New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-09-14
THE LATE LHBRL-sUIT.

IuXury OIL lOuI S't~
village of Pulaski. the eastern haa'-Snio WV "
Oswego County. within reach oil 'ne hea''n-s""e
breezes of Lake Ontario, having oeeu urgently
;u,;ted tbitber by the Hon. Dewitt Z. Little-
;ohr soeoter Of our last Assembly and OF eev-
eral of its predecessors. In other WORDS We
,rors symmoned TO "assist" at the trial OF
pbe,.snit. wherein the Speaker aforesaid claimed
Coz 600 damages Of one Horace Greeley. The
alleged libel itself, with other matters urged
in aggrayation thereof and the opening for the
plaintiff, are given in that portion of our full
stenographic report Of the trial which appears
in our columns this morning. We shall print on
Monday the lucid and thorough opening for the
defense by Isaiah T. Williams, esq, Of this city,
and follow it next morning with the testimony
adduced for the defense, and the ruling OF bis
Honor Judge Bacon, whereby the great body of
the evidence offered ON that side was rigor-
ously excluded. IL we shall be able to give there
with the burning words which that ruling elected
from John X. Porter, esq, of Albany, we may
expect to conclude the publication of the trial BY
Thursday morning ut furthest. The whole VIII
be immediately published in compact, cheap
pamphlet, which can hardly be exceeded in poti-
CAL legal or general interest by any recently
issued.
The legal and paramount interest of the trial will
necessarily center in the important rulings OF
Judge Bacon to which we have already adverted.
As those rulings are not yet in terms before the
public the prOpricty of pcstponing comment
is obvious. They cannot fail to attract large
measure of attention from the Bench, the Bar,
! and the Public.
IL we rightly apprehended those rulings and
the charge of Judge Bacon, the jury were in
structed that the article in question was a libel
in law and must be taken by them to be one in
fact-that no justification of it had been offered,
much less established, and the only question lett
TO their discretion was the measure of damages
in assessing which the unequaed circulation and
vast influence of TIE TRIBUNE were to be
| taken into consideration. Under this charge,
the Jury retired about s p. III. Of Thursday,
| and returned little past to say that they
would not be able TO agree. In answer TO their
inquiries, they received some further instruction,
! but in perfect conformity with what they had
already obtained, and again retired, returning
within an hour with On assurance that their
1
| disagreement was inyeterate, whcrcupon they
were discharged without a verdict. We after
ward learned that eight OF them stood through
out for finding for the defendant, though some
of these at times evinced willingness, in defer
ence TO the Judges charge, to give nominal
damages TO the plaintiff Eleven finally were willing
to find for the defendant, but the twelfth would
not consent. He was for exemplary damages
throughout.
1t only remains to us at this time to express
our feryent gratitude to the array of eminent
counsel whose able vigant, and mastery con-
duct Of the defense commanded the admiration
throughout Of 4 large and most intelligent audi.
tory, and WILL as the report of the trial pro-
ceeds, challenge the responsive plaudits of the
profession and the public. Their position, in
view of the strongly sdverse ruling by which
they were surprised was most trying one, and
never were extraordinary difficulties encountered
with more commanding ability and unconquer-
able spirit. The services of these gentlemen TO
an uniettered and fearless Press will be CRATE
fully and lastiDgly remembered.
! We would gladly find an excuse for return
ing our acknowledgements also to the counsel for
the plaintiff; and, on reflection, believe we have
one. In the course of the trial, they i'm
PEELED to introduce, what they at the outset
had carefully withheld-the groundwork Of another
libel-suit which they have commenced against
us in behalf of Mr.. MISUNDERSTANDING as
damages another fea-bite Of S25,0OO-On which
they dilated and commented, both in the cross
examination of the defendant and in the
| summing up in such manner as to make it a
principal support of the present action. They
have thus enabled US to do an act of justice TO
Mr. Littlejohn which they have hitherto im-
peded
In our daily issue of Oct. 93d, 1860, comment
ing on two rather tart letters in the interest Of
Mr.. l.. which had appeared in The Times Of the
preceding day, we said
"wbcn in Chicago, three Winters since prominent
Republican complained to that their Governor Bisse had
sen, on equison Governor for the surrender Mr.
Litnejohn aud partner, and Il was not complied With"
This was mistake-a thoroughly innocent
one, but no less erroneous for that. Mr. Little
john had no, been demanded by the Governor of
Illinois, as we supposed he had. How we fell
into the error is fully explained in our testimony
in this CAGE, which will appear in its order.
Suffice it here that we deeply regret its occur
renee.
1t remains only to say now that we return
from this trial with refreshed and deepened
consciousness of the inestimabe value and I'M
portance of Trial BY Jury. Far hence be the
IA