The Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1846-1852, 1847-12-03
The pie, OF Insnnily.

The Danysfs (Mass.) Courier contains
report Of trial under the title Of = The
People V' James X. Polk" The charge is
for murder committed n tile Mexican War.
hr. Ter is the counsel for the defence; land
on stating biz grounds ofdelence, under the
third head he says:
3D.. sliall now endeavor tn prove 10 YOU
that tie acts, for which the prisoner is now
Oh iriaI, we're committed while he was iI-
saHe.
shall not attempt 10 prove The insanity
Iof1he prisoner by medical EVIDENCE. but
by circumstances 10 his history known 10
you all Insanity exhibits itself Varion4ly
10 dif rem iDdIyiduals. and ofen when the
,alienl appears perfectly rstippaIto his own
risnds. One Of the most common forms in
1hich II mantle; Is Ilselfis IN kind Off men
ial Illusion BY which tie patient imagines
hlmtelf some great personage or else capa
Ole OF performing great acts. II Is in this
ioEnI o:insanlty under which The unhappy
prisoner al the bar has been suffering. lie
mas lsbofed for several years past under the
strange delusIoO that lie is capable OF mana.
gIDg lie Affairs Of great nation. lie has
even IN agined that his admInistraiion was
to be marked BY some great eveut which
would AID 10 giving mIame in hiS couniry's
history IL was under this delu-ion that
nc committed the acts which caused the de-
strurlion Of those persons whose violent
deaths have brought him TO trial.
might slate other circumstances which
go strongly 10 prove the unsound stale of
the prisoners mind ltis only few months
since that he wandered away from his home
and was afterwards found by his friends
some i've hundred miles Of, racing bare
iieaded through the streets OF the eastern
cities. aud iiowed by a shouting train Of
boys and men. Being an elderly man Of
respectable appearance lie vas kindly taken
care ot aud treated by the Mayors of those
cities, until lie could be returned 10 hi,
friends in SAT u.
! The enoImiIy ofthe crimes committed BY
the prisoner is snoih and mos: conyiD-
cling proof Of BIZ insanity. Only look, gen
temeD OF the jury. al the mugnnuGe Of The
sacrifice. Only picture to yourselves the
scere of slaughter, the thousands OF bloody
corpses, the tens Ufihousands Of mourning
families, and then II feet that all these evils
were caused by single man, and how can
you resist the conviction that such man
must labor under the calamity fau unsound
Hinu!
Another circumstance which shows the
insane state of the prisoners mind is his con-
duct in relation 10 the admission Of Santa
Anna into Mexico. Only think, geotle-
men, Of the circuInsl ances Of this strange
act. That the head Of a nation about to
make war upon another nation should first
furnish his enemy with an able commander
o: the forces which we're to meet his own
troops in battle Whtl can more concIu
sIvely show demented intell, CT than al
act like this! What would have been
though, Of su English premier who 81 years
ago in case Of a War with the French,
should have proposed to take Napoleon from
the rock of 81. Helena. and place him on The
shores Of Frauce' Such minister would
no doubt be considered traitor or lunatic
and for the be.t Of reasons. How then can
you more chariably judge Of this act Of the
prisoner at the bar than TO pronounce him
OF funsound mind, and therefore not accoun !.
table for it or for the other acls charged a.
gainst him in the Indictment.