Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1857-04-09
Correspondence of the spy.

BOSTON,, April 6.
Messrs. Editors We have supped full of hor-
rors the last week: what, with the Kalloch, Ca
ter. and MCGEE trials, the public appetite, wheth-
er libidinous OF bloody, has been stated. As to
THE KALLocH CASE,
the interest is already aoating. Whatever be the
issue before the jury, the public verdict is made
up, aud that is, GUILTY, thousandltimes. There
was universally intense anxiety to know what
the defence would be. Indeed, think that, dur
ing the first or three days of the trial, there
were indications of a reaction of public senti-
ment, in Kalloch's favor. The general feeling
not be that the reverend rascal can manufacture
such efFrontery, unless he has good deftnce."-
But, when the defence opened-when- witness af-
ter witness either broke down or confirmed the
governments witnesses, especially when the
very witnesses who were summoned to establish
Kalloch's good character, were reluctantly forced
to admit, that common rumor charged him with
repeated affairs Of the same kind, before he came
to Boston, some Of them connecting him with
this very Iechmere House companions before and
since her marriage with Stein, every doubt as to
his guilt vanished. and he stood out the most
shameless and profigate hypocrite of modern
times.
is sad, sad case but, with all its democrat
izing effect upon the community, it will aid in
teaching this lesson-that whenever any class of
men, set up to be better than their neighbors, es
pecialIy when they claim that any theoretical or
speculative opinions or professions strengthen
this assumption of superiority, and most espe-
cally, when they claim to be exempt from the
weaknesses and impulses of our common human
ty, always, always it will be found that this class
is, other things being equal more corrupt, Sc
cretly, than those who put forward no such claim.
In the midst Of your exultaton over the yindi
cation Of the rights of juries by the House, pray
do not omit to call attention to the recent shame
full proceedings of majority of the jury in the
MoGee case. They not only showed themselves
ready to surrender their own rights, but they took
course, which, if aequesced in, establishes a
DEsPoTIsM THE MAJORITY OF JURY over the
minority. AS your readers are aware, the jury
disagreed. AS the Court was upon the point Of
discharging them, Mr.. Attorney General Clifford
produced and read the following extraordinary
" BosToN, April 5, 1857.
John H. Clifford, Esq.-Dear Sir:--Immedi.
ately after receiving the case into our hands, we
took an informal ballot to see how we stood in re-
gard to the guilt of the prisoner, Magee. On that
ballot we stood eleven for conviction and one for
acquittal; that one was Mr.. John Fenno. Since
that ballot have been diligent in our inquiries
as to the reason of his opinion. He gave varied
reasons for it, and among them was, that he be-
lieyed commit an act Of murder staleSs
under delatsion, and further, that he cannot con-
O3ct man sciso commits murder under delW-
sion. And, again, he says that he does not think
that the decisions of MCGEE were strong enough
to constitute insanity. At another time he sta
ted that he had made up his mind before the evil
dence of the case was all in. Being placed in the
position we are, we thought that we would write
these facts to you, so that you might know our
position. YUurs, very truly,
lSigned.] Edward S. Bonney, Hiram Fisher,
Thomas French, Jonathan w. Glines, John Gro
yer, Henry A. Cane, Samuel MAR, Richard F.
Maxwell, Joseph w. Miner, George Staples,
John Tewksbury."
1 do not propose to defend Mr.. Fenno, though,
upon this very statement, his conduct was per-
fectly unexcephonable. They say "he gave vari-
Gus reasons for his opinion, and among them was, "
&c What were his other reasons? Upon their own
showing, those other reasons might have con-
troled his opinion, and these, to which they OBJ
iect might have been collateral and cumulative
AS to having g made up his mind, before the evil
dence was all in there never was a iuror Tor a
Judge, for that matter). with any brains, who did
not ''make up his mind before the evidence was
all in, subject, of course, to the controlling in
huence of subsequent evidence. This, every man
who judges for himself does, honestly and una
4. ! L. i II.
the more honestly. and the more intelligently,
just in proportion as he is gifted with a we'll bal.
anced, judicial mind. But this is not to the point.
Admitting every statement of the eleven jurors
to be true, in Just the sense they meant, it was
none of their business; least of ALL was it any
business of the Attorney General, or the Court,
the public. If there is any thing essentially go
the value of jury trial it is, that the secrets of
the jury room sacred, and that no juror shall
ever be called to account either by counsel, court,
the public or his fellows, for his verdict, or the
reasons Of his verdict. The moment you allow
the majority of jury, whether eleven or seven,
to question the right of the minority, whether
five or one. to an opinion, based upon whatever
reasons, you annihilate the freedom of the jury,
and give to the majority the power, by threats Of
exposure to coerce the minority into verdict,
to which neither conscience nor Judgment assents
No matter what the merits of this particular case
are. The encroachment must be resisted. in lin,
inc, on the threshold, or all your guarantees
against the despotism Of the bench are worthless,
for you have substituted one a thousand times
worse-that Of the majority of tie jury
1t is very melancholy, that Clifford should lend
himself to such an outrage: butt Clifford loves
blood. andihe was angry th't the jury did not
convict poor Magee. 1t is still more sad, that the
court did not rebuke the sgners of the infamous
document; but neither humanity nor popular
rights have anything to hope from our Su-
preme Court, while Shaw is Chief. aud undoubt.
eddy the old fossil secretly exulted, that these
jurors were inaugurating depotism which the
Legislature had just refused to restore to the
courts. But it is saddest of all, that the press.
which should be the jealous guardian of the peo-
pies rights, has, with the exception of the Tele-
graph, uttered not one whisper of prorest against
this impudent assumption. PAUL Pay
Hunts Merchants Magazine. for April, con.
tains fine portrait of George Peabody, the great
American banker in London, with biographical
notice Of him. 1t also contains very valuable
article on " Money" by H. c. Carey, Esq, and
the usual amount Of mercantile and statistical in.
formation. John Boyden is agent for IL in mi.