\nA hundred years ago political campaigns were more bitter and more formal then they are likely to be in our own time. It was actually a hundred and twenty-five years ago, in 1832~ when Maine politics led to a famous libel suit. The facts have been called to my attention by Miss ~Jleroe Morse of Waterville, who is the owner of a pamphlet with the flamboyant title, The Liberty of the Press Vindicated and Truth Triumphant~ State vs. Ira Berry for an alleged libel on Cyrus Weston, the compliant in the prosecution and the mover of the Belgrade Resolutions; also a delegate to the Federal State Convention Holden in Augusta,ll June 26, 1832, and the pitiful instrument and victim of the desperation and folly of the leaders of the Federal Party in the County of Kennebec. In the presidential election of 1828 Maine had stood staunchly by the Federalist incumbent, President John Quincy Adams, but as Maine went that year, so did not go the nation, for the victor was the Democrat Andrew Jackson. Already the old Federalist party was practically dead, its place being taken by the ~1higs. The election of 1832 saw two great American figures vying for the presidency, Andrew Jackson, the Democrat and Henry Clay, the Whig.<\/p>\n
Maine was to go as strongly for Jackson that fall as it had gone for his opponent, Adams, four years earlier. But in the spring of 1832 the outcome was uncertain, and the rivalry between Maine Democrats and Maine Whigs rose to fever heat. One of the Whig leaders was Cyrus Weston of Belgrade wh0 at a political meeting in June, 1832, offered a series of resolutions, condemning Andrew Jackson and the whole Democratic party. The resolutions were published in the Kennebec Journal, whereupon another Belgrade citizen, signing himself simply “A Townsman”, sent a communication to another Augusta newspaper, The Age, which was just as strongly Democratic as the Journal was Whig. This fellow townsman of Weston wrote:<\/p>\n
“Mr. Editor: A string of resolutions are published in the Kennebec Journal, claiming to speak the voice of Belgrade. These resolutions were originally introduced at a meeting of some dozen citizens, picked from his own associates, by one Cyrus Weston. “This man is a deserter in the last war — he enlisted and deserted twice. The last time, he was taken, he was tried and condemned to be shot, but was pardoned at the intercession of his captain. This is the man who insults this town by presuming to speak her voice. This is the man that compares the majority of the legislature to Benedict Arnold. This is one of the men ready to fight for the Northeastern Boundary. As a citizen of the town cannot be silent. He has the facts from the officers under whom he served. The Age printed that letter on June 20,1832, and the fat was in the fire.<\/p>\n
Cyrus Weston immediately brought against Ira Berry, publisher of The Age…suit for criminal libel. At once the Maine press began to take sides. The American Advocate which, like the Kennebec Journal, was a Whig paper, said:<\/p>\n
“The Age published an infamous libel on Mr.Weston, accusing him of having twice deserted from the American Army, and having been condemned to be shot. We do not hesitate to call it infamous. The Age desired to abuse Mr. Weston for thinking the legislature did wrong. Mr. Weston, as any honest man would do when calumniated in so wanton and shameless a manner, indicted the publisher, Ira Berry. The latter declined to give the name of the writer and himself defended the action:<\/p>\n
“The Age cries about liberty of the press, but it is no part of that liberty to accuse every soldier in the\u00a0 last war who happens to be opposed to selling rv1adawaska, of deserting and being condemned to be shot?” The Waterville Times got in its say: “The Age is still at its dirty work of slandering respectable individuals of the Whig Party. We admonish this British minion and his abettors to beware. If we are not mistaken, they will learn some wholesome lessons before they are through with the Weston affair. On the other side papers like the Portland Argus and the Waldo Courier cried out, as did The Age for freedom of the press.<\/p>\n
When the case came to trial, everything hinged on the truth or falsity of the charge against Weston. If he had deserted from the army, as alleged, the letter was not libelous. Whether or not he had been guilty of desertion in the War of 1812″ it was no fun for Cyrus Weston to have the whole case aired in public nearly twenty years afterward, but air it both sides did, fully and soundly, in the trial at Augusta.<\/p>\n
The testimony of Captain Isaac Carter was a big moment for the defense. We stood up, unwavering, under cross examination, and insisted that the affidavit he had previously made at the request of the defense was every word true. That paper said: Isaac Carter of Augusta, certify that in 18131 was captain in the U. S. service, and that Cyrus Weston was a soldier in the company under my command. Said company was ordered to Portland, and when there mustered, Weston was missing. That fact was reported and he was advertised as a deserter. Subsequently he was brought back by his father, which circumstance induced the commander to pardon him. From Portland the company was ordered on the lines, when he was once again found to be missing, was advertised, retaken, tried, convicted as a deserter, and sentenced to be Shot. Application was made for a pardon, which was procured.”<\/p>\n
On the other hand William Weston, father of Cyrus, swore that his son was sick at home for a week or ten days in 1813, at the very time when Carter’s company went from Augusta to Portland. Cyrus himself then took the stand. He said that in June, 1813, he had none with Captain Carter’s company as far as fvlonmouth, on their way to Portland. When they arrived at tv1onmouth, Cyrus testified, he had a violent headache, went into a bedroom of the inn and fell a sleep. When he awakened\u00a0 the troop had departed. He was treated the next day by Dr. Cochran, and sent a letter to Capt. Carter by the hand of one Job Sherburne, who said he was on his way to Portland. Cyrus said he wrote Carter that he was sick at rvlonmouth and asked where he should go if he got well enough. In a few days Weston said he received a reply, telling him to report either at Portland or at the camp of Captain Adams in Norridgewock. But, rather significantly (at least so thought the jury), Weston could not produce any such letter. In fact he said he couldn’t remember whether Capt. Carter’s answer was written or oral. Weston’s testimony went on to state that, after recovering at ~J10nmouth, he reported at Norridgewock, then went to his father’ s, then on to Port 1 and. He said he didn’t know he had ever been tried by court martial, but if so it didn’t amount to anything, because he was soon sent on to regimental quarters in northern New York State.<\/p>\n
