The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1879-09-12
AN Ess n.
Was Aacbeth more gully IN the Uur~
der Of Duncan thaa Lady Nacbeh ?
READ DEPoRE TIE HICKMAN LITER ARY cLuE
TUESDAY, AUGUST 5rH, 1879.

10 tins Dlghts entertainment Is the
reading of an essay. aud, by request,
have decided to read my argument in
The debnte-ot our last meeting The
question proposed was: Was Wac
beth more guilty IL the Murder OF
Duncan than Lady Macbeth2' Much
as | dislike TO decide q question OF
such q character against one of my
own sex, aud award TO Lady Macbeth
the palm in the crime, still | am com
PEELED TO do so from honest convictions.
Wharton de6Des murder thus: Muir
der is where person of sound mind
aud discretion, unlawiuIly kills any
reasonable creature or being. with
malice prepense, or aforerhOughi,
either expressed or implied Accord
lug 10 this definition, person 10 be
guilty OF murder must be possessed of
Two things-of sound mInj-of dis
erection. Would you hold poor un-
fortunate, one whom God has seen ft
to sffiict with the dIrest of atfliciiUus
Chat of insanity, would you hold
such one guilty OF aD act Of which
he Is incapable of judging the right 2
Surely not no one would be so uukind.
30 unjust Was the mind of Macbeth h
sound or diseased. when he committed
;he fearful deed which sent an immor
tai soul into the presence Of the Great
| Am 2 | affirm that it was diseased
That he rested under the fearful ca
lamiry Of di>ordered brain A cele
bra:ed lawyer of Kentucky would have
Us believe that there Was no such thing
as insanity in the world Moral in-
>anity (accOrding to his theory can
be traced buck through nearly six
thousand years, to the mother of us all
Eve" and this taint transmitted to
Cain and thence down to all men In
a word, 1t Is no more nor less than
Total Hereditary DepraVity " The
same gentleman asked in u celebrated
trial that not long since claimed the
attention of all Kentucky, IF the
prisoner was insane, why does he not
rave continually 2" Aud so, also, some
one wishes to know if Macbeth was
insane why he does not rave frantically
at all times? Are not diseases of the
body cured2 Cannot the diseases that
destroy the reason also be arrested ?
And then, how many cases are on re
cord of persons who are saue upon
every subject saSe one. in other words
monomaniacs Converse with them
upon any other subject and their minds
are a. clear. their judgment as cool;
but broach the one subject. and their
minds fly of at tangent, aud 90 soar
ing through fields OF nonsense and fan
ta-tical ideas
Returning from the field of battle.
wirh body worn out with fighting. aud
mind diseased he imagiues he sees
witches, which declare To him that he
shall be sing ii Scotland They hail
him a. thaue ol Cswior aud tell him
Of many ~oudetful rvrpts which are
yet to take pace That A. = reward
tor all his deed oI valour he j. to be
made king. Bat how can thi, be? l.
not Duncan welding 'he scepie OF
authority over Scotland =? Sill he does
not tor Que instant doubt the existence
OF the wi,che-; does uut know thar
they are the fantastic creations OF a
di>Ordered brain; the mere beings OF
a fevered Imagination With all the
cunuiug aud craf'iness of one befeft Of
reason. he plots the death of the good
king, Duncan, until he becomes unable
to sleep He imagines he hears voices
which cry out. Steep no more Mac
beth doth murder sleep Again. he
declares TO his wife 10 whom he has
impaired all his dreamings) that he
sees a dagger dangling over his head
all clotted with blood. aud pointing
direct 10 Duncan From this he ar
CUES that lis Fate compels the direful
deed; and in all his plottings he labors
uuder the strange delusion that he acts
right 10 killing Duncan While under
this delusiou he pIunges the fatal dag
ger through Duncau's heart. Wharf
ton says: A person is TO be held ir-
responsible of an act when the act was
done under he delu~ion that it was
either right or justiiable " He cites
= case of man who believed himself
to be Jesus Christ, aud thar he mcst
die for the sins of The world. He fur
,her thought it would spoil the effort
should he kill himself Therefore, n
order that he might be hanged, he
killed some one else To accomplish
his design, Macbeth invites Duncan to
his castle. He, himself, hsstens on to
make preparation for the reception of
the guest Once more under his own
roof, quiet and at rest, his reason re-
sumes its deserted throne and again
wields its sway. He Cin this softened
mood gives three reasons why he
ought not to kill DuGcsn First, Dun
can is his kinsmap; secondly, he is his
guest, aud then Duncan bears his
honors so meek just as he has reach
ed these conclusions. Lady Macbeth
appears upon the scene, aud she, the
wife of his youth who should share all
his noble desires and designs, and seek
to quell all the evil of his nature,
points tie finger of scorn at him. aud
laughs at him Tor being so gentle heart
ed. She gives him no rost until.
worn out with sleepless nights. and
with her mockiugs and jeeriDgs still
ringing iu his ears, she compels him
to do her bidding His reason is de.
fhroued aud insanity u>urps the place
Again murder fills his thoughts, aud
he does the ruthless deed that seeds an
immortal seui into the presence OF lis
maker But he is not TO be held re-
sponsible as he is incapable of judging
for himself
Learned physicians declare that 'see
ing visions, belief in spirit maniiesta-
tions. aud huliing Communications With
the dead, are all symptom of insanity.
aud all these symptoms we're we'll de-
veloped in Macbeth Mark his wild
iucohereut muttering-. the unearthiy
glare OF his eyes when he sees the ghost
of BaDquo. Iu the inexpressible glare
of his eyes is mirrored the wild agonies