The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-04-29
A GARBLED EXTRACT.
In its Sunday issue the Times said:

In 1GS sunday lSSue lie Times 5atu'
The DEMOCRAT IL unfortunate in its se fNa.aa
for respectable Endorsements OF Its most dues-
tionHbie doeriue Of reputation, 5snsr 1ll ls
ago garbled extract from decision by Cp ,,.
Justice Marshall Was repeated al HdnseaHt uu
iii the Times pub ished what the great lui1st
said. The DEMOCRAT has not mentioned aoge
Marshall since.
This is the second time that this charge Oh
garbling Judge MarshalPs decision 10 the
Cohen case has been made against us by the
Times. Let us see what truth there Is In thls
charge which the Times persists In repeating.
We beg, at the beginning. to refer that paper
to an editorial In the DEMOCRAT OF April g,
wherein the passage referred to was pub
lished word for word.
The passage to which the Times alludes Is
the following: Speaking Of the eleventh
amendment and the cases to which 1t applies,
Judge Marshall used the following language:
| The first i'm preston made on the mind by this
| amendment Is that it WIS intended for those
cases, and for those only, In which some De,
mand against State H. made BY an Individual
! in the courts Of the Union. III we consider the
| causes TO which 1t Is to be traced, zoe are con
Quoted to The same CONCLUSION. geneTm .nt .i.
! est might we'll be felt In leaving to @ State me
| full power of consulting It's convenience "a tnb
adjustment Of its debts. or OF other claims
upon 1T.
| The Times will not have the effrontery to
deny that these are the exact words used by
Judge Marshall. There is no gambling here,
then. The garbling consists Of an effort on
the part of the DEMOCRAT to convey the Inn
preston that Judge Marshall expressed
the opinion that State possessed the full
power Of consulting it's convenience In the adj
justment of it's debts, or Of other claims upon
It," II Judge Marshall did not entertain
such an opinion, and If, taking the context OF
this passage he has not plainly expressed It,
then we confess ourselves unable to compre-
bend the meaning Of words.
The substance Of what Judge Marshall
said may be stated In a few words. An at
tempt, said he, had been made to enforce the
debts Of the States In the courts Of the Union,
and those courts had maintained their juris-
diction. Several States refused to be I'M
pleaded in these courts, or to ratlfy the con-
stitution SO long as such power remained
in the Federal courts This led to the adop-
ton of the eleventh amendment, the purpose
and effect OF which was to leave ito State
, the full power Of consulting Its convenience
, in the adjustment Of it's debts" etc. and
| not to strip the general government sol
it's means OF protecting, by the instru-
| mentality OF it's COURTS the constitution
and laws from active violation" The passage
which we are charged with "garbling,'
or misapplying, comprehends "those cases
In which some demand against State is
made by an Individual In the courts OF the
Union" which Judge Marshall clearly de
clares the amendment twas intended for. :
, The language we have quoted is not capable
! Of any other honest and fair construction, anc
D we again assert that Judge Marshall Tex
pressed the opinion we attributed to him
J In quoting from the Cohen decision wedid moi
. give the latter portion OF the concluding sen
tence, simply because it only served to draw
q distinction which had not been made
| in the article, which we never denied ant
which had no connection with the proposition
we were discussing. This sentence we giveir
full:
A general interest might we'll be felt In leav
1 ing to State the full power Of consulting III
: convenience In the adjustment OF its debts. q
be felt In so changing the relations between thu
: whole and Its carts as to strip the government
of Its means of protecting, by the instrumental
ity of It's courts the constitution and laws from
2 active violation.
, The last sentsnce Of this paragraph hedn'
g connection with the proposition under dis
r eussion, and we did not quote it. We quote /
: now because 1t is pertinent and shows tn
connection in which Judge Marshall "ex
I pressed" the opinion we have attributable
Q him. II the Times would adopt this name
: of garbling Judge MarshalFs decisions
would commend itself more to the confideno
. and intelligence of the public