Tillson v. Robbins
Supreme Judicial Court of Maine
On exceptions by the defendant to the overruling of his demurrer to the declaration. Libel, in two counts, for words printed in a newspaper, the Rockland Opinion, September 15, 1876. The first count declares for a libel against the plaintiff as an individual, in these words': “The Hurricane Vote.
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On exceptions by the defendant to the overruling of his demurrer to the declaration. Libel, in two counts, for words printed in a newspaper, the Rockland Opinion, September 15, 1876. The first count declares for a libel against the plaintiff as an individual, in these words': “The Hurricane Vote. Again we have to chronicle most atrocious corruption, intimidation and fraud in the Hurricane island vote, for which Davis Tillson is without doubt responsible, as he was last year.” The second count declares for a “libel of and concerning the plaintiff in his business” of merchant and contractor in…
1Opinion of the CourtBarrows, J.
The defendant’s criticisms upon the writ to which he has demurred would be pertinent if the case were one *298of mere verbal slander. But, in respect to the supposed requirement that, in order to maintain an action for damages where no crime is imputed, special damage must be alleged and proved, a distinction has been long and uniformly maintained between mere words and written or printed slander. Holt’s Law of Libel, First Am. Ed. 218-223. Much, which if only spoken might be passed by as idle blackguardism doing no discredit save to him who utters it, when invested with the dignity and malignity…
2Cases cited7 opinions
- Steele v. SouthwickNew York Supreme Court · 1812
- Stone v. CooperNew York Supreme Court · 1845
- Stow v. ConverseSupreme Court of Connecticut · 1820
- Runkle v. MeyerSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1803
- Colby v. ReynoldsSupreme Court of Vermont · 1834
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3Cited by12 opinions
- Morse v. Times-Republican Printing Co.Supreme Court of Iowa · 1904
- Cohen v. BowdoinSupreme Judicial Court of Maine · 1972
- Lauder v. JonesNorth Dakota Supreme Court · 1904
- Merchants' Ins. Co. of Newark v. BucknerCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · 1899
- Brown v. Independent Publishing Co.Montana Supreme Court · 1914
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