Rough on the Libellers

New Zealand Tablet, 20 August 1908, Page 22

Rough on the Libellers

Our columns have for some time past been amply demonstrating that there are more risks than red meat in the campaign of defamation that the atheist and Freemason press have for a long time past been carrying on against the parochial clergy and the religious Orders in France and Italy. One result of the large number of successful actions taken by the slandered parties was this: that the -editors and proprietors of the journals aforesa.d found it prudent to fall back on invented or exaggerated tales of alleged clerical chucldeheadedness of a vague or general nature— naming no names of person or of place. O$ defamer however, has found, to his cost, that even in anonymous accusation there is not necessarily safety. The individual in question conducts an anti-religious paper, the Avenir des Albes—a local organ of the Radical-Socialist bloc-at Moutfer. Some time ago he published, in his four-page news-sheet, a libellous- charge reflecting upon the conduct of some parish priest in the Canton of Rozel. The Avoir editor— warned, no doubt, by the disastrous experience of many other bloc newspapers-carefully abstamed from mentioning the name of the parish priest that it attacked gave no clue which" would fix the accusation upon him, went to bed in fancied security, and slept the sleep of the good blocard who feels that he has served the cause of irreligion with the weapon of Voltaire.

Now, it so happens that there are eleven curds (parish priests) in the Canton of Rozel. They discovered that-by an admirable provision of French law which might advantageously be extended to English-speaking countries-they were enabled to institute a joint process against the gdrant or responsible head of the Avemr des Al P es. The case went to the-Court of Appeal at Chambcry in Savoy. The Paris Univers of July -3 record's the result The Avenir was mulcted £ a fine, had to pay £ entu-e of the rather heavy expenses of the suit,' and, in addition, to hand over a small sum- in damages to each of the eleven cut*, of the Canton. 'The judgment of the court contained another clause. that must have been 'one of the most unkindest cuts of all' to the proprietary of the Avenir des Alfes. <tS judgment, says the -Univers, 'had "to be >P ublished in the ' Avenir des Aipes, and ,„ another newspaper of the Department to b* chosen by the parish priests.' • -