Little v. Barlow
Supreme Court of Georgia
Slander, from Butts Superior Court. Decision by J udge Cabaniss, at July adjourned Term, 1858. This was an action for slander, brought by Joseph C. Little, against Elbridge Barlow. The declaration contained two counts. In the first, the words charged to have been spoken were, that “Joseph C. Little was a damn little thieving puppy,” with an inuendo, that defendant thereby meant that plaintiff was guilty of the crime of theft or larceny, and was a thief.
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Slander, from Butts Superior Court. Decision by J udge Cabaniss, at July adjourned Term, 1858. This was an action for slander, brought by Joseph C. Little, against Elbridge Barlow. The declaration contained two counts. In the first, the words charged to have been spoken were, that “Joseph C. Little was a damn little thieving puppy,” with an inuendo, that defendant thereby meant that plaintiff was guilty of the crime of theft or larceny, and was a thief. In the second count the words charged, were “if Thomas Foster had not hilled House, and been put in jail, Joseph C. Little would now be as…
1Opinion of the Court
By the Court.
McDonald, J.
delivering the opinion.
[1.] The old rule, that words spoken in disparagement of the character of a person, which are susceptible of two constructions, are to be understood in their milder sense, is ex*425ploded. They are now to be interpreted in the sense that a person of ordinary capacity who heard them spoken, would understand them. They must, generally impute a crime to the person of whom they are spoken, indictable and punishable in a temporal Court of criminal jurisdiction, or charge him with having an infectious disease, to be actionable of themselves. To charge a…
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