Karl Marx 
A SLANDER TRIAL 

London, December 19 

The ancient Egyptians are known to have developed the division 
of labour to a high degree, so far as it extended to the whole of 
society and not to the individual workshop. With them almost 
every particular part of the body had its own special physician, 
whose therapy was confined by law to this particular region. Theft 
was the occupation of a special trade, the head of which was an 
officially recognised person. But how inadequate the ancient 
Egyptian division of labour appears when compared to that of 
modern England! The strange nature of some trades in London 
amazes us no less than the extent to which they are carried on. 

One of these curious industries is espionage. It divides into two 
big branches, civil espionage and political espionage. We leave the 
latter entirely out of account here. Civil espionage is again broken 
down into two large subdivisions— official and private espionage. 

The official sort is carried on, on the one hand, by detectives, 
who are paid either by the government or the municipal 
authorities, and on the other hand, by common informers, who 
spy on their own and are paid by jobwork* by the police. 

The business of private espionage breaks down into many subtypes, 
which may be united under two major headings. One comprises 
non-commercial private relations, the other commercial. Under the 
first heading, in which espionage on marital infidelity plays an 
important part, the establishment of Mr. Field has won European 
fame. The business of commercial espionage will be better 
understood from the following incident. 

Last Tuesday” the Court of Exchequer ’** dealt with a suit for 

4 Marx uses the English words “detectives”, “common informers” and 
“jobwork” and gives the German translation in brackets.— Ed. 

b December 17.— Ed. 

A Slander Trial 121 

slander, in which a local weekly paper, Lloyd’s Weekly News, was the 
defendant and Stubbs and Comp. the plaintiff. Stubbs and Comp. 
publish a weekly under the title of Stubbs’ Gazette, the organ of 
Stubbs’ Trade Protection Company. The paper is sent privately to 
subscribers, who pay 3 guineas a year, but is not sold by single © 
copies, as other newspapers are, in stationers’* shops, on the 
street, at railway stations, and so on. Actually, it is a proscription 
list of bad debtors, whatever their position in life. Stubbs’ 
“Protection Company” spies out the solvency of private individu- 
als, Stubbs’ Gazette records them in black and white. The number 
of subscribers runs to 20,000. 

Well, Lloyd’s Weekly News had published an article in which the 
following statement appeared: “It is the duty of every honourable 
man to put an end to this disgraceful system of espionage.” Stubbs 
demanded judicial revenge for this slander. 

After the attorney for the plaintiff, Serjeant Shee, had poured 
out the stream of his Irish eloquence, the plaintiff Stubbs 
underwent a cross examination” (in effect, the cross fire to which 
the witnesses are subjected during the hearing) by Serjeant 
Ballantine, the attorney for Lloyd’s Weekly News. The following 
comical dialogue ensued.‘ 

Ballantine: “Do you ask your subscribers for information?” 

Stubbs: “T invite the subscribers to send me the names of persons 
they consider to be swindlers. We then investigate these cases. I do 
not investigate them myself. I have agents in London and other 
large cities. I have 9 or 10 agents in London, who get a yearly 
salary.” 

Ballantine: “What do these gentlemen receive for hunting out 
information?” 

Stubbs: “From 150 to 200 pounds sterling.” 

Ballantine: “And a new suit? Well, when one of these well-paid 
gentlemen catches a swindler, what happens then?” 

“We publish his name.” 

Ballantine: ““When he is a thorough swindler?” 

“eS.” 

“But if he is only half a swindler?” 

“Then we enter it in our register.” 

a Marx uses the English word.— Ed. 

b Marx uses the English words “serjeant”, “cross examination” and, below, 
“solicitor” .— Ed. 

© Marx draws on a report published in The Times, No. 24119, December 18, 
1861.— Ed. 

“Until he is in full bloom, and then you publish it?” 

“Yes.” 

“Do you publish autographs of swindlers?” 

“ES. 

“And you go to even greater expense for the benefit of trade. 
You publish photographs of swindlers?” 

“Yes.” . 

“Do you not have a secret police agency? Are you not connected 
with Mr. Field?” 

“TI am glad to be able to say No!” 

“What is the difference?” 

“I decline to answer that.” 

“What do you mean by your ‘legal agents’?” 

“That concerns collection of debts. I mean by it solicitors 
(something between attorney and _ bailiff) who take care of 
subscribers’ business according to the conditions stated in the 
prospectus.” 

“So, you are a collector of debts, too?” 

“I collect debts through 700 solicitors.” 

“Good Lord, you have 700 solicitors, and the world still exists! 
Do you keep the solicitors or do the solicitors keep you?” 

“They keep themselves.” 

“Have you had other court cases?” 

“Yes, half a dozen.” 

“Did you ever contest them?” 

nase" 

“Was the decision ever in your favour?” 

“Once.” 

“What do you mean by the heading in your paper, ‘Addresses 
Wanted’, followed by a long list of names?” 

“Absconding debtors whose whereabouts neither we nor our 
subscribers could trace.” 

“How is your business organised?” 

“Our central office is in London, with branch offices in 
Birmingham, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dublin. My father left me 
the business. He carried it on in Manchester originally.” 

Attorney Ballantine in his plea pounced mercilessly on Stubbs, 
whose “smiling and self-complacent attitude during his testimony 
proved at any rate that he had no more idea than a dung-beetle of 
the filth of the material he moved in”. English trade must have 
sunk deep indeed, if it needed such a protector. This unworthy 
spy system would give Stubbs a fearful weapon for extortion, 
etc. 

A Slander Trial 123 

The Lord Chief Baron,'*? who was sitting as judge,* threw his 
summing-up into the balance for the defence. He concluded with 
the words: 

“The jury owe much to the freedom of the press; but juries are not 
independent because the press is free, but the press is free because the juries are 
independent. You must consider whether the incriminated article goes beyond the 
bounds of honest criticism. Stubbs is a public character and as such is subject to 
criticism. Should you believe that Lloyd’s Weekly News has gone beyond the bounds 
of honest criticism, then it is up to you to award the plaintiff appropriate damages.” 

The jurors withdrew to the jury room to deliberate. After 
debating for a quarter of an hour they reappeared in the 
courtroom with the verdict: Plaintiff Stubbs is in the right; 
damages for his wounded honour— one farthing. The farthing is 
the smallest English coin, corresponding to the French centime 
and the German pfennig. Stubbs left Guildhall amidst the loud 
laughter of the large audience, escorted by a number of admirers, 
from whose urgent ovations only speedy flight could save his 
modest dignity. ' 

Written on December 19, 1861 Printed according to the news- 
aper 

December 24, 1861 Published in English for the first 
time