The daily gazette., 1882-01-26
TmUssDAx JANUARY IS. Issa.


s-=-=-s....--=s.--ss.
GUITEAU FouHD GuILTY.-Ths trial
Of the miserable assassin came to an
end yesterday, much more suddenly
than the wrelched creature imagined
il would. The jary let him down
20 quickly that he must have been re-
minded Of the next drop he will take
when the hangman chops the far end
Of the rope.
Judge POrter's speech was concluded
about three o'clock, when Judge Cox
proceeded with his charge to the Jury.
The Judge commenced his charge ut
BIB and concluded at 4 40 p. m, when
the jury retired and after being out
about thirty minutes returned with
the verdict Of guilty a. indicted. The
bravado and scandalously impudent
conduct Of Guiteau during the delivery
Of Judge Portsr's speech yesterday
and the day before revealed scenes In
. court room never before equalled in
this or any other country. 1t was
really acandalous and, we fear, damag-
ing in its effects upon the future. II
was not supposed that such liberty
could be taken in an American court.
Nor would it have been allowed under
any ordinary circumstances. But why
should it have been in this care ?
Judge Cox has done himsel little
credit in permitting the prisoner the
liberty to SO frequently interrupt with
such suck abusive language the cOun>
sci of the government. Had Guiteau
been q common murderer he would
have been silsnced at once. We do
not wish the reader to infer that thia
liberty was given him because he was
. lawyer and demanded to plead his
own case, or = "3talwArt Of the Stall
warts" These facts might have had
some weight with Judge Cox. But the
presumption is that he was permitted
this liberty because he shot The Presi-
dent Of the United States, and Judge
Cox desired to show the world that
the largest liberty would bs extended
under the constitutional guarantees OF
the Republic even to such a murderer
~ Guiteau. 1t would perhaps have
been better for the country and for all
concerned had Guiteau been more
summarily dealt with. Surely there
would have been few regrets had the
miserable man been shot on the day be
fred the fatal bullet.
There was little in what Judge
Porter said yesterday or in the pro-
seedlings to interest the reader further
than the charge of Judge Cox and the
verdict. The Judge concluded bis
charge as follows
"And now, gentlemen, to sum up all
/ have said TO you, If you fnd from
the whole evidence that at the time of
the commission OF the homicide the
prisoner was laboring under such q
defect of his reason that he was inca
pable OF understanding what he was
doing, or of seeing that it was q wrong
thing to do as for example, if he were
under the insane delusion that the
Almighty had commanded him to do
the act, then he was not In RESPONSE,
BILE condition of mind, brt was an
object of compassion and should now
be acquitted. II on the other hand,
you find that he was under NO insane
delusion, but had the possession of his
faculties and had power to know that
bis act was wrong and if, of his own
free will, be deliberately conceived the
idea and executed the homicide, then
whether bis motives were personal
vindictiveness, political animosity, q
desire to ayenge supposed political
wrongs or morbid desire for no.
toriety or, if you arc unable to dis
cover any motive at all, the act is sim.
ply murder, and it is your duty to fino
a verdict of guilty as indicted. o.
(after a suggestion from Mr.. ScovillC
to that effect) if you and that thc
prisoner is not guilty, by reason o.
insa1ity, it is your duty to say So"
The verdict will be approved by al
Christian peoples, and Guiteau nay
at least be given time to learn that thG
people and the press are not on hi
side.