The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1882-08-13
PRESCRIPTIONS or Gun

This is the statute under which Thomas
J. Brady did not go on the witness stand last
week to explain his official acts as Second
Assistant Postmaster General, which were so
suspicious as to lead to his indictment by a
grand jury and arraignmant in criminal
court:
In the trial of all indictments infol tions COM
plants, and other proceedings against persons charged
with the commission OF crimes, onenses, and mis-
dcmeanors In the United states courts the person so
charged shall, at his own request but not otherwise
be a competent witness; and his failure to make such
request shall not create any presumption against him.
Act approved March ls, ls7s
That is TO say, as we understand it, no
legal presumption is created, and it might
be necessary for the Judge TO instruct the
jury to that effect but the statute does
not prohibit the drawing of plain common
sense inference from the failure of the
defense to explain Away incriminating evi.
| dence; and it could not, of course, prevent
| the public mind from doing so by any exer-
else of power. Mr.. Brady, therefore, having
full opportunity to explain personally as
well as by witnesses why he squandered two
million dollars year more than his pre-
decessors or successor, on useless or super
| huous Star Routes, has stood mute and con-
tented himself with a futile attempt to
break down the testimony of the prosecution
in one or two unimportant particulars. Tc
the press and people of the country this ha:
appeared third confession as conclusive as
that made by Rerdell or testified to by
Walsh, and it really seems impossible, con
sistently with the laws of the human mind
that it should not have due effect with the
jury.
We are near enough to the end of the tria
to begin to speculate upon the result Whei
we consider the safeguards thrown by thu
common law around persons accused of crime
the difficulty in all cases of proving conspi
racy, even when one of the conspirators re
veals it, and the means and resources of tn
defendants. so lavishly applied in hirinl
lawyers, buying newspapers, and probabl.
in other ways not so.well known to the pub
lie, one might well despair of anything NOR
than that "moral conviction which alread
exists in the minds of all honest citizens
But when, on the other hand, regard is ha
, 10 the overwhelming aud close-locked proof
3 of the prosecution, perfectly cohering i
| every particular with the exacttude of trut
itself, the vague and inconsequential a
I tempts of the defense to make an answer
l their apparent and growing lack of harmon
among themselves, and the character of I'll
C jurymen, so far as known, then it is poss
ble to feel hope that full justice will |
1 done.
Public opinion does not have to await til
f arguments of counsel, and we think we al
A yOicing il when We urge that an example i
made, if possible, of the persons now on tra
j. not in anger over their defiance and coi
r tumacy of justice SO much as in calm r
solve to protect the Treasury and the Ia
g payers from similar million-dollar raids /
G the future. This is the interest that we fe,
9 in the Star Route cases, and which has draw
4 us from habitual reserve in regard TO cas-,
. | presumed TO be) entirely in the hands of
h court and jury for settlement.