The Evening critic. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1881-1885, 1881-10-08

rccollectcd that in the course of this al.
legged information" Thomas l.. James
sworc that "on the LIST day of January,
1880, and ut sundry other days and times
from said date to June 30, 1880, the said
Thomas J. Brady, in pursuance of said con.
spiracy, and to effect the objects thereof,
engaged in various schemes, plans and opera.
tions, and among Others in procuring col.
lecting and receiving large sums of money
from various contractors engaged in carry
ing the United States mails on various
routes in the Territories and States of the
United States, to he used with members of
Congress of the United States and others,
including persons connected with the press,
land among others one A. c. BuclD having
influence with them, to secure large and
unjust appropriations of the money of the
United States"
Being thus named in criminal process
our first care naturally was to ascertain to
what degree we were alleged to be impli-
Gated and to what purport we were accu sed
Upon those points we availed ourself of
the ablest legal advice. After review of
the so-caled information we were ad-
vised that the mention of our name was not
in the form of legal accusation, neither
in the nature of technical implication ;
but that we had been simply lugged in
parenthcally, and with view evidently
on the part of some person or persons con-
nected with the prosecution to defame us.
You are certainly not named as de-
fendant, said our legal adviser, because
the defendants arc all identified and war
rants ask ed for their apprehension, and you
are not among them. You are not named
as witness for the prosecution, because the
implied allegation concerning you does
not charge you with knowledge of or par
ticipation in the various schemes, plans
and operations ascribed to Thomas j.
Brady as part of his alleged conspiracy.
Therefore nothing is left but to presume
that your name was lugged in from sheer
malice on the part of somebody having q
hand in preparing the so-called informa-
tion.'"
Hereupon we inquired whether there was
any remedy stating that the declaration,
so far as 1t concerned US, was grossly libel
Gus and that the oath of Thomas l.. James
to it was perjury without rebate.
To this inquiry our legal adviser re-
sponded that we had no remedy lie said
that declarations made in legal papers under
cover ofjudicial proceedings were exempted
from the law of libel on the ground that
malice, which forms the essence of libel is
never presumed in a judicial declaration
As to the matter of perjury, our legal ad-
wiser said that the information " of James,
so. far rs we were concerned, was in the
form of an inference or n presumption,
which could not be held part of the body
or substance Of his oath, and hence would
fall without the definition of perjury.
That is to say, James has availed himself
of his official position to wreak upon us
splenetic private revenge. This is the first
intimation we ever had that James is ma
licious and cowardly as well as weak and
mendacious.
AS our legal adviser says, James may not
have committed technical perjury against
us, but he has told, under color of his oath,
a mean, spiteful malignant lie about us,
skilfully devised so as to have all the Of.
feet of perjury without incurring its con-
sequences. This we understand to be
James retort to our journalistic criticisms
upon his official policy. In retaliation for
our journalistic warfare, James levels at us
the artillery of the Federal Judiciary. Not
content with hiring few disreputable
newspaper correspondents to abuse us,
by pensoning their mistrcsscs, James
employs the files of the Criminal
Court through which to launch libel
of his own, and that, too, behind the
cowardly screen of the privileges of an in
forming witness
This demonstrates James to be not only
a malignant liar, but sncaking coward.
Against such o creature there is no remedy.
He is so contemplate that his back would
disgrace a respectable horsewhip; so despi-
cable that his bare name is more opprobriOus
than any epithet that could be applied to
him. We leave him to the congenial fell
lowship of the escaped or escaping felons
who surround him, and to whose put-up
job he has made his oath.
THE RECENTLY DECEASED month OF
September was fairly crushed under con-
gresses. Bologna groaned under geology
Barcelona smarted with Socialism; Madrid
and Titlis were drenched in antiquarianism
Venice, because she has no ground to stand
on, was complimented with geography
staid Berlin had scientific chess; Vienna
drank deep Of the Pierian spring OF liter.
ature, and London was nearly doctored to