The San Francisco call., 1898-11-02
JUDGE MURPHY.s. sLANDERERs.

,. n MONO the victims of the Democratic an- / \ archists, one Of whose principal campaign, \ cards is slander of Judges and Insrepresenta- ton of the courts, is exJudge D. j. Murphy, Repub- ican candidate for District Attorney. It IS charged against Mr. Murphy that while sitting in Department of the Superior Court few years ago he released politician named Chute habeas corpus Chute had been called to testify before the Wallace Grand, Jury and had refused to appear. He committed for copempt and applied for writ of habeas corpus to test the right of the jurors to question him, aleg ing that they constituted illegal body.
 The matter was enjoying some public attention at the time Judge Wallace had inpaneled Grand Jury for the purpose Of bringing to his judicial mill number of legislative booders, and the court playing the part in its creation that he played last year in the petition of George K Fitch for the removal of the Board of Supervisors. The lawyers were divided as to the legality of the unusual process by which the Grand Jury in question had been moned and the matter was being hotly discussed by the politicians and the newspapers At the most citing stage of the difficulty Chute was summoned and refused to testify. He unfortunately selected Judge Murphy as the jurist to whom he desired to submit his case.
 The latter heard the evidence and listened to the arguments of the lawyers. Then he wrote opinion which if our memory serves us, filled page of the newspapers; He discharged Chute the ground that the Wallace Grand Jury illegal body and had no power to punish for contempt
 Perhaps it will do good to point out to the Democratic. anarchists of this period that Judge Murphy's view of the law was subsequently, upheld by the Supreme Court If, however, they desire to inform themselves they will find the opinion of the latter tribunal in the ninetyisecond volume of the California Reports, page 23o.
 This vindcaton of his motives in the Chute case is all that Judge Murphy needs at this late day. He declared the law as it exists and it can make no pos sibe difference whether Chute was good man or a bad man, railroad hireling or saint. If the Wal lace Grand Jury was an illegal body it had no right to Chute send him to jail for contempt It was afterward declared to be illegal body and so in dischargng Chute Judge Murphy followed the law.
 It IS unnecessary to refine the law points involved in the Chute case at this time The purpose of the Democratic anarchists is to use against Judge Murphy their old political resource-abuse of courts and slander of Judges It easy ordinarily to get away with this sort of political argument" The people do not understand law and are prone to look upon decisions which offend their prejudces as un- just Of corrupt The anarchists know this and make the most of it.
 But no sensible person should vote against Judge Murphy for upholding the law in the Chute case. It would have been his duty to do that had Chute been highbinder instead of politician who had in- cured the enmity of few Democratic purists The fact is Murphy is fine criminal lawyer a matchless prosecutor and brave man, who if elected District Attorney will be credit to the people and the city. Because he sent the sandlotters glimmering while District Attorney in 1879 is why he should be defeated now.
 combine of the collar factories of the country is announced, but it is not believed to include the Phe-