The Southland Times. MONDAY, APRIL, 9, 1866.

Southland Times, Volume III, Issue 239, 9 April 1866, Page 2

The Southland Times. MONDAY, APRIL, 9, 1866.

The Parliamentary crisis which has sc long existed in Victoria is not yet ended : at every turn of the wheel fresh mattei for excitement turns up. The last new specimen of the Assembly's wisdom, is calculated to render the M'Culloch Ministry and its supporters more notorious than Sny previous folly they have perpetrated. "While believing their Tarif! policy to be sound, and its adoption desirable, we cannot approve the line of conduct that has been pursued -in ordei to make it law. But what we now have to complain of, is an action that is as unjust as it is ungenerous, as unmanly as despotic. The manager of the Argut (Mr Hugh ' G-eobge) is locked-up, in charge ofthe Sergeant-at- Arms, for having given publicity to a leading article whicl appeared in the paper of which he is publisher, commenting strongly on the statement made by the Chief Secretary (Mi M'Cuiloch), upon 'the occasion of his announcing the resignation of the Ministry; in which the expression " bristled with falsehood " was used. It would appear that the hon. gentleman, who himself on a previous occasion, when the question of a " breach of- privilege " was before 'the House, deprecated, the conduct of members who, believing themselves aggrieved by the censures oi the Press, sought protection from the despotic powers invested in the' Assembly under the name of " privileges "; and maintained that these powers were too extensive and too sacred to be lightly called into operation, has now himsell brought them into action. The statement commented upon by the Argus was deserving censure ; although it may have been true in part, it was not a fair and honest declaration of the position in which the two sections of the Parliament stood. We therefore consider Mr M'Cuir xoch was wrong in " spotting " this particular article as the one upon which to vent his anger, and ensure the punishment of the Argus, which he had long meditated, for its persistent opposition to his policy from the commencement ofthe Victorian Parliamentary difficulty. The action taken by the members of the Assembly was discreditable to them as individuals, and degrading to the colony, No one knew better than Mr, M'CvLioeu that in order to punish the

libel action in the Supreme Court was the legitimate course. Had he adopted this line of action, although a large number might have deemed it unstatesmanlike, few would have been found loud in condemha- " tion of his doings. By the course ; taken, he has forfeited the high ! esteem in which he has long been held, as a man of honor, business, and talent* i In a fit of spleen he has caused to be ' incarcerated in vile quarters a gentleman 1 who,, even the smallest pretender to; .political knowledge, is supposed to know \ was entirely innocent of any crime : with , f the aid of a plastic and pliable company F of " follow the leader" associates, he has 3 viciously punished the publisher of the ' Argus for the deeds of the editor. "We [ can scarcely imagine any action more unjust than this. If Mr. M'Ctjl- > loch was libelled, he had. his re--3 dress at a court of law. But no. f "With despicable meanness, he seeks with the aid of subseivient surroundings to = take the easier mode of revenge: he wants a sacrifice, and he can get it with little trouble and, no pecuniary cost — he ' must punish the Argus, and, as he cannot get at the editor, he will immolate the, - publisher. He is all powerful : prosecutor judge and jury, are all his own; why " should he not Use them ? In the Supreme Court a jury, which must be unanimous, might not agree, and his revenge would remain unappeased; but in his own court, so to speak, a majority will do, and he holds = that majority with a powerwhichwill make them dance at his bidding. Thus has the , boasted parliamentary privileges of Britain been degraded and abused. Mr. George is a prisoner at: the will of the Assembly; and, if the Victorian Press speaks truth, is being treated with the uttermost severity. It is stated that he is confined in an unwholesome cell, without even the ordinary conveniences of a common prison. And for what ? Simply because he was the publisher of a newspaper, the editor of which had the hardihood to affirm that a statement of the hon. James M'Culloch " bristled with falsehood." If this is the use to which .parliamentary privileges are to be put, the sooner the colonial legislatures are . deprived of them the better for the freedom of the people and the; credit of the colonies. In denouncing the conduct of the Victorian Assembly we must not be under- „ stood to appplaud the style of writing indulged in by the editors of the Argus. All must admire powerful composition, „• and it will be generally conceded that a journalist should be allowed great latitude r of speech; but' there is a line which should never be crossed, — the boundary between legitimate censure and strong -, personal upbraidings. Our Melbourne contemporary frequently leaps over this line, and often destroys the effect of an able and useful article by expressions that would not be tolerated in a company of private gentlemen. Such sentences as " privileged ruffian," " bristling with falsehood," and the like, disfigure the leading columns of a respectable journal; itis a assuming the sensational which tends to lower the tone of journalism, and is neither creditable to the writer, or profitable to the people. Strong and terse sentences are attractive, but seldom ins structive; they tend to beget hasty generalisations and false conclusions; t they address themselves almost entirely- . to theimagination upon subjects whichprof perly belong to the intellect. The suggestions ' tions go so far beyond their intentions that ' the writer who adopts the style gradually has his sense of responsibility weakened, until he deems every thing which does not contribute to dramatic effect as tame and - unprofitable. It is beyond question that . there is a tendency, with a class of newspapers writers, to revel in personalities, . which should be discountanced by the public arid taken cognisance of by the ) law. The Supreme Court is all powerful { to check this evil and punish any approach to licentiousness of the Press ; thereforeeveryone has his redress and the statesJ man has no excuse for seeking the [ y breach of privilege " powers for protec tion — powers which should never be I exercised except in cases of high treason. "Whatever practical defects the law of, \ libel may contain, one main feature of its ' theory has, by modern legislation, been I brought into complete harmony with 5 " common sense. Tp publish any statement 3 to make any assertion, tending to ; injure the credit or reputation of another J is prima facie criminal; and in order 1 to justify any such publication it ' is necessary to prove not only the truth 1 of the matter charged, but that for some specific reason it was necessary for the public benefit that it should be r published, In the one to "which we have ** alluded such was not the case : ■ the > language used was too violent to be [ effective, and 9 too ungentlemanly to be ' admired ; still not such as would justify ' parliamentary interference. The liberty \ which is by acclamation allowed the Press ; the freedom secured to all just ' criticisms ; the good sense which generally- ;. refuses to push principles partially formed \ to inconvenient. conclusions — unite to in ' vest the British Press with an historical , dignity; and it is a, subject of regret that its powers and influence in the ' colonies should be impaired by the im- ■*. pulsive striying after effect of so many ; of its writers. It is the province of journalists to detect and expose false J reasoning and misrepresentation, but it is [ going beyond the bounds' of legitimate journalism to brand any statement as ; " bristling with falsehood," because the ' writer believed it to be illogical or special pleading. In this the Argus was wnong ; but the course Mr. M'Cttlloch adopted to revenge the insult was unstateßman- ' like and unmanly,