Wyoming democrat. [volume] (Tunkhannock, Wyoming Co., Pa.) 1867-1940, 1868-12-16

Its columns to the publishing OF SANDER
on the inhabitants of a sister City, for the
purpose of political effect has surprised
and grieyed its many readers in this City.
As the -lge truly remarked, "all that hu-
manity demanded and perhaps more, had
been quietly done in the case here, before
our n Y friends saw their opportunity for
a grand flourish"
Very Respectfully,
G.. b. NJ.
( From tie Philadelphia Age Of Dec Gh.
We really thought that the New York
papers had exhausted this subject, but they
are still engrossed with it, and the Press of
this city now takes up their strain. 1t is
utterly unjust, SO far as it assumes or in
sinuates tnat the woman was not fairly, pa
tiently, and Justly dealt with by the Phila-
delphia Court. Judges Ludlow and Brew
ster sat together at their term, and Mr..
John Goforth defended the prisoner, ably
and faithfully, and with persistency, that
elected the appreciation of the Court. OF
course, all the matter now abduced by the
Press and other papers was wholly irrele-
want to the question at issue, which was
the alleged murder of the infant by the
woman indicted for it. The prior misfor
tunes of the accused, her desertion by her
husband, and by his successor, the father
of the child could not be even given III evi
dence. They were, as we have said, wholly
irrelevant. The legal evidence i'll the case,
in our judgment, heavily preponderated on
the side of the wOmans guilt. Such eyi-
dence would be irresistible i'll civil case,
and would ensure conviction from most
juries in criminal cases, III which the hui
manity of the law requires not merely
preponderance but an exclusion OF rea-
sonable doubt, by the evidence. But in
the appeal for Executive clemency, the age
sex, and circumstances of the unhappy
woman, may all be properly considered. =
| Nay, We are willing, as we have said before
| that the Governor shall concede more
weight than the jury. did to the hypothesis
that the child's skull may have been crush
! ed in the manner described In the testl-
mony, without willful malicious intent
on the part of the mother. We perhaps
! thus yield too much to natural and local
| feeling for we assure the ladies of New
York, who sat in harsh judgment on our
city and State. that they know very little
of the sentiment that predominates, in such
cases, at least in this community. We ad-
nit that if the prisoner had been Il negro
woman, there are those among us who
would have taken more noisy interest IN
! her still, to be Il woman is enough. We
! have not been in the Governor S confidence
! but we assure our New York friends that
his long delay in issuing the death warrant
was perfectly well understood here. In
the case of Bridget Moran, who threw her
child into the river, governor after govern
or slipped out OF office, without giving his
signature to the fatal order, though they
were as much embarrassed about signing a
! pardon, for our law requires Il governor to
set the reasons for the pardon upon the
face of the instrument, and consideration
of the fair SEX" where that is the sole rea-
son. has An odd look i'll an official docu-
ment Yet, that is our weakness. No
woman was ever hung i'll this vicinity for
murder nowhere is there more liberal al
lowance accorded to the gentler sex. In
heinous cases, we hang a man in their stead,
to satisfy the ends of justice. Thus we
hung Lieutenant Smith, who married Mrs
Carson, and ut her instigation, it was un-
charitably said, shot her first husband
( We hung Mr. Nina for poisoning Mr.. Chap
man. but their spouse, Mrs. Chapman Mi
ma, was acquitted. Indeed, the ladies do
run here the fancied risk which made them
| clamor at the New York meeting for the
! right to elect the Sheriff who was to hang
them, &c. for the Womans Rights Asso-
citation there RESOLVED:
! That tbs ASSOcini0n demand that in all
cirH and criminal cases, er0nedn ShdH be tried
| Jy jurY Of her peers shall hare rOice IL,
| making Re lars, ia aiecting the JUdge ,rho
pronOunceS her sentence, and the Sheriff 'rh0,
IN case Of execution, performs for her that
last dJsad office
If to be hung is one of their 'rights, it
is one that womah will not easily obtain
here, and there is, indeed, no great readi-
ness to concede it to her anywhere in this
country. Only n military tribunal has
courage enough to chain, handcutf, and
/ hang a woman, and the daring of that act
was enhanced by the fast that the woman
was innocent. The probability is that the
! heroine of the New York papers is guilty,
! but there is Just room for us to cherish a
! doubt, and she is q woman, we are well
content that the Governor shall, after the
approved fashion, withhold his signiture, s"
or pardon her outright That he would do
so has been SO perfectly well understood
here, that it has given an artificial, .facti
tious air to the New York excitement -
1t seemed here as if Hester Vaughan was
conveniently afiording chance for wo-
mans rights meetings and sensational ar
ticles, upon a bald pretence of actual and
apprehended severity to a woman who had
already received the full measure of merci-
! full consideration which, be it right or
wrong, their sex always assures to such Of
! tenders. All that humanity demanded,
and perhaps more had been quietly done
in the case here, before our New York
friends saw their opportunity for grand
|