National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1872-12-02
LETTERS FROM the PEOPLE.
The Legal stains Of tho New York LIbc
Nnse,

The mixed nature Of this important case, and |
the principles which II involves, render II one In
which the public, a. well a. the plaintiff and de-
PENDANTS, are deeply Interested In the many |
newspaper libel cases which have transplred In |
our midst and are continually coming on to the |
tapis the question Of what newspaper may or |
may not publish becomes an important one. As |
cOnservator Of the public morals, IA 10 tOeNpose |
vice or conceal and palliate ~ As vehicle OF
news, shall Il suppress all that ls sensational or
cater to morbid public taste and publish ~ II
Y publishes, shall the laNs be dinerent t3I me
lnRton the Houston case In Baltimore, the Forrest
divorce case in New York, were all published in |
SS ST G sSrrPS %ad NJ
contains words no more obscene than did these. !
The law prohibits obscene books, aud yet Moore, !
ing words more obscene, have passed through
the United states mails for the past half century.
The New York Herald, as part Of ne court
Cle-the prescribed matter upon which both the
charges Of libel and Obscenity are based.
lisa well-known grnclple Of law ihat every
until after fair and impartial trial q Jury 81
their peers shall pronounce them guilty, 10 thls
case there has been an almost universal CON
hearing. The judge seemed 70 have decided
upon the libel part Of the case before he heard II,
and TO give credit entirely TO the single witness
for the plaintiff and discredlt 10 the witnesses on
! the other side, although the testimony o. thls
witness natly contradlcted the testimony Of four
witnesses Tor the defence. Fearing that he shall
/ not make out a case, and knowing that his
prisoner Ia about to get hail, he now turns around
and sues the principal defendant In the libel suit
| for damages laying them AZ 5000. Not content
| with this he brngs one Of the witnesses before
| the police court on the charge Of perjury, when
the testimony elected would 60 e show .9H1 me
| lie has made the agent of these newspaper edl-
tors the butt Of his attack and still continues IT,
although II has been proved In court that he Is
| oniV A gubOrdinatp.
IN order to show the dninus Of the parties
prosecuting, observe, these persons are arrested
! on Saturday night, when no opportunity for an
examination could be had until the Monday fol-
| lowing Brought up before the court on Monday
morning, the examination, for which they were
waived, and an indictment already found by the
grand Jury presented. This very unusual pro-
ceeding-only resorted TO IN cases Of Infamous
crime, and not In cases Of mlsdemeanor, as the
law holds this case TO be--ls almost without pre-
cedent, and shows predetemnatlon, not only
on the part o. me RTSseSs,oT SGt she SSnd 20
section 8, article T. Of the constitution Of the
State Of New York, says: 81 Every citizen may
freely speak, write and publish his sentiments
on an subjects, bOing responsible for the abuse
Of that right; and no law shall he passed to re-
strain or abridge the liberty Of speech or OF the
press. In all criminal prosecutions or lndlct-
ments for libels the truth may be given In EVIL
dence to the Jury; and u Il shall appear to the
Jury that the matter charged "a llhel0us h true,
and was published with good motives, and for
IustinGble ends, the party shall he acquitted
and the jury shall have the right to determine
Now how this may have appeared to the Jury
we do not know; hut II did appear from the pub
llshcd court reports that the matter contained IN
this libel was true; and that this prosecutor or
plaintiff In no better than this libel represents
him to he. The motive, to use the version OF the
defendants themselves TOT nus pubicaton' was
J command admission to a fashionable New York
hotel while a woman with faint Of suspicion
unaccOmpanied by gentleman, would be eN-
cluded. No malice appears on the face Of II, or
In the language, hut only determination to
make one code Of morals for men and women.
IL Is treated not after the usual manner Of scandal
mOnRers, but In a scientific AMI philosophical
way to expose what they believe TO be q false
state Of society without any especial malice to-
! wards the unfortunate example whom they have
held up. In the eye Of the law, by the court Of
New York, this libel has not been sustained.
But these women were nrst arrested on the
charge 81 sending obscene matter through the
mails; hut no examination on this charge, or OF
this paper was had In court, because, forsooth,
II would have at once been proven that no oh
scene word was contained in H.. Have this court,
Judge Jury and council, United States marshal
Included, ever read any medical or scientific
wOTks7 Do they know anything Of the matter
constantly sent through the mails to our medical
schools and museums7 Hut what says the law7
An act passed the second session Of the Forty.
second Congress June 4, 1879, says that no lob
scene book, pamphlet, picture, print, or other
publication Of vulgar or indecent character, OF
nON letter. unOn the envelope nl WHICH, OF plalhl
card, upon which scurrilous eXplthets may have
been written or printed, or dlslOyal devices
printed or engrossed shall he carried In the
mall and any person wh3 sha a6r nmGMngg ds
livery, any such obscene publication shall he
deemed guilty Of q mlsIlcmeanot, aud on cOnyic.
ton thereof shall for every such offence he fined
/ not more than ave hundred dollars, or be i'm
rssonsi a. haE1 '.,;Ss ,ni S e. ,S 9nS
II now, at the next session Of the court, Il falls
to convict them, ~ II most assuredy will fall II
any fair examination Is had, these persons VIII o.
right 20 free, or II detained may be brought out
Q on q writ Of hdbeds corpus.
3 Article fourth Of the amendments to the Con
stitutiOn il as follows
7 ''The right Of the people 10 he secure In theil
: persons, houses, papers, and effects, against un
( reasonable searches and seizures, shall not HI
= violated; and no warrant shall issue hut upoI
o probable cause, supported by oath or animation
= and particularly describing the place to HI
!. searched and the persons or things to he seized
e "Article sixth. In all criminal prosecutions tn
a accused shall enjoy the right to speedy ant
public trial by an Impartial jury Of the Stat
and district wherein the crime shall have beer
committed, which district shall have been pre-
y yiOusly ascertAlned by law, and to be lnfOrmet
: OF the nature and cause Of the accusation; to h
4 confronted with the witnesses against him; h
= have compulsory process toLnbtainlng wltnesse
In his fyaOr, and TO have the assistance Of counse
for the defence.
"Artlcle Eighth. Excessive bail shah not h
# required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor crie
" and unusual punlshments inflicted"
Notwithstanding these plain principles Of IN
Constitution, which Mra Woodruff herself ha
so ably expOunded In her "OTigin and Principle
Il Of Government these women anil Col. Bloc
IL are now four weeks In jail, the. former withou
form OF trial, and the excessive amount Of t2s, 0O
ball required, after their press has been seEet
and their paper, their means OF sustenance, SUI
pressed. Had these women shot this man, NeI
York court Of Justice would have made out
a case of emotional insanity, or justlnAble HON
K eide. Had the case been infanticlde, the sympi
d thy OF the court would not have found theI
guilty. and II q case OF abortion, where death eI
n sued pardon would he granted.
The public, who are interested In the excel
=, ton OF the law, have right 10 demand thu
= these persons shall have speedy and impartil
trial by the law without regard to sex, withOT
regard TO their social, political, or religious opil
~ Ions, hut simply on the merits OF the case, an
y. that an Impartial Jury shall he impanneled
u BELvA 4. LOCKWOOD.
wAHNGToE d, O., Nov 81, ls72
70 I'VE give place to the above communication
n Mrs Lockwood because I'VE believe that she b
d reflects the views Of large number Of fai
n minded people who do not sympAthiEe with u
~ course adopted by the parties Of whom 81
n WTites.l
The T'POOF Clerkso Again.
Mn EDfrOR. Having heaFl an mugh ahOI