Seip v. Deshler

• Citation: 170 Pa.St. 334,32 A. 1032
• Parties: SEIP v. DESHLER.
• Decision Date: 07 October 1895
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Pennsylvania

32 A. 1032
170 Pa.St. 334

SEIP
v.
DESHLER.

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Oct. 7, 1895.

Appeal from court of common pleas, Lehigh county; Edwin Albright, Judge.

Action by Annie E. Seip against William H. Deshler for libel. There was judgment in favor of plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Affirmed.

"Annie E. Seip, the plaintiff in this suit, by Joseph Hunter, her attorney, files this her statement against William H. Deshler, the defendant above named, who was summoned to answer the plaintiff, the said Annie E. Seip, in an action of trespass, for that: Whereas, the said Annie E. Seip is a person of sound mind, and a good, true, honest, and virtuous citizen of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and as such hath always conducted herself, and, until the committing of the said grievance hereinafter mentioned, was always reputed to be a person of good fame and credit, and of good, sound mind, and free from all taint of insanity, and hath never been guilty, nor, until the committing of the said grievance, been suspected to have been guilty, of fornication, or any other such crime, nor was the plaintiff before suspected of being insane, or having any taint of insanity, by means of which said premises, she, the said plaintiff, before the committing of said grievance, had deservedly obtained the good opinion of all her neighbors, and all other persons to whom she was known. Nevertheless, the said defendant, well knowing the premises, but contriving and maliciously intending to vilify and asperse the reputation and character of the said plaintiff, and to bring her into very great infamy and disgrace, and subject her, the said plaintiff, to prosecution and punishment for fornication, on the 31st day of October, A. D. 1890, at Allentown, in said county, did wickedly and maliciously, make, write, and publish, and send through the United States mails, at Allentown, directed to the residence of the said plaintiff, No.——Hamilton street, Allentown, in said county, a certain malicious, false, and scandalous writing and libel of and concerning the said plaintiff; said writing and libel being contained in a letter written and published and addressed to the said plaintiff as aforesaid by the said defendant, and containing, amongst other things, certain false, malicious, and scandalous matters, according to the terms following, to wit: 'Mrs. Annie E. Seip (meaning the said plaintiff), you (meaning the said plaintiff) have every dollar due from your (meaning the said plaintiff)...