The weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1869-18??, 1869-12-08
Making Islander a nIisdsmeansr.

Making slander a Misdemeaners
If there ever was period ii the histor,
of the South, and especially of North Caro-
lima, when the protection Of private char
acter called loudly for q special law, tina
time is now and it would seem from tn
proceedings of the General Assembly tina
that body have become aware of this, ant
have taken steps to make SANDER misde
meanor, and of course punishable by fine o
Imprisonment, or perhaps both. Liberty o
the press, liberty of speech These H6ertie
have taken a remarkably wide scope
when editors and others are allowed tt
charge corruption, theft, swindling, ant
other crimes of heinous character upoI
individuals without the least foundation il
truth.
Men in the ordinary pursuits of life can
not feel that they are safe from the attack o
the low and vulgar, unless they too lowe
themselves to pander to their sordid wishes
and become "hale fellows" in their career O.
crime
The best men of the times, and even the
memories of the dead, are slandered by be
ing dragged by these penny-a-liners into the
dirty arena of politics, to confront the
grossest charges, and suffer because there is
no law to punish the hyenas who rob the
graves of their dead, and howl at the heels
of the living.
Vengeance has stood trembling, eager to
strike the blow demanded by injured inno-
cence, but prudence, and a proper regard
for the peace ofsociety, have stepped in and
counseled peace, and the terrible blow has
been warded off, to be stricken by the legit-
innate lawmakers, who, with charity and
forbearance truly commendable, have. or are
about to make the slanderer guilty of a mis-
demeanor
Private character in North Carolina is
worth but mite, if the foul breath of SLAM
der could find confidence among the masses;
Notwithstanding this lack of credit, the an
noyance has reached most intolerable
point, and the tongue Of ridicule, low vul-
garisms, calumny and poisonous counsel, is
aimed at the humble, the high and the low,
who dare ally themselves on the side of truth
and justice. Our Legislative body-its Re-
publican members-have been openly accus-
ed Of receiving brides! They are constant
ly being told that they are conyicts, or escap-
ed penitentiary birds! They are represen-
ted as loafers in rags and Ignorance, and all
belonging to a ring of thieves! The Su.
preme Court judges are tainted as ignorant
and unworthy the confidence of a people,
The chief Executive of the State is bounded
down by the lowest epithets known to the
English language! The Judiciary of the
State are held up to ridicule, and the Justie-
es of the Peace are stigmatised as the veriest
dolts
And all this, is to be called a misdemea-
nor, when, in fact, it is criminal, and is in
tended to subserve a criminal end; for,
abroad, where it is absolutely necessary that
our credit should be maintained intact, it
has the effect of bringing down our standing
as a solvent people, and reducing our bonds
to most ruinous standard.
Bankers from neighboring States, seeing
these ISLANDERS in the public prints, come
among us, with pockets crammed with our
paper, and ask our Legislature, for the cred
it of the Old North State, to protect her in
terests, to pay her Indebtedness, and to cast
aside the Democratic doctrine of repudia-
ton.
We have to-day, this humiliating specta-
Gle staring us in the face; and with all the
solemnity that the Legislature can bring to
bear, they pledge, and re-pledge, the good
faith of the State
Tomorrow, the forked-tongue of misrep-
resentation and venom, reiterate the off-re-
peated falsehood of plumber, and corruption.
and bankruptcy, and our creditors hold
us at a small price.
Individual character is nothing mere
secondary consideration, compared to the
good name of the great STATED If North
Carolina, as State, suffer, every individual
feels the blighting effect, and it must
take years of energy, and hard toll, to win
back that confidence which was once the
pride of our people.
We are glad, nevertheless, that this SUBJ
ject has been brought before the Legisla-
ture; and we hope, the Republican party,
who have been made the butt of ridicule,
will not hesitate to throw the proper safe
guard around, not only individuals, but
the honor and credit of the State, and make
SANDER odious in the eyes of the law.