Strader v. Snyder

Citations

• 67 Ill. 404

Syllabus

<p>1. Pleading—demurrer—to what pleas directed. To an action on the case for libel, the defendants pleaded the general issue and two special pleas. The plaintiff demurred to two of the pleas, describing them as pleas one and two, and assigning as cause of demurrer that they amounted to the general issue. The court sustained the demurrer to the two special pleas, which were the second and third of the series, and this was assigned for error: Held, that the decision was correct, as the court will always look at the body of any pleading for the purpose of determining its character, and to what it is directed.</p> <p>2. Same—when plea amounts to the general issue. A plea in an action on the case for libel, purporting to answer the whole cause of action, where the justification attempted to be set up is not as broad as the imputation upon the plaintiff’s character, and which consists principally in mere denials of allegations of the declaration, either directly or argumentatively, is bad on demurrer, as amounting to the general issue.</p> <p>3. Evidence—secondary in case of libel. It is erroneous to admit in evidence a libelous article from a newspaper, in a suit against the parties who wrote the original and procured its publication, even though it was published substantially according to the manuscript. The original should be produced, or its absence accounted for. But if the defendants after-wards put in evidence such original, the error will be cured.</p> <p>4. Libel—variance in the written article and that as printed. In a suit against the author and those procuring the publication of a libelous communication in a newspaper, it appeared that the article, as published, contained some slight verbal alterations from the manuscript, but not such as to alter the sense. The court refused to instruct the jury that, unless the phraseology of the two were the same, there could be no recovery: Held, no error, as a mere verbal alteration, not affecting the sense, would not exo