New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1872-11-28

THE Woodruff and Clafin case is getting
to be a legal elephant in the hands of its
prosecutors. Two facts are pretty we'll de-
velOped, and one is that no case can be le-
gally made out against the women and the
other that the prosecuting witness, the
broker in question, Mr.. Challis, is no better
than the women he seeks to punish.
The district attorney, who manages the
case for the Government, seems to be first
class donkey, and as vicious as he is ignor-
ant. After announcing the extraordinary
doctrine that it was the duty of the Govern
ment of the United States to protect the pri-
vate character of the citizen under law that
prohibits the circulation through the mail of
printed obscene matter, he suddenly baulks
and refuses his victims a trial. The fact is
gradually getting through his iron-clad skull
that the matter complained of is not OBJ
scene. 1t is libelous, it is an infamous scan
dial, but there is no Obscenity in it. Now
while these women are held to trial under
this act, great car loads of infamous Obscen-
ity in picture and print go out to poison the
world daily from New York. Bare legs, bare
bOsOms, indecent pOstures, and obscene sto-
ries are spread from New York over the
country. And yet no steps are taken by
this virtuous limb of legal Satan or any
other to end by indictment this social evil.
But again, ii the stories put in print concern
ing Henry Ward Beecher and Theodore Til
ton are obscene and come under the law,
what are we to say of Harriet Beecher
Stoves disgusting revelation of the dead
Byron?
1t is true that Mesdames Woodruff and
Clatin are infamous women, and under the
law of female libel to which we have called
attention, chastity enters as a grave cOnsid-
arc N hu or rot hnr
wrath, is somewhat balanced by the dscov-
cry that Challis, the remaining prosecuting
witness, is not only quite as bad as the de-
PENDANTS, but was their intimate associate
and supporter, and so the learned advocate
of the prosecution hesitates and delays, and
Furnishes the women by Imprisonment without
trial.
We do not write this with particle of sym.
pathy for the imprisoned. A year since VIC
expressed our opinion modestly of Woodruff
and sister, and got in return column Of
abuse quite as savage and obscene as any
poured out on Beccher and Challis. We
washed Off the bilge water with the soap oil
indifference, and went our way. But this
proceeding in New York is an insult and al
injury; an insult to common sense, and 6
damage to the law upon which we depend fol
protection. Capital.
IMPORTANT DECIsION-THE RIGHTS OF
FIREMEN.-Thc Albany Express says:
"The Supreme Court of Massachusetts
made very important decision last week in
regard to the rights of firemen at confla
grafton. The facts of the case brought tt
the attention of the court are as follows
| At fire in Somerville the hose of Charles
town company was stretched across the tract
of the Fitchburg railroad. An approachin:
train was notified of the fact, but in defiance
of the warnings of the firemen the train KEEP
on, destroying the hose, by which act tn
fire extended. The railroad is held respon
sible for the property destroyed by the illega
acts of it's agents. BY common law the en-
CINE men had the right of the road, and tn
locomotive had no right to cross the hos
over the rails. Common sense and common
law harmonic in this decision"