The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-04-19
sCovILLE on GUITEAU,
4 Lecture TO Small Audience In Jerse
CITY

~ Lecture To u Small Audience In JERSEY
city
A figure stood ont on dimly ON the stage
of the Academy Music in Jersey City last
evening. 1t wns that of George Scoville
the brother-inlaw OF Guiteau, who dc.
tended the assassin while on trial for the
murder OF President Garfield. There were
but forty.three persons in the house, in,
cluding two ushers and seven reporters
The small attendance deferred the man
ager of the academy from turning on The
full head of gas, and all during the evening
the house remained in semi.darkness. Onl,
the side jets were lighted, and these, wer,
kept turned down nearly as low as could b,
without going out entirely. Mr.. Scoville wa
announced 10 speak ON the subject o
"Guiteauism. lie spoke deliberately anc
clearly, and succeeded In making his Ice
ture interesting, He began with the re-
mark that he attributed the small audienC,
to the desire of the American people to lay
aside the subject until It had been disposed
of-meaning until Guiteau had been
hanged. This ought not to be. II an in
sane man had been sentenced TO be hanged
IL should be known before II was too late
The person who shot Percival, the prime
minister Of England, was insane, and his
hanging was blot on English iurispru.
dence Before July "a last Guiteau was
regarded as kind, gentle, reticent aud re-
ligious. His range of thought was limited
From the age of Is, when his mind wus
first directed TO religion, he had been in.
tensely religious in u certain way. The
Bible could not teach him, however. lie
marked ont his own religious course, and
adhered TO IL with all the tcnacity of pa.
gan worshipping his idol. by the term
"Guitcauism, Mr. Scovillo did not mean
simply an assassin, such AS the bandit Jesse
James, nor such man rs shot Jesse James
because Guiteau could not have been hired
TO commit crime, much less such deed
rs he did perform in shooting the presi.
dent. Guilcauism meant, first, the opinion
of an insane man, and, second, the opinion
OF sane people. Mr.. Scovillc compared
Guiteau TO Charlotte COrdHy. Both were
impelcd 10 their acts by motives that
seemed to each to be proper Guiteau
feared The disruption of the republican
party, the succession of the democratic
party, and civil war. The idea came to him
that lie must Kill the president, and lac
could not drive It away. Mr.. Scoville laid
GuiIoau's crime at the door of the political
parties, For eight years there had been nc
issue between lhem-it gas fight fol
office. After speaking of the burden o
taxes which the poor bore, MIR. Scoyillc said
the great question of labor and capital was
coming up soon. Labor only needed lead
ers and II would sweep the country NJ the
ballo,.box, While Mr.. Scovillc would not
say that the action OF congress ON the
Chinese question was incorrect, he would
say that the representatives calculated the
political effect ON the Pacific slope before
casting thor votes on II. Conkliug aever
performed great service for the people as
he might have, but devoted his energies to
people 80 poorly represented in national
and state councils rs now.