Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1882-02-11

the Gods grind slow, but they grind
sure. Christ was crucifed, but God
did not forget it. The destruction
of Jerusalem forty years afterwards
showed that God got ever with
them, and he will get even with
Corkhill and others that prosecuted
me. have no fear of death / nm
Gods man and he will take care Of
me-"
When Guiteau paused, the Court,
speaking slowly and solemnly, said:
''You have been convicted of a crime
so terrible in circumstances that it
has drawn upon you the horror of
the whole world and the execrations
of your countrymen. The excite
ment produced by such an offence
made it no easy task to secure for
you a fair and impartial trial, but
you have had the power of the
United States Treasury and of the
Government at your service to pro-
tect your person from violence and
to procure evidence from all parts
of the country. You have had as
fair and as impartial a jury as ever
assembled in a court of justice. You
have been defended by counsel with
a zeal and devotion which merit the
highest enconium, and / have GER
tainly done my best to secure a fair
presentation of your defense. Not
withstanding all this you have been
found guilty. 1t would have been
a comfort to many people if the YER
dict of the jury had established the
fact that your act vas that of an ir-
responsible man; it would have left
the people the satisfying belief that
the crime of political assassination
was something entirely foreign to
the institutions and civilization Of
our country, but the result has de-
MED them that comfort, and the
country will accept a a fact that
that crime can be committed, and
the court must deal with it by i'm
posing the highest penalty known to
a criminal court, to serve as a warn
ing to others. Your case has been
so extraordinary that people might
we'll at times doubt your sanity, but
one cannot but believe that when
the crime was committed you tho
roughly understood its nature and
consequences"
81 was acting as Gods man."
cried the prisoner. Nothing but
good came from the act"
"And that you had moral ~sense,'
continued the Court, ''and con-
science enough to recognize the
moral iniquity of such an act"
"That's a matter of opinion" in
terrupted Guiteau.
"Your own testimony, resumed
Judge Cox, ''shows that you recoiled
with horror from the idea. You say
that you prayed against it. You
thought that it might be prevented.
This shows that your conscience
warned you against it, but that by
the wretched sophistry of your own
mind you worked yourselfup against
this plain protest of your conscience.
What motive could have induced
you to do this act must be a matter
of long conjecture. Probably men
will think there was some po-
litical fanaticism that marked de-
sire for self.exaltation was the or
iginal inspiration of the act. Your
own testimony seems to contradict
some of the theories of your counsel
They have maintained and thought
honestly that you were compelled,
against your will, by some insane
impulse to do this act, but your tes-
timony showed that You deliberate
ly resolved to do it, and that your
own deliberate and misguided will
was the sole impulse. This may
seem insanity to some persons, but
the law looks upon it as a wilful
crime. You will have an opportun-
ity of having any errors that | may
have committed during the terms of
your trial passed upon by the Court
in banc, but meanwhile it is neces-
sary for me TO pronounce the SEN
tence of the law, and it is that you
be taken hence to the common Jail
of the District from which you came,
and there to be kept in confinement,
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