actions of government. On January 1, 1835, the final piece of this campaign was published in the Novascotian, a letter signed "The People". This letter accused the magistrates of "reprehensible irresponsibility, incompetence, and self-interestedness in the conduct of their responsibilities." Because the letter was published, Howe was put on trial for seditious libel, being charged with "seditiously contriving, devising, and intending to stir up and incite discontent and sedition among His Majesty's subjects." The crime of seditious libel had been defined 200 years prior to the time of Howe's trial and was seen by many as an unfair crime as it could be as broad or as specific as the court chose. If Howe had been convicted of seditious libel, the Novascotian would have been shut down. Howe represented himself in the trial and presented nothing but a 6 h 15 min speech against the charge. The jury took 10 min to decide to acquit Howe on the charge of criminal libel. The victory of Howe in the court was considered monumental at the time. In the first issue of the Novascotian following the acquittal, Howe claimed that "the press of Nova-Scotia is Free." It is said that Howe's libel victory established the fundamental basis for the freedom of the press in Canada, but other scholars have offered contrary opinions. 1840 to present With a circulation of 3000 subscribers, the Novascotian became the leading provincial newspaper in the 1840s. A well-known contributor was Thomas Chandler Haliburton, creator of the immensely popular character, Sam Slick. Howe's entry into politics necessitated selling the paper. Nevertheless, the Novascotian remained a liberal voice in the province until the First World War, reaching a peak circulation of 20,000. Later it was published as the Nova Scotian and then Nova Scotia's Farm and Home Journal. It was discontinued in the 1920s after years of dwindling circulation following a change of its political allegiances to the Union Government. The name Novascotian is still in use. It is now printed as a human interest section of The Chronicle-Herald'' newspaper of Halifax. References Footnotes Works cited Weekly newspapers published in Nova Scotia Defunct weekly newspapers Defunct newspapers published in Nova Scotia Publications established in 1824 Newspapers published in Halifax, Nova Scotia Culture of Nova Scotia 1824 establishments in Nova Scotia