Callan v. Gaylord
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
ERROR to the district court of Mleghany county. This was an action on the case for a libel brought by Thomas G. Gaylord, the defendant in error, against the plaintiff in error, James Callan.
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ERROR to the district court of Mleghany county. This was an action on the case for a libel brought by Thomas G. Gaylord, the defendant in error, against the plaintiff in error, James Callan. The plaintiff below complained that Callan (having acquired a knowledge of his private affairs from his employment as book-keeper in his house) published an anonymous libel, in the form of a letter, addressed to a merchant in Boston, injuriously affecting the plaintiff’s character and business as a merchant in thé city of Pittsburgh. After the testimony of several witnesses, who thought that, although the…
1Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the Court was delivered by
Gibson, C. J.
Nothing has been more fluctuating than the rule of competency in respect to evidence of handwriting by comparison. In England it is broadly laid down that such evidence is inadmissible, though the rule does not seem to be without its exceptions even there. In some of the United States it has no prohibitory effect at all; and in some, if not all of the rest, it exists with material qualifications. In Pennsylvania, it may be considered as settled by Vickroy v. Skelly, 14 Serg. & Rawle 372, that naked, unassisted comparison of hands is…
2Cases cited4 opinions
- M'Corkle v. BinnsSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1812
- Vickroy v. SkelleySupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1826
- Farmer's Bank v. WhitehillSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1823
- Commonwealth v. SmithSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1819
3Cited by7 opinions
- Huntley v. WhittierMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1870
- Schutz v. JordanSupreme Court of the United States · 1891
- Hanley v. GandyTexas Supreme Court · 1866
- Hall v. BrownSupreme Court of New Hampshire · 1877
- Baker v. HainesSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1841
2 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.