The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1919-11-20
MckAIG WORSIED IN
LIBEL SUIT
Jury Returns Verdict in Favor of
GOOding and the Boise
Statesman.

any way by the advertisement signed
by Frank R. Gooding, former COVER
nor, and published in The Statesman
on October 29 of last year.
This was the verdict delivered at
9:25 o'clock Tuesday morning by the
jury which heard the evidence in Nc
Kaig's $4,000 damage suit against
Mr.. Gooding and The Statesman, on
charge of malicious libel.
For 13 days in Judge Charles p.
McCarthy's court, evidence was intro
duced and arguments put before the
jury. The deliberations in the jury
room consumed little less than 13
hours of time, the last argument hav-
ing closed at 8 o'clock Monday even
ing and the decisive ballot having been
taken shortly before O'Clock Tuesday
morning.
A verdict of nine to three would
have been decisive, but the jury poll
showed ten to two in favor of the de
PENDANTS. One of the 10 was the only
member Of the jury known to be q
member of the Nonpartisan League.
The points of issue in the case were
whether or not the implication of
disloyalty against McKaig and other
leaders and employees of the Nonpar-
tisan league contained in the adver-
tisement could be j Justified, and
or not Mr. Gooding and The
when the advertisement |
was printed, had such knowledge as
would justify reasonable persons to 4
doubt McKaig's loyalty, or whether
they were actuated IN the publication
If the charges in question by spirit
If malice.
Commenting editorially on the YER
lict, The Statesman says:
But the public may feel, in the end,
hat the result has more than justified
he trial The McKaig case was not,
n its real significance, the lawsuit of
hcKaig as an individual trying to
ecure cash compensation for alleged
lamage to his reputation 1t was an
.ttempt on the part of the leadership
f the Nonpartisan league in Idaho
o justify itself, its methods, its en-
loyes and its war record in the eyes
f the voters of the state, and in the '
yes of those members of the league I
7ho had believed in the good faith of i
he leaders. The commendable thing $
bout the whole proceeding is that /.
,e bitter and costly legal struggle has :
erved to let floods of light in on dark
laces
In other states local and national
fficials of the Nonpartisan league
ave had their days in court before
lis. In Idaho the McKaig libel suit s
ave the first opportunity for the peo- S
le of this state to see at close range o
court battle waged over the question Il
the loyalty and war records of the "
ague leaders. o
For instance, when Townley and I,
ilbert were convicted on disloyalty :,
larges in Minnesota the league lead
s made charges of a political
ameup" and declared loudly that %
ere had been a miscarriage of jus "
.e. Minnesota is so far away. The IN
'ople of Idaho could not judge fairly N
the case, of the political angles W
evitable in such trial. The char
ter of the witnesses on both sides "
the Minnesota trial was not known 8;
re. As a natural result those per- y
MS who were favorably inclined to- ~
lrd the league believed the story of "a
frameup; those inclined against az
wnley were inclined to believe that Sc
stice had been DONE so
The McKaig case served to give the ge
ople of Idaho a closeup" of Non tn
rtisan leaders in this state In the tn
lin the witnesses on both sides are e;
her generally known. over south or
, Idaho at least, and that great
y which makes up public opinion
5 been fully informed so that it "a