The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1884-07-08

mentsry books Of Epglsh common law
and In the opinions Of English judges ant
that our iud9es and lawyers have, In thi
manner, become imbued with principles
which are utterly Incompatible with ever
Just conception OF liberty. - Their
u hardly any latitude .oi licentiousneel
which 1t were not better 10 indulge, in can
washing the conduct Of public men, than Il
run tho hazard Of restIicting the liberty o
dtScutatoa and the freedom OF the press
under Tho color OF restraining lie abuse"
Mr.. Buchanan, afterwards President oil
the United States, In the came csse said:
"The Constitution and the laws Of the
several States have conferred upon jures,
under the advice Of the Court, The trial OIL
the crime Of libel. A jury Is the only til.
bnnsl to which the liberty OF the press can
be safely entrusted. To allow tho Judi.
ciary TO dispense with this tribunal when.
ever any publication .laa been made affect
Ing the dignity or the official condpc! Of q
Judge, T. to create Il privileged class Of men
IN the State whose will is law, and who are
not only Judges In their own cause Of the
guilt Of the accused, but also OF the extent
OF bis punishmeat Such a power, 90 far
as It goes, partakes OF the very essence and
IAnknees Of despotism." - Z roa
Among the first statutes on.the subject
was that passed by Congress limiting the
power OF courts TO summarily punish for
coutempts to cases Of misbehavior in the
presence OF the court, or on the part Of It's
oaiees, and to disobedience Of its orders.
The statutes passed In the several States
resemble this, among them the statute OF
West Virginia, referred to In the snawer,
which bias been in force In Virginia and In
this State ever since 1881, The Virginia
statute WAS held valid aud binding il the
case OF the Commonwealth yB, Dssksns4
Leigh 6s5. nj -'' - :,
The d. PENDANTS relied upon the provis.
ions Of the State bill Of rights, that no per.
son shall be deprived Of Life, lbsrty or
property without due process Of law, and
the Judgment Of his peers, Constitution,
Article III, Section 10y, and that trials Of
crimes and miademeanors, unless herein
provided, shall be by jury Of twelve men,
(sectton 14); that all powers are vested in,
and are consequently derived from the
people. Magistrates are their trustees and
servants, and at all times amenabls to
them. lsection e. The Constitution,
Article vi, Section 80, gives the Legiala.
stfe powerto provide by general law Tor
regulating the practice In the several
courts Of justice, 8 provision which, II any
was needed, would warrant the Legislature
In enacling, Section 81 OF Chapter l47 oil
the Code, being the statute set out in the
defendanis' answer.
The supreme Cour! Of Appeals is estab.
lisned by the constitution and has only such
1urladiction as by the constitution is con-
lerrsd upon It. It not court known to
the common law and has no common law
Jurisdiction: E1parts Ballman, 1 branch
o.; e1paIte Hardy, GS Alabama 1903; State
vs.. Woolev. II Bush; Written va State, SO
Indiana l06; l W. K NJ. 40; IS Caldwell
526. e1parte Hickey i S. l. NJ. 1856: People
vs. fstes, 6 johnson. ISL ~
Proceedings to punish Tor contemp! are
criminal In their nature. 0 Watts 4SI. AZ
California 4l2;; Wheeling Vi. B. 4 O. R.R
Co., ~ Gratt. 10, and other cases.
VIII the court declare the provisions OF
the code Ia conflict wi b the consultation?
Section ~ OF the same statute provides
punishment fer an oasase OF this nature as
misdemeanor. These proceedings can
~ ARCHAEOLOGICAL w CSHStGS{{Dk fHSk
section unconstitutional. 80
The people reserved the right to legis!ate
on this subject when they declared magis.
trates amensble to them. =
An act cannot be declared void simply
because 1t conflicts with what the court
may suppose to be the spirit prevailing in
the conssitutlsn.-Cooley on Constitutional
Limitations. :" : -
The inherent right Of courts to punish
for contempts exists only in cases OF actual
contempt, for it ia in only on such cases
that the former is necessary. ~
The power to punish for contempt is an.
alogous to the right Of selfdeiense. It ia
to be exercised only in self protection, and
neither a court nor an individual has the
right to go further than is necessary to de.
fend himself.
Mr.. Hutchinson closed his argument by
an appropriate quotation from Dr.. Leber's
Political Ethics, relating to the indie
pendence Of the judiciary.
n "a him ,StB..