St. Paul daily globe., 1884-12-31
GRIBBLE VS.. P. P.
Testimony Concluded-Able Argument
of Hon. j. B. Brisbin.
Judge BriIl's Charge-The Jury to Announce
Their Disagreement This Morning.

the witness stand John d. O'Brien. Esq. He
had known Gribble since 1872 aud what his
reputation was. He thought the appellation
of ''shyster" too strong term to be given,
though be had the reputation Of being ad-
6icted TO unprofessional practices in legal
practice in which he was incompetent. In
regard to his being the ''butt of the towL' he
was a laughing stock among the lawyers, but
whether he was such with the general public
he could not say. No cross examination
made.
j. A. Wheelock said he had been in the
city "a years and WAS president Of the Pion-
eer Press corporation. The summons and
complaint in the first Gribble libel suit
against that paper were served on him by
Gribble, Aug. 90, 1882, personally. Obiec-
tions were made and sustained TO testimony
of this witness as to the character of one
Fosness, and exceptions taken To said ruling
No cross examination.
Here the defence rested and II. A. Castle
was called in rebuttal by the plaintiff. Had
known Gribble ten or twelve years; GribDle
had no connection with obtaining the articles
filed by him in Adjutant Gen. Hawley's of.
fee preferriug charges against Foulter, and
these papers were Obtained without bis knowl-
edge for publication. He (witness) had
sought for, and obtained, these papers as q
matter Of public interest and news. He first
heard Hswley reading them 10
the governor, accidentally dropping
in upon them, and asking Hawley for them
for publication was refused. He went TO his
office and sent up an obedient reporter 10
steal the papers which he did, and that was
all he knew about the matter.
Henry j. Horn, also called in rebuttal, was
asked as to the character aud reputation Of
Gribble as a lawyer or shyster, which ques-
ton was objected TO, witness said that he had
never heard Gribble called q shyster except
in this case.
Fred Allis thought Grbble sbyster only
in a Pickwiekian sense, and that he
resembled Dickens character of Solomon
Pell; Uri l.. Lamprey also gave a definition
Of shyster as he understood the term; and
Hezekiah Hall. Z. A. Weller, q. j. Rice and
j. Warner and T. c. Abbott had no other
ideas of the character of Gn1ble as shyster
except as cleaned from the newspaper re-
ports in his suits.
Edward Gribbe recalled described his fl
ing of the papers in question against Foulter
for not doing his duty in a pension matter
claim with Adjutant General Hawley, and
rejecting on the character OF Fosness.
Mr.. Cornish for the defense then made his
closing argument, which was concluded at
noon, and the court adjourned to two O'Clock
p. N.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
At 2 o'clock Hon. John B. Brisbin COM
menced the closing plea for the prosecution,
which occupied fully two hours, and which
was not only a very eloquent, but most
able forensic effort. He characterized the
publications complained Of as having been
charged with powerful malice, in extenuation
Of which they had not been able to adduce
in testimony the slightest excuse. He ad-
mitted that his client Gribble was simple
minded, peculiar in some places of his
mind: and was not what might be termed of
fun rounded intellect, but that was no reason
why he should have been selected as a target
by this powerful newspaper organ. There
were great minds in the history of the world
who had been made laughing stocks by the
public; for instance, the poet Goldsmith,
who talked like poll parrot, but wrote like
an angel, and John Randolph, who was full
of singular mental eccentricities. The good
qualities and humanities of his client Gribble
WGIC Vic NClO OuSS lOI hblCu uC udu DCGD
assailed.
The Pioneer made this attack upon Gribble
because it was the champion of Window,
whom il thought he was attacking in the
Dispatch, and it meant to crush and kill him
beneath the grindstones Of its vomit and
filth for this reason. Assuming that Gribble
was malciously attacking Window through
the Dispatch, the attack upon him was vio-
lation of the rights Of citizenship. 1t had
been shown that nothing was safe from the
''Octapusn or "Octapod' of the press, who
felt its way into the archives Of every Office
and home. that the Dispatch and not Gribble
had purloined the document from Gen.
Hawley's Office and published il as an attack
Window, whereupon the defendant had
made wanton attack upon plaintiff. This
attack upon the Dispatch and the field was
not justifable, was against the public peace
and good order, and, although occurring in
the heat of political strife, was autocrAtic and
oppressive, and had no mitigating circum-
stances.
The defendant had sought that very morn
Ing to make its power felt on the very jury
in trial of this case, by publishing a garbled
report Of Gribble's testimony yesterday, and
1iscarding the most salient and telling
point in it, that he did not consent and
was not privy TO the removal of the papers
from Gen. Hawley's Office for publication.
That was the way the press of the country
penetrated the arena of the courts and all
business Of the country to dictate verdicts.
decisions and legislation. Thus in the
Pioneer Press resume of testimony by Gribbe
dicar od of
as it fostercd guilt upon itself. Impercept-
IDLY the press of the country is great power
for good or evil and operates in.every field of
human life. 1t has been and was subsidized
by the money power of the land and this
power was voiced through its columns in ali
its schemes and undertakings. 1t was as
subtle and unnoticed as the air, while il
moulded public opinion TO its will TO enchAin
the people. In justification or excuse the
defence in this case had utterly failed 10 show
anything. Thorough proof of mslice added
to admitted libel had been com mpletely shown,
and he would thus rest his case.
CHARGE OF JUDGE BRILL
Tie charge of Judge Brill to the jury was
IN biased and TO the point. He said the prin-
ciples Of law in this case were simple. and
after defining the code on libel added that
'nS Ia" PIOIecIs Ine reputation ol Ine cltlzen
as well as his property and allows the remedy
of damages. The complaint in this c; Sc was
the calling in public print of the plaintiff an
"imbecile shyster and the butt of the town"
The word ''shyster'' is not very well defined,
but as applied to lawyers it is n term Of re-
proach and means that a lawyer is doing a
doubtful practice of his profession, and In
this case this must be taken as the popular
meaning. Such Characterization is nbelli-
Gus to an attorney if untrue, and if true no
libel Is uttered.