The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-11-03
One Way to Remedy the
Abuse of Credits.
Bad Bills Offered for Sale by
Public Notice.
One Debtor Said "Libel" But Judge
and Jury Said Not.

rated company doing business under the
laws of this State, has recently opened
offices in this city and leading business
and professional firms here are connected
with the institution. The peculiar
methods Of this concern that proposes
to remedy the credit evil are well
known In other parts of New England,
and 1t may prove interesting to many
persons to learn that the law courts up
hold their rather startling methods of
enforcing collections. This corporation
-"without soul''-wiil demand pay
ment of debt, and should no disposi-
tion be shown to settle just claim.
they will advertise that claim I" for sale"
/ upon the dreaded yellow posters and
placard them all over the town.
| An action for libel was recently insti-
tuted against this corporation BY an
irate but mistaken debtor namsi 4. 4.
| Vincent. The suit was tried before Mr..
Justice Enoch Foster and jury at the
September term, 1896, In Auburn, Me.
In his charge TO the jury the learned
judge defined the laws of libel at great
length, and among other things said:
''First let us see what this Is. This
| poster was posted In conspicuous places
in Lewiston and Auburn. What is 1t? 1t
saya: Lewiston and Auburn, Ne. Win
gates Trade Exchange; estab ablished 1855;
incorporate. James T.. Cham berlain,
president. Capital stock $4,000. Ac-
counts for sale. Lewiston Office, 295 Lis
bon street. The following accounts are
for sale at our Office. liberal reduc-
tion made OF face value. Full informa-
tion cheerfully given. Correspondence
solicited. Apply or write to the above
address,"
"Thsn follow the names of several
parties, eleven In all, / believe, and
among which is this plaintiff. as follows:
Vincent, Z. T., clerk, No. 2o Chestnut
street, Lewiston, tailor bill, s43.33.'
"The defendants by their statement and
by the evidence offered mas set up tnat IL
was q lawful transaction.
"On the part OF the plaintii IL In con-
tended, contrary to that OF the defence,
that this plaintiff never owed any such .
bill. You have heard his testimony,
boldly and squarely, that he did not owe
any body any such bill. The allegation
In the writ, I believe, is that he WIS
never indebted for the pill which Is
printed here on this yellow poster. The
plaintiff claims that this mans name
was put into the poster here and paraded
and published in conspicuous places in
this city, not for the purpose of collec-
ting the bill, but for the purpose OF
bringing him into rioiculs and con-
tempt, and therefore has subjected the
defendant to the charge Of libel.
"You have heard the evidence as to
whether or not the plsintiff in this case
was owing bill of s43. 80, although 1t
is not questioned that the words tailor
bill' was o mistake. 1t was not for a
tailor bill. but 1t was for groceries.
"what is libel? Let us see, because
the statute defines what constitutes libel,
and by which you are to be governed in
the determination Of this case. libel
is the malicious defamation Of living
person, made public by any printing,
writing, sign, picture representation or
efigy tending to provoke him to wrath,
expose him to public hatred or ridicule
and to deprive him of the benefits OF
public confidence and social Intercourse.
But the statute says that in prosecutions
for any publication where the matter pub
lished is proper for public information
the truth thereof may be given I'm evi-
dence. and II pro,si shall be complete
justification, unless it appears that such
publication originated in corrupt aud
malicious motives.
Snow, know Of no law, which pro-
hibits a party from advertising any honest
claim he has against q debtor, IL done In
good faith. That Is to say, II you have
an execution against party, or a note
of hand, there is no law that am aware
of, certainly my attention has not been
called to any, that prohibits you from
posting up a notice. that you will sell
that execution to anybody who will pay
you for It, There is no law that prohibits
that from being posted up In puulic
places, IL you do this bona-fide, avd for
tie purpose Of collecting your bill. Sup
posing you have note against your
neigh bor, and you want to raise the money
on 1t, instruct you, that you have a per-
feet right TO advertise that note tn the
newspapers, for sale or you may post 1t
up In this form, Sin public places.
tbroug hout the city,
"You have heard on the part OF the de- |
fence. that this bill for groceries was an
execution issued upon a judgment, OF a |
court OF law. 1he bill had merged into a |
judgment-tbesmost solemn form OF con- |
tract-aDd upon that judgmoot, an exc
cution had issued, and you hive had that |
presented to you here, and II has been |
testified by one or more OF the witnesses
thst that hill, or that execution, was what |
was named and intended, upon this poster,
ana having done II they say. without
malice. and In a lawful wsy. ono OF the |
means Of collecting the bill as a bona-nds
sale OF the execution, that they are not |
liable.
"I will give you an illustration, NV. Fore
man psrhaps nm Pxtreme ono. A man