The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-11-18 00:00:00

11111

iEtle tourbriQc Olperber.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1871.

THE GREAT IRISH TRIAL.

This phrase may fairly applied to the trial of
Kelly on the charge of murdering police-con-
stable Talbot. The deceased Was a detective
policeman, and in Ireland this is synonymous
with a spy and a Government informer, terms
which were freely used to designate the unfor-
tunate man who simply met his death in the ex-
ecution of his dtity. What the accused was may
be fairly gathered from the comments that were
made on the case during t.ts progress by a cer-
tain section of the Irish pre,s, and from tho re-
inicings at his acquittal. The trial itself was a
remarkable one. A great deal of political feel.
lug was imported into it, and a most extraor-
dinary defence WRB set up --a defence that, we
believe, would not have been attempted in Eng-
land or Scotland.

It seems beyond question that in July last tho
policeman Talbot was fired at, and struck with a
bullet. and the accused man was on two occa-
sions identified by the murdered man, for mur-
dered he undoutitedly was, by whosesoever hand
the fatal wound was inflicted. The prisoner's
counsel at first reste I strongly on the absence
of absolute id rtiti eition. lint subsequently he
indirectly admitted that it was Kelly who fired
the shot, but maintained, atrengely enough, that
this was not the rinse of death, that the deceased
was really killed by erroneous treatment in the
hospital. Mr. Baron Pigott, in summing up,
told the jury that, even if these allegations were
true, they had nothing whatever to do with the
ease as far as the accused was concerned ; that
the firing the bullet lead to the treatment, aud
that, whatever this treatment was, the man who
tired the shot was answerable for the conse-
quences. But this extraordinary defence evi-
dently had considerable weight with the jury,
who ultimately acquitted Kelly. Now, on many
grounds, this acquitt ills deeply to be regretted.
Considering the political character of the ac-
cused, the official position of the ildfated into
who met so cruel a death, and the line of de
fence adopted by counsel, together with the
comments that were co freely made on the CAW
.IS it progressed by the Nationalist press, it is
difficult to avoid the conclusion that the jury
lowed fears for their own safety to influence
their judgment, or rather their verdict; but,
without insisting on this view of the case, there
ire other reasons for regretting the failure of
jastier. If Kelly be not the murderer of Talbot,
and we are bound to accept the finding of the
jury to this effect, it is in vain to look for the
murderer in any other quarter, and thus another
is to be added to the long list of crimes in Ire-
land that remained untraced to the criminal.
Were this list to be accurately placed on record.
could we read the long catalogue of murders in
Ireland for which no one has been held respon-
sible, we think most of our readers would be as-
tonished, supposing even that the list extended
no farther back than a quarter of a century.
This difficulty of tracing crime to the criminal
is one of the saddest features of the social aspects
of Ireland. Whoever the criminal in this case
may he, he is still at large, and free to commit
another murder, with perhaps the same impunity.
And he may possibly associate himself with other
tnurderers, for there must be many still alive,
and mixing in ordinary society unchallenged. To
a greater or less extent this thing occurs in every
country, but it has for a long time past noto•
rionsly existed in Ireland to a very considerable
extent. In this respect the abortive trial just
brought to so lame and impotent a conclusion is
deeply to be regretted. It is paidel too to read
of the rejoicings that took place on the acquit-
tal. The prisoner's counsel was favoured with
an ovotion as though he bail beeu sonic great
conquorer returning from a splendid victory;
and so indeed he was in the eyes of those who
cheered him. We find too that in several towns
in Ireland there have been bands of music and
demonstrative processions to celebrate the ac
quittal of Kelly, who has become a hero under
circumstances which makes this hero worship
very contemptible. But the saddest fact of al:
is that murder takes place in Ireland with ici
punity. This has occurred over and over again,
and justice, proverbially blind, is paralysed also
There is too much reason to fear—indeed the
fact is certain—that in many cases a known
murderer is sheltered, and that his secret is safe 1
with his friends, for no better cause than that !
the victim has been a landlord, a steward, or
policeman. This state of things must be vers
painful to the great majority , 1 the Irish ; but
these terrible secrets of blood and crime are kept
so well that our law-abiding fellow subjects ii,
the Emerald Isle are powerless to unravel them.