Year: 1874

If the rebels cant get Congress to res


tore Arlington to the heirs of the traitor


R. E. Lee quite so soon as they hoped,


they are in fair way to accomplish the


object through the complaisant courts of


Virginia. A decision of Judge Hughes
in the United States District Court at


Richmond. Virginia, restores to George


Washington Custis Lee some mill prop
erty once belonging to his father, Gen


Robert E. Lee, in Fairfax county. 1t
was sold for taxes by the United States,
but the sale is invalidated bv the Court.
The United States now holds the Arling
ton property by precisely the same ten
ure as it held this mill proper ty of the
Lee estate-a tax title-and suit
brought before this Judge Hughes for its
recovery could but result in the same
way. The heirs of Lee have already ap-
piled to Congress for its restoration-so
far vainly. But if they could have wait
ed till the Democratic party are restored
to power they would not have needed
the services of the courts. We agree
with cotemporary that decision which
should give back a national cemetery for
Union soldiers to the most prominent
rebel family in the whole country would
be bitterly resented and resisted. The
present generation of loyal people, at
least, could not abide it. And yet we are
far from confident that this humiliating
and disgraceful spectacle won't be wit
messed, and by this generationl


THE LIBERTY OF THE PRESS ANNIHILATED


Congress at its last session passed some
law, or is supposed to have passed some
law, which holds editors to the same res
possibility for libel as other citizens; in
other words, it places journalistic defam-
ers of private character on an equal foot
ing with every one else. 1t don't pre-
tend to interfere with the freedom of the
press, but holds its managers amenable
to the law for ats abuse. 1t takes from
them no constitutional right to criticise
the acts of public men and all other crit
icism to their hearts content But it
does deprive them of the exclusive privi-
lege OF running private character with no
other motive or excuse than to crafty
personal or political hatred and malig-
nifty.


This law has created the widest alarm
amongst large portion of the press, and
for the last two months they have been
pouring out upon the heads of Congress
men generally, and Senator Carpenter
especially. such torrent of vindictive
and billingsgate abuse as seemed in dan
ger of sweeping them out of existence.
If law had been passed inficting upon
editors the penalty of death for publish
ing the truth, it would not have created
half the commotion this act, furnishing
willful and deliberate libel, has DONE In
the first case they would have run little
risk of incurring the penalty. In the
other they render themselves liable
every day of their existence.


W I0,o L, h.,f hi To
our sympathies to these public libellers
rather than to their victims. 1t seems
to be law of their natures. We doubt
if it is possible for the correspondents in
Newspaper Row" to utter the truth of
personal enemy, or a political opponent
even where it would answer their pur-
pose as we'll as falsehood. The moral
philosopher-perhaps Dugald Stewart
did not know them when he declared in
defense of human nature, that the great
est liars tell one hundred truths to one
falsehood. They reverse the proportion.


Besides, law prohibiting and punish
ing libel and slander, would deprive that
portion of the press to which we refer, of
its vocations. Its editors live, and move
and have their being in slander. 1t is
their only resource indeed They have
no capacity of any higher order or for
any higher order of literary work: Sian
der and libel have been reduced to an
art or perhaps we should say to pro-
fession, by these public defamers. They |
have for years devoted all their powers
to its cultivation, and now, just as they
have invested all their moral and intel
lectual capital in it, and have become ut.
terly unfit for any other avocation, Con-
gress has stepped in and taken from
them the special privileges" they hoped |
public sentiment, if not law, had guaran-
teed to them The blow is a fatal one. |
Who can wonder at the howl of indigna-
ton they have raisedY