In a civil action, the truth is a complete defense, but if prosecuted criminally, the person charged with libel cannot plead that the publication was true unless he can show that it was made from good motives and for justifiable ends. In any case, the writer should be sure of his ability to prove the strict truth of every part of the charge to the complete satisfaction of a jury. Even then such a publication is generally injudicious.

An unqualified retraction is no defense, but will tend in mitigation of damages.

There is a large class of defamatory publications spoken of as "privileged," to which the usual assumption that they are prompted by malice does not apply. This class includes reports of judicial and legislative proceedings, comments upon the policy of the government and upon public matters and the conduct of public men, and criticisms of theatrical, musical, artistic, and literary works.

If a report of a judicial or legislative proceeding is made fairly and in good faith, there is no civil or criminal liability. It must, however, be free from objectionable comment, whether in the body of the report or in the heading. Proceedings before church organizations, societies, and clubs, for the discipline of their members, partake somewhat of the nature of trials in the courts, and language used in them is privileged, prima facie, so far

as it has pertinency to the matter under consideration. An editor may use a heading properly indicative of the nature of a trial, if it does not amount to comment. A reporter may say that a person has been arrested on a certain charge, but it would, of course, be actionable to assume the guilt of the prisoner. It is libellous to quote a libellous charge which anyone else has made, unless the charge was made in open court or before a legislative body. It is no defense that the libellous language was copied from another newspaper.

Criticism cannot be defamation unless it strikes at personal character. It is protected, therefore, not because it is privileged, but because it is not defamation. However severe it may be, however unjust in the opinion of men capable of judging, so long, in England at least, as the critic confines himself to what is there called "fair criticism" of another's works, the act cannot be treated as a breach of duty. The criticism of works of art, whether painting, sculpture, monument, or architecture, falls within this rule. The conduct, too, of public men, amenable to the public only, and of candidates for public office, is a matter proper for public discussion. It may be made the subject of hostile criticism and animadversion so long as the writer keeps within the bounds of an honest intention to discharge a duty to the public, and does not make the

occasion a mere cover for promulgating false and defamatory allegations. Criticism of public men should be limited to matters touching their qualifications for the performance of the duties pertaining to the position that they hold or seek.

Any person who takes part in the publication of a libel is civilly and criminally responsible for it. This responsibility attaches to the author, editor, proprietor, printer, and seller of the book or newspaper containing the article. Proprietors, publishers, and editors are liable for the publication of libellous matter in their prints, though the publication may have been made without their knowledge or even against their orders. This is not true of newsvendors; it is held that if the alleged libel were of such a nature that a man of common intelligence could not know that it was intended for a libel, and it was not in fact known that it was, neither the editor nor the proprietor of the printing establishment or of the print would be liable.

Local statutes affect the law of libel materially, and every newspaper publisher and writer should acquaint himself with the statutes of his own State. For instance, the Massachusetts law reads:

"In an action for libel or slander, the defendant may introduce in evidence, in mitigation of damages and in rebuttal of evidence of

actual malice, acts of the plaintiff which create a reasonable suspicion that the matters charged against him by the defendant are true."

This important provision may or may not exist somewhere else.

Contempt of court is a serious offense exposing to the liability of summary punishment an attorney who resorts to the public press in order to influence the proceedings in a pending case; an editor who prints any libellous matter relative to court proceedings, tending to impair public confidence and respect in them, even though the matter is also indictable as such; a party to an impending case who before trial circulates printed statements to the prejudice of the other party; anybody who publishes a report of the proceedings of a trial contrary to the direct order of the court, or publishes such report with comments likely to prejudice the rights of the parties; and, generally, all persons who perform acts tending to interfere substantially with the efficient service of the courts in the administration of justice. Headlines likely to bias jurymen are particularly reprehensible. One may be punished for contempt by reason of publishing a libel on a grand or petit jury. It is contempt for a reporter to conceal himself in the jury room, and to report the deliberations of the jurors.

XVII

PREPARATION OF ILLUSTRATIONS
FOR REPRODUCTION

There is probably no other adjunct to the making of technical literature which is so little understood and so carelessly handled as the preparation of the necessary text illustrations. And yet many publications depend for their principal value upon the illustrations which accompany the text matter. It follows, therefore, that poorly rendered illustrations will detract not only from the appearance, but also from the usefulness, of a book or paper, as compared with illustrations neatly and clearly executed, correctly drawn as to details, and legibly lettered.

Of the cuts used in printing there are, in general, five different kinds-half-tones, linecuts, wood-cuts, stereotypes, and electrotypes, the latter two being but reproductions of the first three. Strictly speaking there are but two kinds-half-tones and line-cuts. Wood-cuts are line-cuts, but the term "line-cut" has become so generally associated with the chemically

*The greater part of this matter is abstracted from article by Chas. W. Reinhardt, in "Engineering News," Feby. 15, 1906.