New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-01-16

entitled aJhe GuiteSu Experts" It is pointed andw
of America Boston. "The Guiteau Experts: The Gov
ernment experts In Guiteaus case seem 10 De having
| eeedin gefting him hanged provided they succeed In
getting The jury accept their opinions as to his SANITY
or Insanity But will they dO thsi Are we to nang
man simply because certain number Oh supefhtenu-
ents OF lunatic asyinas p on Mora MN onlnons
the truth reason Ofwhich cannot be Judged by com
mon men Do the lives OF men In TINS country legally
depend on the mere Judgment OF any twenty MY or
one hundred men who claim 10 know more thah Other
strange mug, Sn1 e rnTpds of their opinons as
enable other To judge OF their truth or errOrt
nina They can only observe lts manifestations through
the body and can only guess like other people, at the
causes OF its mysterious and erratc operations are
There are, suppose in tins country, three,
or perhaps five, hundred men, physicians
sOoalled, who make specially OF treating
diseases Of the human body, whore there is but who
makes specially OF treating diseases OF the hiPan
mind But though diseases OF the human body are 80
much extensively studied aud treated ana SO much
easier he ascertaned and Judged OF than are diseases
OF the mnd,we nave very niue confidence ol lhe OMI
edge OF these many ply cans as 10 inc OF couse
bodily diseases These physicians differ 80 mucn
among themselves to the nature and causes OF these
diseases body that would not think OF hanging
on the Judgments OF any number OF tnem, WHERE
the grounds their judgments were 40 obscure that
they DO communicated to OF comprehended ~
the OF unprOfessiOnal men In Ohef words we VIII
hang ia this country on any grounds Whatever
that cannot be shown 10 ne common m'd, me nnPrCJes
siOnq mind TO he true and sound beyond reasonable
douOt. We viii not Iang man upon the mere 7ecret
ncOmprehensDie or ncOm municaDe reasOnings 81 any
numberOr body OF men Whatever Yet this - JUS what
the Government is attempting to do In Gulte9us case
guesses few only these few having coniessedly
very little knowledge, except what Is common TO man
klnd IN general OF tne causes OF the pneloIena Vi NTH
diseases But this is not all 80 far as these experts
succeed communicating the grounds OIL thef opinions
these grounds appear not merely talacous 0ut pre-
posterOus For example, they nave each spent ilOhths
iime less, IN the courtroom aud ia the JAIL
examining Guteau get the data, the facts, the symp-
toms, by which To Judge whether ne Is or not INSANE
now. They thus npedy confess that the question Is
least obscure and dlcut one 10 themselves ana
| when they attempt TO communicate their reasons TO
| oil pPa fDaVu TO
conclusions Is any reasons that are lntelngDle
| and conclusive common minds. Common minds
know almost nothing to the validity or invadlty OF
when these experts give Tor holding hat ne
ia SAM nov or that he has Deen sane at any time
he been under their eyes. IT, then, Gulteau Is
hanged the testimony OF these experts hels TO DO
han gcd faith, and reason faith in che simple
Opinions conecures experts and not rea-
brought home the comprehension and the under
standings of the jurors themselves.
But even tins all These experts not only give
their opinions Guteau is but also nat he
was sane on the "a Oh july slA months ago; nc
now, what do they KNOW what are Their opinions
worth, whether he not sane six months
agoi They apparently nave no reason LOT thinking at
he ia July, except tnat they tnnk ne Is sane ID
January. Would it not be just US sensible for them
10 say that because nc has no leNer OF ueilIiuh h
tremens him to-day, therefore he could have had
none MIN SIX months agOf rms klud OF reasoning
implies they hold that II man was insane III July
undoubtedly have continued to be insane un-
II man is once insane ne VIII always remain SO No~,
fh we owns S g9 o 10 IS n seGo or never cas
anybody that under their care AND we ought 10
be thankful for TINS Information, Tor II enables US TO
KNOW where send insane friends, II We VISA
10 have them cured On this theory OF theirs, that
uce Insane WAYS insane the cases in winch they report
the patients 'discnarged cured must be presumed 10
be which tine victims never were lnsaneOnt were
| simply sent % them on the certificate physi-
clans knew just much ABOUT insanity AS IL was
necessary for them 10 know, or they cared 10 know
IN order to earn TWO OF three dollars Tor cer's tnel
| opinions"
| COMMENTS or EXPERT TESTIMONY.
