Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-13
SELF-ACUUsING SPIRITS.

All great tragedies that are involved in
score of cranks who seek notoriety by &C
cusing themselves of the preparation of
the foulest crimes. After Mrs. Cunning
hams acquittal of the charge of numbering
DR.. BurdeH many years ago, there were no
less than dozen persons who confessed
the crime, some even on their death-beds,
although there was positive evidence that
they were entirely innocent. The Nathan
murder produced another harvest of the
same sort. There was scarcely village
of few hundred inhabitants from
Maine to California that could
not boast of full blown muir
derer of the wealthy banker. They were
willing to confess the deed and to detail
all the circumstances connected with it,
sometimes with such particularly as to
pazzle the police authorities. They GER
tainly displayed great ingenuity, if not
positive talent, in constructing their
stories, and some of them were rewarded
with a free ride to New York for their
pains. None of the selfconfessed assas-
sins, however, proved bona fide, and the
real criminal has continued to battle de-
tective skill ever since.
The dastardly assassination of Lord
Frederick Cayendish and Under Secretary
Burke at Phoenix park, Dublin, last spring,
is another cause ceIe5re that appears likely
to result in the development of the
regulation number of these cranks.
The public is already familiar with the
pretensions of Westgate, who claimed to
be the only original assassin. He discov-
cred himself at Kingston, Jamaica, shortly
after the particulars of the assassination
had reached that island. He was fortunate
in having sailed from Ireland on the
morning succeeding the murders, and was
also familiar with the topography of the
park, besides having an acquaintanceship
with some of the characters about town
who would be very likely to engage in such
a dastardly crime. Detectives were sent
from Scotland Yards to examine him, but
while disbelieving his story the data he
gave were so circumstantial that they felt
it necessary to convey him back to Dub
lin. Here the falsity of his claims was
soon established.
Tuesday another Richmond entered the
field in the person of Mr.. O'Reilley, who
turned up at small village near Roches-
ter, N. Y, and modestly admitted that he
killed Cock Cavendish. He gives all the
details of the crime, but unfortunately he
seems to be a little off on his dates, as at
the time he says he arrived in this country
on the steamer California, that vessel was
on the bounding deep, en- route for India.
1t is probable that Mr.. O'Reilley is fraud,
and that instead of being a full-fedgsd
murderer he is only the descendant of one
of the Irish kings seeking free passage
back to his ancestral halls. He has proba-
bly, heard that the government is dealing
out free Iations to the sufferers by the
famine. Next to being frst-class assas-
sin, men of his stamp pine to. be feeding at
the public trough.
Westgate and O'Reilley are probably but
the forerunners of score of similar
cranks who will arise and claim the cues
tionable notoriety of having committed
the fendish murders in Phoenix park |
Those who make these claims are not all |
worthless scamps, however. Some are |
men of intelligence and not few are men |
Of means. 1t is probable that by reading
The particulars of these mysterious TRACE
lies and brooding over them perhaps en-
to construct a theory by which
,he real murderers may be detected-they
come to imagine themselves guilty, and
commit acts that real fugitives from JUS
ice would be likely to commit in the en-
ieavor to escape arrest. Their consciences
nay smite them SO that they accuse them
selves of the preparation of the deed. 1t
5 an interesting study for psychologists,
mad is worthy of thorough examination.
Mental phenomena take no more singular
,hutes than such as are here referred to.
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ST.. PErERsBUsG, Jan. 1.-THE car and
imperial family arrived to-day and took up