Now let us see what Weston said about the alleged second desertion. Here it is in his own words, as printed in that twenty-page pamphlet 125 years ago: “Early in November, 1813, a guard was detached at Four Corners to go out a distance of about eight mi les. From that guard I was detached by order of Col. Davis,. to assist Surgeon Basset of the 33rd and 34th regiments. I was transferred with him to Plattsburg and thence by his written order to Burlington, where I was stationed unti I January, assisting a hospital surgeon. was reporting men every day and doing orderly duty as a sergeant. Some time in December a call was made for all the sick and well to come onto the field. The order was given to me to have those carried on who were not well enough to march on. While was obeying that order, Capt. Lothrop met me and asked me what it meant. He sent the men back, and I went to make my report. While was making it, a sergeant came to me and said he had orders to take me to the guardhouse. I then went with him and found all the orderly officers of the regiment confined. Next morning we were ordered before the commanding officer and were confined.<\/p>\n
“We <\/em>were told that we were charged with neglect of duty and disobedience of orders and that three captains would decide our case. That was Weston’s direct testimony, but he didn’t fare well under cross examination. He admitted he and others had left the camp at Four Corners without leave and, on one occasion, had stayed away all night. He further admitted he had been three times in the guardhouse. Weston denied he had been reduced in rank, whereupon defense counsel introduced a muster roll of the company to which Weston was attached from September 1 to November 30, 1813. Opposite the name of Cyrus Weston was the rank of sergeant, date of enlistment, April 30, 1813, time of enlistment to Apri I 30, 1814, and the following remark: Reduced to private September 23, 1813.”<\/p>\n The defense showed there was no question that Weston had been charged with desertion, whether or not he had actually deserted. They introduced the general orders of Adj. Gen. William King, which read: Sergeants Howard and Jeston of the First Corps of Light Infantry were so lost to sense of duty and their own honor as to desert the service on the evening before the last, and made an effort to return to their homes, where they must have passed an ignominious life under the finger of scorn and tongue of reproach. They have been apprehended, and it was the intention of the General to make them an example to the army. But the officers of the 33rd and 34th regiments have in a body solicited their pardon, and have entrusted that these young men, by some signal act of bravery, might have an opportunity to wipe from their characters the foul stain of desertion from the standard of their country_ The general has accordingly forgiven the above-named deserters that they may be released and rejoin their corps.<\/p>\n Judge Ruggles’ charge to the jury was scholarly and detached. He explained carefully the law of libel, especially those aspects in which the Maine statutes differed from common law. On the issue of Weston’s desertion he was explicit. He pointed out that the charge made in the allegedly\u00a0 libelous letter was that Jeston had twice deserted during the War of 1812, was twice tried and sentenced to be shot, and twice pardoned. The jury must decide, said the judge, whether a trial and conviction had or had not been proved by the evidence. So, if the jury should find that the published letter was substantially true, it would be their duty to declare that no libel had been committed. That was exactly what the jury did, after less than an hour’s deliberation. They declared Ira Barry, publisher of The Age, not guilty, and Ira went back to his press and type to write further articles in praise of Andrew Jackson and the Whigs. It might have been well if all newspapers of the time had lived up to the promise made by the Kennebec Journal in its very fi rst issue of January 8, 1825. Here was the Journal’ s promise:<\/p>\n “All communications that may be offered of a literary, political, local or religious nature, not involving sectarian controversy or doctrines in dispute, written with temperance and brevity, and considered to be conducive to the public good, will be inserted in this paper; but we shall guard against a If personal altercation except to do justice to the injured character of an individual I hope no consideration may ever induce us to suffer the Journal to become the pack horse of quarrelsome scribbles, or the receptacle of the spleen and abuse of those who claim exclusive wisdom and honesty.<\/p>\n “That statement was signed by Russe II Eaton and Luther Severance, original publishers of the Augusta paper, which in 1958 has entered upon its 133rd year of continuous publication. That even in the early years the Journal tried hard to live up to the noble principles expressed in its first issue is borne out by a word from the mouth of the enemy itself. Just before he went to trial for alleged libel against Cyrus Jeston, Ira Berry published in his paper, The Age, the following statement: It gi ves us pleasure to say that the Kennebec Journal, although oftener and more directly in collision with us than any other paper, has pursued in our case a course which a just regard for the rights of the accused and respect for the court should have dictated to every fair minded person.<\/p>\n Year: 1958<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Read the script for “Little Talks” program #363, Broadcast on January 12, 1958<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":405,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[744,35296],"tags":[],"builder_content":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7813"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/405"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7813"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7813\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}