Connecticut western news., 1879-07-23
Circumstantial Evidence.

tain character of circumstantial evidence, says: In the Hull case, the detec tives had forged chain in this way 1. Matches burned in the room of the mur- dered woman were like those used in Dr. Hulls room. 2. The doctor was out of bed at an hour near that of the murder. 3. The knots in the fastenings by which the victim was bound had some resemblance or analogies to prac tice the doctor had of knotting his bed clothes. There were other circum- stances, but they were all like these. Each was capable of an innocent expIa- nation but the detectives are said to have believed that though neither was a link, yet they all together made chain. The cumulative idea has no business in such case, and the employment of it is one of the absurdities of detective logic.
 Even when the link seems perfect, and, more, when there are several of them, great danger arises from setting aside the rule that any other possible explanation of the circumstances must be accepted. A British officer, dining in company of strangers, had narrow escape in the following way: A gentle man took out coin and declared that no ono present had seen one like it. The coin passed around the table and came last to the British officer. All the rest declared that they had never seen such coin. When it reached the officer he was busy with O conversation, and taking the coin in his hand and looking at it carelessly, remarked: "I have seen one like it," and resumed his conyersa- tion. At the end of the dinner the coin could not be found. To discover the thief all were searched until they came last to this officer. He refused to be searched, and said he would die first Just as they were about to proceed to extremities with him, servant rushed forward with the lost coin, which he had just found in napkin. All apologized to the officer for the suspicion, very strong moment before, that he had se- creted the coin. He replied "Gentle- men, permit me to explain why I refused to be searched" and he drew from his pocket an exact fac. sinaile of the rare coin. "With this in his pocket, a stran- ger, as I am, would have been judged guilty by you all therefore, I resolved to defend my honor with my life.
 Here were several circumstances. 1. The coin was last seen in the officers hands. 2. All agreed that they had never seen such a coin 1t was, there fore, very rare. 8. He had refused to be searched. But all the facts were ex- plained by his having like coin in his possession. If, however, probability or cumulation had been admitted in the case (the lost coin not having been found), the officer would have been judged guilty. The case shows how un- safe it is to allow either probability or cumuIation to exclude the possible inno- cent explanation. If every circumstance may be innocently explained, there is no rational force in any one of them or in the whole of them.
 We cheerfully admit that circum- stances may expose persons to just sus- picion, and that the suspected persons must furnish the explanations that show them innocent. It is often impossible for innocent persons to do this; and the safety of society justiies the detention and imprisonment of persons who may be innocent. But hanging people who may be innocent is so horrible thing that any other possible explanation of the accusing circumstances should be preferred before the theory of guilt.