-
sonable. And the demurrer was oyerruled,
without the least intmation on the part Of the
Court to their opinion on the merits OF the
case. Now, as a correspondent of the ddcertis-
err stated last fall, had the plaintiff been 'rhite
man, and the defense alleged that by the rcgua-
tons Of his boat, ali men OF his color were eX-
Guided from the cabin, the decision of the Court
must necessarily have been precisely the same.
Had Owen in the same manner excluded the ed
itor of the Free Press on the prc.ensc that lac
was a gentleman, and defended lis act OH the
ground that gentlemen were not allowed in the
cabin, still the Court, independent of any ques-
ton of color, behavior or profession, would have
been compelled to say as they did in this case,
that the reasonabeness of any such regulation
must be passed upon by the jury, under the ad-
vice and instructions Of the Court. The same or
kindred questions OF reasonable time, reasonable
care, reasonable diligence or skill, which depend
for their solusion so much upon the surrounding
circumstances, have been decided thousands OF
times in the same way-they are mixed questions
Of fact and law, and must be decided by "a jury,
under the advice and direction Of the Judge pre-
siding at the trial.
Now there would be exactly the same propri-
etv, where a Court has held that a plea 10 a de-
caraton on ii promisory note was good in form,
tor the Free Press 10 charge that the Court had
held that promsory note could not be- recover
ed upon, that there is in making the charge in
this case The whole CHARGE IL preposterous
and false