The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1878-04-20
The Court of Appeals and Dissenting
Opinion of Judge Staples TN the late
Case of" Clarke VS.. Tyler"
NEAR GILMoRE'S MILLS, VA,


NEAR GILMoRE's MILLS, VA,
April IL, 1878.
To the Editors of the Dispatch:
have read in the Dispatch OF the 9th
instant the luminous opinion delivered by
Judge Christian in the aforementioned
case, and my respect for the ability, nrm-
ness, and sound legal learning of the Judge
and of the Court has been thereby height
ened beyond expression. Very different
were my feelings on reading the dissenting
opinion of Judge Staples, which, with all
Difference to his acknowledged legal ability,
comes far short Of 4 successful reply to the
calm and clear judicial reasoning Of Judge
Christian. Indeed, there is nothing either
new OF striking in his views OF the funding
bilI-nothing that has not been SAID ana
repeated ad 11duSedml by Speaker Al
len, Colonel Fulkerson, Senator Paul,
and james Barbour, and other shining
lights OF the Malone, alias forcible
adjustment, alias reputation party, CON-
posing q majority OF our present LegiSia-
ture. There is one passage in this dissent
ing opinion Of Judge Staples which strikes
as quite remarkable, reminding me Of the
preamble to the Barbour bill passed by the
recent Legislature. but fortunately vetoed
BY Governor Holiday. In the passage re-
ferred to, Judge Staples is replying to the
arguments OF Judges Christian and Ander-
son in the case of Antoni u.s. Wright-that
public faith and public honor imposed on
the Legislature the duty OF levying tax
sufficient to pay the public creditor the ia
terest contracted to lie paid him; and he
uses the following language: "uowcvcr
strong the obligation to pay the public debt
may impose, there are periods IN the history
of eUfry State achen no part Of 1t can or
ought TO be poid-when the State creditor
and the individual creditor must consent to
wait at least for season; and OF such
times, rs they arise, The Legislature mast
juGqe. The amount Of taxation the people
can bear, the mode Of imposing and collect
ing it, is political question, to be deter
mined not by the courts, but by the repre-
sentatives of The people from time to time,
as the public eXigcncies may require"
Without stopping to comment on tho fall
lacy that this is q political rather than a
moral question: fallacy that has taken
possession OF other minds than that Of
Judge Staples-I must say that the fore
going passage, especially the words put in
italics, have takenSme by surprise. [ have
read them over and over again, hoping to
extract some meaning that would relieve
them OF what seems to be their plain and
obvious construction; but after all, and
with an anxious desire to do Judge Staples
DO injustice, feel shut up to the conclusion
that we here find an argument and an apollo
gy not only for all the relief measures $50
called), such as stay.law. bankrupt. and
homestead laws, which have done so much
to corrupt the public mind by weakening,
if not destroying, the sense OF obligation
to pay debts, but an arrangement and an
apology for downright population; for if,
as stated by Judge Staples, "there are Pc
RODS in the history Of every State when no
part of it (the public debit can OF ought to be
paid" and it, rs be says, the Legislature
must be the Judge as to when the public
eXigency requires it, what is this but allow
ing the Legislature an unrestricted right
and authority to repudiate part Or the
whole OF the public debt at pleasure? 1t
will be observed that no qualification or dis
claiuer is made by Judge Staples that this
is not one of the periods referred to; and
may not and Will not every forciblc adiuster
in the land, especially our hopeful legisa-
tors, be found quoting these words Of Judge
Staples rs giving the sanction of his high
judicial character and position in favor Of
doctrine that few, if any Of them, have had
the boldness to avow? II Judge Staples
does not mean this he has been unfortunate
in the use CT words that certainly admit Of
this construction. Just at the close Of his
opinion he expresses his regret that it was
so chastity prepared.' Perhaps he may
live to regret that it was prepared Mt all. Is
it too much to expect from him that, as in a
former case, reported in one Of the late
Grattans, he will come to make as manly an
avowal of his change OF opinion as he did in
that case, and thus reUerSe himself?
....... f. j.