The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1875-05-13

A DEFAULT OF JUsTIcE.--n some
of the most important criminal mat
ters under consideration during the
late term of Court, we fancy it will
be the feeling of the public, as it GER
tainly is Of ourselves, that justice has
been taken in default. 1t will be
readily inferred that in SO saying we
refer chiefly to the supposed actors
in the sad case Of abortion and death
which so short time ago stirred this
community to its center. To state
the present situation in general terms
would be to say that here is an in
stance where absolute certainty Of
the commission Of an atrocious crime
unites with an almost equal assurance
as to its perpetrators where all
the parties in any way implicated
Except those whose lips are sealed
in death) are at hand aud fully un-
der the power of the law-and yet
we are told there can not be produc-
ed even sufficient evidence upon
which to found an Indictment Some
thing must surely be wrong where
Justice ties her own hands in this
manner, but before we hastily ami
madvert against any one, and espec-
tally those Of our fellow citizens who
have acted officially and under sol
emn oath, let US look little more
closely into the facts.
Pursuant to law the Coroner of Ce-
dar county held. in December last, a
long and searching inquest over the
dead body OF Selinda Patton, all the
evidence in which was given to the
public in these columns, save the tes-
timony of a single witness, which was
withheld at the request Of the officers
only because they feared its publicity
might retard the apprehension of
man whose name was therein men,
toned, for the first time, as the chief
criminal. Other than this name, the
testimony of Hatch contained nothing
of any Importance not already given
by Mckee, whom it fully correborated;
and their united evidence was further
borne out by the finding of the fntus
as directed, and by numerous other
developments less significant in them
selves. This was the entire case as
there presented, and the public is
therefore as fully prepared to see with
what assurance that coroners Jury
then found its verdict as it is to APP
preciate how utterly at loss the
same jury must have been before
those two young men were induced
to tell their "true story" Now then,
everyone knows that no witness can
be compelled to answer question
when the answer will criminate him
self; and no one can therefore be sur
prised that when Bair and the two
young men are brought before our
Grand Jury, each being charged as
principal in the same heinous offence,
nothing in the shape Of testimony
could be elected from any of them.
Nor can anyone who has knowledge
of the character Of the testimony be-
fore the Coroner, feel very much sur
nrised to learn that INSTRUCTED not to
indict without evidence which in the
judgment Of the jury would serve to
convict), the fifteen intelligent citi-
zens who represented almost every
part of Cedar county in that Grand
Jury, took the action which they did
take.
But all this is merely negative, and
serves in no way to relieve US from
the dilemma occasioned in every
mind by our first statement Of the
situation. While it is only our de-
sire to give full knowledge of the
facts and leave every one to draw
their own conclusions therefrom, we
will not pretend to any hidden wis
dom liz the premises. If there be
blame or fault, every reader of this
article knows where it belongs just
rs we'll as the writer---even while he
joins with US in declaring the event
an absolute outrage upon law-sbid.
ing and justice-loving community.