If these experts really auy reliable knowledge
beyond that OF other to the operations OF minds
diseased or not diseased why do they not give some
4 rt.fff.f 4 frffg i'm
killing open day and before multitude OF peo-
| pie and making no attempt TO escape; and all this,
when he had personal malice toward his victim and
no rational prospect Of gaining anyth ~ MS death
Are such acts this common to human experience So
common as imply disorder in the mind OF tbe ac-
tor Do all the experiences Of ali the Bedams on earth
explain such phenomenon this, consistently with
the sanity Of the agent When these experts are CON
ironted WIN thS y, qth c1Un ' Ts how sane
man could such act, they stammer out wicked
ness" depravity"" eva passions" ~ ..- ..
oyarce or jealousy revenge any other particular
evil passion -hat is known to induce men to commit
| murder No. II was evidently none OF these But 1t
was Gas these experts would have us believed simple
| wickedncss," dcprayty," eyl passions Ihey
| can give answer more definite than that
| such answers these might, perhaps pass IN come
schools Of theology, which hold that rgus OF simple
wickedness" depravity or eyll passions was IN
corporated into the very nature 81 our nrt parents
and by them transmitted to all thelr noster{ put
when they are offered In court OF justice, Whefe
mans lire is at stake, they are not merely shameful
infamous. Men are not 10 nc hanged, IN tlls
may hold as to ancient transaction between Adam.
| Eve and the devil
under their Many OF these persons have commit
ted homicide7 or other violent assaults All OF then OF
nearly al Of mem %epe % p ~ The SUitv Of
| no two oil them showed itself in the same way But
they were all saying and doing things daiy that we're
And because their whether violent or not were
So absurd aud irrational these experts have no DOUBT
t1ot the actors were insane. But when Guteau does
| an a1s
| YVES not insane, but simply wicked ue,
And yet they give reasOns-Uhat are capable Of
being cOmpIehemded. and judged OF by common minds
why Guteaus absurd ana lrratoIa aci Is no l5 Eoou
proof Of his insanity as the Assured ana irrational ncts
! OF others are theirs Even the witches were not
| hanged on such absurd testimony this.
The testimony of THESE experts tends to SHOW now
much science and reason are TO De found hihCIg the
Keepers of our asyuns the insane II tends 90 show
thai these men either blockheGds outright and do
not know that they making foots OF themselves, or
that they are capable OF committing for money or to
advertise themselves as physiciaps Tor the insane
1t tends TO show that many OF them al least are epaDe
insane with which so many them have been charged
and OF which OF them, no doubt have been guilty
spirtology and not craiology. is the science that
viii sooner or later solve all questions OF insanity. The
possession OF spirit compelling one to 90 or not 10 90
Il the only way to soye the question OF insanity Let
these nine experts study spritOogy, taught by the
Saviour and they will get truth thah tney can Out
| OF craniology.
SYMPATHY WITH ASSASSINATION.
lam In receipt Of large mail, representing the pro-
progressive thought OF the Nation which now call at
tention TO- as shows the public feeling toward me-
withhold the names. have probably thousand let
ters awaiting my inspection in my Office in the jail,
| which [ shall examine possible.
| give a few showing the tone OF the American
people annex from the East and the West, and
the North and the South AID taking in all classes Of
| society.
Gently received telegram from Boston as follows
| l.
| "Au Boston sympathizes withyou You ought TO be
President. HOST OF ADMIRERS
II.
|
letter from an c&ecutivc officer Of the Western Union
| TELEGRAM Company, New-York, says: