The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1882-04-17


IN. Y. Post.l
The extraordinary doings in Missouri con-
cerning the death and burial Of Jesse james,
the noted robber and murderer, have attracted
a great deal of attention from the press, though
hardly as much as they merit James was
successful brigand of the worst kind for nearly
twenty years. He served as guerilla In the
war, and when peace was concluded became
common bandit of the Greek or Italian type,
but without holding his victims to ransom,
there being no proper facilities in this country
for transporting captives. His operations,
however, we're extended.oye an area, and con-
Quoted with boldness, which make the most
lannon's of the Greeks or Italians seem petty
knave. He robbed all along the Mississippi,
from Minnesota down nearly to Louisiana, and
some of his greatest exploits were performed
in broad daylight, and not on lonely roads, but
in the streets of small towns, and were FREE
quently accompanied by murder. In fact,
when we consider the extent of country over
which his jurisdiction extended, the character
of his crimes, the long period during which he
epioyed immunity, and the smallneSS OF the
must admit him to be the greatest robber OF
either ancient or modern times, SURPRISING IN
manv RESPECTS both the Condottieri and the
Buccaneers.
Tue manner of his DEATH too, has something
unprece uented aboutsit. All the great robbers
of old times, and of other Countries, lived IN
caves or in mountain Businesses, to which II
WAS difficult for troops to pursue them, or In
strong castles, or kept the sea III long, low,
rakish black scbooners. James, however,
y.d in arfu bla baugp. surrounded nv
loving family, and went off on his expeditions
apparently as a business man goes of TO collect
deots or TO solicit orders Moreover, although
the State OF Missouri had for long years been
trying to arrest him, it was never able to 90 SO,
and in order to compass bis death the Govern
or had to resort to the means by which the We
petiap Council of Ten and other medieval
Powers occasionally tried to get rid of obnoxious
foreign sovereigns. He hired an assassin TO 90
and kill him unawarss, so that James really
died what may be called royal death. be
fell as Henry ~, and William the Silent and
Admiral Coligny fell, the victim OF the HOSTILE
ty Of great community who were unable TO
get The better OF him in open fghF, but felt
thai his taking off was necessary 10 tnelr SAFE
ty and prosperity. The Governor ia fact lusti-
fcs his own course in language which might
have been used by Elizabeth after the defeat
of the Armada. He describes the assassination
OF james as the relief of the State from great
hindrance to its prosperity, and as likely to
*
ulation, 10 railroad enterprise, and foreign i'm
migration.
'If yon want to know the value of the deed, I" he
said, task the managers OF banks; ASK the owners
of land in that part Of the Sta e.; ark the managers
of the many rail Dads constructed IN this State;
ask the ticket agents at st Louie, kansas cry
Omaha and Chicago ask me motel ksepe n a. sa
and real estate agents at Kansas City and il Jack
son County; ask those who own land IN Cay aud
Platte; hear their response, and then say 1t vas
MOI a o cd deed ia behalf of law, order anu general
prosperity"
James's relations to the church, too, had
a cnriously medi@val flavor about them. He
was the son of a Baptist minister, but bis cs-
reer spparently did not strike his mother, or
any of his family or Deighbors, as inconsistent
with the possession of stock of fundamental
and iperadcable piety. When he died she re-
ioiced in the thought that he had gone to
Heaven. Two Baptist ministers performed
the funeral services, and vast concourse OF
friends, including the sheriff, who was deeply
affected, followed the remains TO the grave,
rot sorrowing, apparently, as those VINO are
without hope. In fact, the james territory,
which includes the adjacent corners OF four
States, is a region which seems closely to
resemble in its religious aad moral con-
dition q Frankish kingdom in Gaul in
the sixth century. Every one knows
how very early in the history OF the
Church the tendency 10 make faith take the
place Of right living began to show itself. st.
james had to warn the very first generation OF
Christians that pure religion and uDdehled
consisted not in sound belief, but in good
deeds. The difficulty of making people show
their faith by their works has beset Christian
ity ever since. Barbarians rapidly accepted
the Christian dogmas, and took eagerly to the
rites and ceremonies of the Church, but they
never were quite ready to accept its views
about behavior. Gregg ry OF Tours, In his most
instructive chronicle, tells some very gfotesque
stories of the difficulties which the bishops had
in Gaul in his day in refusing the communion
to notorious evil liyers. One Frankish chief
q great robber and cutthroat-insisted on hav-
ing il administered to him, and the bishop had
to let him have it. in order to save life, for he
threatened to kill all the other communicates
il he was not allowed to partake also. The
comfort the Italian and Greek brigaDds find in
the external observances of their creed, while
committing the most atrocious crimes, is now
an old story. A sceptical or agnostic robber is
in fact unknown in eastern or southern Europe
These all belong to the Catholic or Greek
Church, however, which has always greatly
exalted the value of external worship and pl-
GUS credulity, and thus furnished only too
much temptation to those who are ready to be-
lieve without limitation for the purpose OF
postponing any change in their habits. The
Protestant Church has been much more exact
ing in the matter of conduct, and in fact has
afforded in its teaching but few OF the refugees
for easy going sinners which its great rival pro-
vides SO plentifully. But the fight between
faith and right-living nevertheless RACES with
in its borders increasingly and not always to
the advantage of the latter 1t is not only in
the james district in Missouri that one comes
on the strange compromises Dy which GER
tain external devoutDess is made to atone TO
the conscience not only for spiritual coldness,
but for long and persistent violations OF the
fundamental rules OF morality. Startling as
sre these revelations about the state OF society
in that part of the country, they are hardly
more startling, everything considered, than
the frequency with which our defaulters and
embezzlers in this part of the world prove to
have been vestrs men, deacons, Sunday-school
superintendent, and prominent members dur
ing long years of delinquency and peridy.
There is nothing new about it at all. 1t is, in
fact as we have said, simply new phase OF
one of the Oldest struggles in the moral world.
But the James story derives much freshness
from the fact that he is probably the first Prot
estant who managed To keep his standing
good In the local church and retain the afec-
ton Of his pastor, and maintain happy home.
while pursuing robbery and murder as pro-