Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1880-02-20

We cannot help thinking that II tne
House of Delegates had waited, until it
cooled it would not have taken the action
it did on Monday in expelling the reporter
of the ssStaten and excluding one Of the
staff of the commonwealth" for their
participation in the personal difficulty some
days ago. AS it appears to us the matter
was wholly a personal one and had been
adequately adjusted by the Justice of the
Peace who fined the assailant. Stripped
of the foliage it stands this way: Mr.. J.
A. Frazer, not in his capacity as a Dele
gate from Rockbridge, but assuming that
of newspaper correspondent, wrote 20
his home newspaper over the signature OF
.sX' that Mr.. W. W. Archer, who reports
the proceedings Of the House for the
aState,' - made falsehood in his reports
habit. Being questioned on the floor OF
the House the delegate, to clear up any
mistake about it made it distinct that he
referred to Mr.. A., and a few moments
afterwards, being called upon by that gen.
tleman made it still more clear by saying
it to his face. The result as was to be ex-
pected was an assault. Now it seems to
us that delegate should have no more
privilege to abuse journalist through let
tiers written the newspapers than jour-
nalist has to abuse him through his re-
ports, and it is a bad precedent to sup
port the assumption that he has. The ex
cIusion of Mr.. Carter N. Harrison Of the
Commonwealth seems to us not justi-
fed by the evidence we read, which only
placed him in the light Of resenting the
supposed application to himself of most
abusive epithet. We don't atall object to
the discharge Of Mr.. Frazier. and we rath.
or suspect from his fair conductduring the
examination, that if it had been left to
him the severity of the House towards the
other two would not have been exercised,
We regret to see that in the above we
have too hastily given lenient judgment
in Mr.. Harrlson's case. We find by re-
port in the commonwealth that Mr..
Bailey, member of the House, has given
it a much deeper significance. We quote
the reported language of the eloquent
member: 81 repeat, sir; that before this
lawful presence, of this awful Assembly
she was blasphemious." That any per
son should in the ''awful'' presence Of tn
lawful" General Assembly of Virginia
give way to the suggestions of the Evi
One and become "blasphemious, is jus
one of those things that can't be explained
away. The well known piety of the AS
sembly, which is model for the State. ex
cept in the trifing matter Of paying
money which the State has borrowed, wa'
properly shocked at this, and we think the
friends and relatives of Mr.. Harrison have
cause to be grateful that even his auda-
cious life was spared to him.
We see that Justice J. J. Crutchfeld, OF
Richmond, another 'sblasphemious' one
was arraigned before the House. for hav
ing said in private conversation to one Of
it's officers, that if the Assembly fooled
with him he would send the whole -
there an awful profanity pack to jail-ol
words to that effect. On being brought
into the 'sawful presence the Justice ex
planned that what he said was in jest. and
not meant as an expression of contempt
for the ''awful presence and he was per-
mitted to return to the bosom OF his
family alive.
n