The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1873-11-20
The SCHOOL Of The GaI1o,zs.

A few days ago, boy Of sixteen, who
had quarreled with q comFade, went off
for knife, and returning stabbed his
friend to the heart As he ran away he
saw a man following him, and said 'iYou
had better 60 back or I'll serve you as I
did the other fellow" He was arrested,
but on being questioned about the murder,
declined to make any answer until he
had communicated with his counsel -
Such discretion and Judgment, UNDER sx-
citing circumstances, are rare in one ,of
his age aud humble education They GER
talnly denote good deal of previous
thought and deliberation. They indicate
startling familiarity with. the idea of
murder among the lawless boys of the
street. This young Arab was as ready
with his reply to tue officer as q veteran
physician is with his prescription in an
epidemic. He had no more doubt as TO
the proper thing to do in case of killing
a man than a member of the Humane
Society, in a case Of suspended animation
from drowning. After quarreline with
his friend be took the most effectaal
means to kill him, and after he was caught
he reserved his defense as prudentfy as if
be bad been tried as often As Mr. Stokes
When De Quincy wrote Of murder as q
fine art, his satire was not so very far
murder in New Y ork, published daily and
weekly, which is read with avidity by
thousands of boys and which poisons their
minds to degree little suspected by the
public at large. Our long and dramatic
murder trials are extremely attractive to
uneducated youth, aud the culprit.is al
ways to them a hero of rom ance They
/ study his exploits admiringly, and try TO
discover the weak points in his scheme
by which he was made liable to arrest and
conviction. "If 1 killed man, is com
mon phrase of the loaferish street boy,
''you wouldn't catch me so easy" The
thought Of murder as possible incident
/ Of his life, and of the chances Of escape,
become as familiar to him as the ways and
means of embeZzlement to a dishonest
cashier or specializing secretary.
There is sort of aristocracy IN crime
also, which dazzles and allures the hum
bier criminal. Dick Turpin and Claude
Duval are mere heroes of legend. AID the
Bowery boy Is too positive to think Of i'm
| ltatlng them. The more recent murder
ers and thieves who have occupied the
public attention appeal to his emulous la-
lure with closer touch of klnship.-
Hounslow Heath is too far away to serve
as theater for any imaginary achieve
ments. But Reynolds who killed the po-
lleeman who arrested him, Donohue who
'lald out" another through mere jooulari-
ty on the sidewalk, Fisk who stole a CALL
road, and Carlton who robbed a Trust
Company-these are worthies of like CLAW
with the budding rufian and rascal of to-
day. he can initiate their prowess and
avoid their errors. During the last week
the only reading of this class of enbry
criminals has been the volunainous ac
counts of the Stokes trial. They are al
his sworn champions. Two years ago they
gazed with eager admiration at the equip
! ages of Fisk, and at the expensive articles
] OF luxury which filled them But their
admiration Is now concentrated upon his
slayer, who appears to be a braver and
handsoner man than the ,rebber-prince of
Erie, equally contemptuous of the law &
equally regarded by danes. For two
years they have seen him engaged in
duel with the laws oil the land, and at last
VIRTUALLY victorious. -Four years seem a
very short time in the eyes of youth. The
jury Is again reinstated in the minds of
the lawless as an obstructor of legal ven
geRnce, and the curtain comes down with
an effective ending to the play. Tha fair
er sex is not destitute of bright exemplars
! also IN the same career. A young lady in
California IN jail for shooting her lover.
observed with perhaps undue compIacen-
cy, al am second Laura D. Fair1that's
about the size of it" This was a boast
which was somewhat premature, as the
syren had only shot one man and had no t
yet fascinated a jury. BUTT indicates with
sufficient cleaFHSes the brilliant career
which this destroying angel has proposed
to follow. We shall not denounce the art
OF printing because of these results, nor
defle the graves of Faust and Gutenberg
because some of the Sunday papers are
educating boys for the galloWs. But
there Is evidently work here to be done
by the public press itself to correct the
evil which has been already accom- plished,
Nothing can reform the Press but itse,f
not even Judge McCue and Mr.. Britton.
But facts like those we have mentioned,
showing the harm done by a certain class
OF newspapers, should increase the sense
OF solemn responsibility felt by all repu-
table journalists for the proper exercise of
the immense power in their hands.-M
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