The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1881-10-13
THE GUITEAU INDICTMENT.


teau is very lengthy document and as
foolish and untruihfnl as il is lengthy. In
the first count it is set forth that Guiteau's
pistol was worth S., that it was charged
with gunpowder and leaden bullet, and
that it was held in his right hand. These
are either immaterial, and have no place in
the document, or they are material, and in
that case it is a serious question what
would become Of Corkhil's fearfully and
wonderfully drawn indictment if the de-
Tense should show that the revolver was
worth only $3.50, charged with gun-cotton
or Illuminating powder, and held in the
left hand. The bullet being in possession
OF the government, Corkhill is safe in
charging that 1t was lcaden. But the count
omits some Of the most important instru-
mentalities employed by Guiteau. 1t says
"That said Charles j. Guiteau with the
lcaden bullet aforesaid, out of the pistol
aforesaid, then and there by force of the
gunpowdcr aforesaid, by Charles j. Gu-
tcau discharged and shot of, as aforesaid, :"
etc. Plainly, there was a percussion cap
in the case, or If not, there was metallic
cartridge containing Illuminating material
and in either case there must have been n
trigger aforesaid, upon which Charles ].
Guiteau, aforesaid, did wilfully, malicious
y, and fcloniously press his wicked, mali
clous, and feonious forefnger or which
ever one it was-thereby causing the pow
der aforesaid to ignite as aforesaid,
and to discharge and shoot
off the leaden bullet aforesaid.
a still more serious omission, and one that
ought to secure Guiteau's acquittal if the
jurors are as small Drained as the district
attorney, appears few lines lower down in
the description of the wound. This is
described as "One mortal wound of the
depth Of six inches and of the breadth of
one inch" But anything that has length
and breadth without thickness is simply
superficial, and if the wound were super
fetal, how could it be morta2 If the de-
Tense is to be framed like the indictment,
and the mental capacity of the court is
like that of the district attorney Guiteau
has nothing to fear All these defects,
however, are trifling in comprison with
the further allegation, in this same count,
that she, the said James A. Garfield, from
said 2nd day of July, in the year last afore
said until the 10Th day of September, in tn
year of our Lord 1881, at and in the oount
and district aforesaid, did anguish, anC
languishing did live. on which said 10Th
day of September in the year of our Lord
1881, at and in the county and district afore
said, did the said James A. Garfield of the
said James A. Garfield of the wound afore.
said die That is, the indictment against
Guiteau alleges that President Garfield
languished in Washington from the time
he was shot till September 10, and then
died there, when everybody knows that on
September he was taken to Monmouth
county, New jersey, an1 there died, and all
this is set forth in the third count. With
the exception of correcting this important
misstatement of the place Of President Gar.
fields demise, the third count is like the first
But the second count contains more
startling and absurd lie than the first, Ton
it says: "Of which mortal wound he, the
said James A, Garfield, then and there in
stantly died. This allegation is made in
the face of the fact that the president sur.
vived his wound, as shown in other counts
eighty days The fourth count, however
repeats the statement that President Gar
field died in Washington. The fifth count
is identical with the fourth except that i
states that the president died in the distric
of Columbia and the county of Washing
ton, instead of the county of Washington
ton and the district of Columbia. Corkhil
could have made an in 1ictment larger thar
the congressional library by continuing tina
fermentation Of words. The sixth coun
is like the third except that it describes tn
shooting as occurring in the Baltimore &
Potomac depot, on land belonging to anC
under the jurisdiction of the United States
Why wasn't this put into the third coun
and the sixth omitted? The seventh coun
contains this description of the exact local
ity of the shooting, but it repeats the false
statement of the fourth that the presiden,
died in the county of Washington, district
of Columbia. The eighth is the same, eX.
cept that it slightly varies this lie by say
ing that death occurred in the district OF
Columbia, county Of Washington. The
ninth and tenth simply add some inferma
ton regarding judicial geography, and the
eleventh recites the removal of the remains
to Washington, September 81.
Mothers! Mothers!! Mothers!!!