The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-05-05
The Ethics OF Political Intrigue.


organs on Mr. Crittenden were made with y
view TO destroy the prospects of a formidable
rival of Mr.. Stewards at the next Presidential
election. The circumstantial denial of our
statement by morning contemporary has not
shaken our belief in its truth. Mr.. Seward
must produce stouter arguments and u closer
chain of reasoning before he can do away with
the obvious differences from the language Of his
organs.
II has been asserted probably with view to
di3redit our comments on the clamor to which
the Ward verdict has given rise, that this Jour
nal has undertaken a systematic defence of
Wards acquittal. 1t is fortunate for our cha
racter that the readers of the HERALD are
neither SO few nor so forgetful of its course as
to oblige us to deny this palpablc falsehood at
any length. We have never undertaken any
defence, systematic or otherwise, of Wards az
quittal and the writer of the article to which
we refer, the editor Of the sheet in which it
appeared, and the bulk of its readers know
perfectly well that we have not We thought
il our duty to interpose in Mr. Crittenden'1 de-
fence, when be was attacked, as we hold I'M
justly, by Mr.. Stewards organs but Of The
Justice or injustice of the verdict rendered on
Matthew Ward, we have never uttered single
syllable. Its responsibility lies with the Court
and the jury that gave it on their shoulders
let it rest. We have not sought do not seek
to share the burthen
Our position has been very different We
sec here jury in Elizabethtown, Kentucky,
empannelled to try white man named Ward
on an indictment for murder. The evidence
goes TO the court and jury, and the prisoner is
acquitted. Hereupon, Mr.. Stewards organs in
New York raise an cutlery as though whole
State had been submerged, abuse the people OF
Kentucky to their hearts content, and pour out
their keenest venom on the head of one Of the
prisoners counsel, John j. Crittendcn. Nov,
the acquittal Of guilty man is undoubtedly 4
thing to be regretted if Matthew Ward was
really guilty of the offence laid to his charge,
he ought to have paid the penalty due to his
crime. But are such things so unheard-of here
that it lies in our mouth to paint Kentucky IS
haunt of malefactors, and to deal with the
prisoners counsel as though he were himself
criminal? Are our courts of justice SO unerring
that on the strength of a single error in the
court at Elizabethtown we can afford to doom
Kentucky to eyecraton, and Mr.. Crittcnden to
infamyg To venture on erecting so high a
standard Of judicial infalibility, we ought at
least to have made sure that the history of
anti-rentism was forgotten by every one. Not
even the reckless print whose special task it
seems to be to misrepresent our course, would
venture to deny that in the State of New York
anti-renters have committed robbery arson,
and murder, have been tried, and notwithstand-
'ng the clcarest evidence, have been acquitted
in spite of public clamor and the letter and
spirit Of the law Nor has mpunity been con-
fined to this class of malefactors, or to the
locality they infested. Polly Bodine killed a
woman and child on Staten Island and set
fire to their house she was twice tried and
escaped. Joe Jewell killed Waterman in this
city and was tried, and acquitted. In the
neighboring State Of New Jersey, Singleton
Mercer shot man, was tried and acquitted
At Philadelphia, few years ago, a confectioacr
named Wood deliberately shot his daughter IN
der circumstances Of peculiar atrocity, was
tried and escaped the vengeance Of the law.
These are only few recent instances, which
occur to rs as we write: they could be multi
piled endlessly. II is doubtless very dopiorable
that the law should not a'wnv-bc indicated; bit
so long as men continue to ,e men, and t.
share the frailtes Of human nature, there win
lie cases everywhere ID which prejudice, fear,
favor, affection, or bias will sway the minds OF
juries from the truth. And to rcvile whole
community because twelve of IFS members rem
der verdict which strangers at distance re-
gard as unjust is as absurd as il would be to call
them al robbers because theft was committed
among them Kentucky is as well entitled to
say that murder is tolerated in New York, New
jersey, and Pennsylvania, because the anti
renters, Polly Bodine, Singleton Mercer and |
Wood murdered with impunity, ss we to make