Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1871-03-08
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THE wEIG AND REGISTER CHARGES.


ously RETAINED saying anything calculated
to prejudice the rights of either party. We
try. to do this in every issue pending in
courts of Justice, for it is the only honor
able course to pursue. We did this, not
because we had no convictions of our. own
upon the questions involved, but solely for
the purpose of leaving Judge Hall and the
very just and sensible jurors empanneled
to try their case free from all extraneous
influences to do just what, under their
oaths and their convictions, they believed
right What, on the other hand, has been
the course of our contemporary-itself a
party to the suit? 1t has, from the very
beginning, used every effort in its power,
to influence the Court and jury Since
the jury found the verdict which, under
their oaths and the evidence and the law,
they felt constrained to pronounce-the.
Wing and Register has lost no opportunity
to denouncei them and impugn their mo-
tives. The verdict has been denounced as
@ n,onstrous outrage on right and justice
that has no parallel IN judicial history"
and in many other equally shameful terms
the jury have been assaulted. His Honor,
Judge Hall, who enjoys the confidence of
every fair-minded man as an upright, fear
less judicial officer, has Jared equally bad
at their hands. His refusal to give them
new trial was received, to use their own
words, to the utter, establishment,
as we have right to believe, of
every disinterested, lawyer who knows
the facts in the case.n We do
not think that either Judge Hall or the
Jury that sat in the case need any defence
in this community where they are known.
Here the Wing and Register can do them
no harm but that does not change the
character of the ofense our contemporary
has committed. 1t has grossly and mean
~ assailed the motives and acts of men
who, in doing their duty, did just what
they believed to be right, and just what
most other twelve honest men, under the
same circumstances, would have DONE.
The Wing and Register, some days ago,
in reference to our defence of the Court
and Jury, said of us, sit abandons the nat
ural instincts of principle by which it
should be directed and controlled; for the
battle forced upon US, and in which we
are now engaged, is the cause Of eUery
journal in the Iandn What does our con-
temporary mean by its cause being the
cause of every journal in the land? Does
it mean that Wiley and outrageously libel
ing private citizens, their families and kim
dred, is the cause of journalism? Does it
mean to say, that when being libeled,
private citizen seeks his remedy
in the legal tribunals, and honest judges
and Jurors discharge their duty as seems
to them best, that it is the cause of journal
ism to malign them and combine to pre-
vent them from securing their rights?
Does it mean to intimate that there is an
unde rstanding between the Journals of
the land" that they shall stand by each
other, wheth er right or wrong; and COM
bine to preventpriyatec citizens from obtain
ing their rights in Court, as against them?
If this is its cause, we gladly say it is not
ours. We libel no citizen. We would not
publish as obscene, vulgar and outrageous
libel about dog, as the Wig did
against citizen who had never wronged
it, No respectable journal ever ought to
publish it concerning any man, for pay
or for favor. If in saying this
we array ourselves against the "cause of
journalism well and good; but we are
sorry for that kind of Journalism. 1t is
not the kind to which we aspire. Every
editor and publisher is liable to err. If we
have libelled any man, and can be satisfied
of it, we have the courage to publicly re-
tract it, and will in every case do so. If
this is not satisfactory, and court and
jury say we shall indemnify him for any
damage inflicted, we will satisfy the judg
ment rendered against us if we can, and
not abuse the courts for acting as they feel
bounden to do.
Our neighbor is greatly at fault in sup
posing that because, for the petty sum of
thirty odd dollars, it permitted its columns
TO be used in circulating a beastly, obscene
and dirty libel, we hold our columns at
that or any other price even for gentlemen
defending themselves or discussing ques-
tons of importance to the public. The
CHRONICLE never made dollar from Col.
Baxter in that way. Its proprietors have
never received help from him in aid of
their enterprise fn any Ddy, directly or iss-
directly, and are perfectly independent of
him in every way bound to no man liv-
ing; conduct their paper to suit their own
ideas of right and propriety, and are there
fore in position to give the public fearless,
and faithful service. Ourcon-
may find few congenial spir-
its to join it in the insinuation that we are
directed and under obligations to Col. Bax-
ter in the management Of our paper; but
we have never dignified their efforts with
q notice, for we deem their influence and