The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1884-09-13
OUR LETTER FROM BRoADBRIM

said
OUR LETTER FROM BROADBRiM.
Canonizing the Saints of the Criminal Cal
endar-Bully for Jones-Anotlier Mad
+ House Seandal-A Financial Wreck
He'd Hot Politics, etc.
New YORK September 6, 1881.
EDITOR CHIEF:
wish some one would tell me, if he
could, why it is, thats1hen criminal COM
nlits some particularly atrocious crime an
interest is awakened in him that hun
dred innocent men and women could never
excite. Only few years ago brutal Ne
gro strangled woman under particularly
horrible circumstances, and for nearly a
year he posed in prison as first class dude;
admiring friends sent him good clothes,
fruit, flowers, ice cream, and all the deli
cacies of the season, not to mention fine
cigars and other like consultations. Three
days before his execution respectfully
dressed and not bad looking woman, called
to see him, but was not admitted. She had
tried for an entire day to see him but failed;
she had never seen him and did not know
him, and yet when, finally refused wept
like child, and going out purchased a
basket of flowers at a cost of five dollars and
sent it in to the murderer, with her love.
This is the very quintessense of madness,
and yet in Brooklyn a scene was enacted
last Sunday which makes me think that
some of my colored brothers are daft. In that
goodly city few weeks ago they hung a
Negro murderer named Jefferson, one of
most heartless, desperate brutes that ever
paid the penalty Of his crimes upon the
gallows. He had been terror from his
boyhood, thief and a drunkard; as far as
could be learned he had not solitary re-
deeming feature in his character. He muir
dered two innocent people and nearly
killed two more, manning them SO that
one will be terribly disfgured for life and
the other, his own brother, will carry the
marks of his injury to his grave. No sooner
was his awful crime made public than
forthwith m army of philanthrophic cranks
became interested in Mr.. Jefferson. Ladies
called upon him, ministers of all denomi-
nations became fearful he might be lost
and all appeared to be afraid that some
body else might save him. Some kind
hearted Sisters of Charity attempted to
pray with and convert him, but the regular
chaplain of the Jail seemed to think that
he might just as we'll die in his sins as have
anything to do with the papists. Linda
| Gilbert, who is known as the prisoner
friend, sort of crank in her way, who be-
| lieyes if you find man robbing youi
! house, instead of shooting or arrestine
| him, You should give him ten dollar bill
| she took up Jeffersons case. Linda has
money, is a true philanthropist; she does
not fool away her loose change on innocent
or unfortunate people-not she; but le,
some notorious scoundrel be guilty of some
terrible crime,-the worse it is the more
| she glories in her protege,-and until the
| gallows claims him or State prison gets
him the gentle Linda will furnish him with
| every good thing that heart of man could
| wish for. Miss Gilbert and many others
| became interested in Jefferson; they fought
justice up to the very last moment, but a!
last every legal resourse had been exhausted
! and Mr.. jefferson departed for the happy
| hunting grounds, He magnanimously for
| gave all of his enemies, gave Miss Gilbert
| his skeleton, and died certain that the
| Golden Gates were opened and ready to
| receive him. Some weeks have passed
since then and last Sunday respectable
colored clergyman denounced the execu-
ton of jefferson as judicial murder. The
| colored people seem to think that there is
strong prejudice against their race, and
FROM their efforts to get their criminals off
seem to think that they are entitled to some
special exemption from punishment. It j:
about time that this mawkish sympathy
| for murderers, thieves and vagabonds gen
orally, VISA stamped out, and that more
was done by these would be pllilanthro
pists for suffering wretches who never hai
| the fortune to knock down traveller will
a sand bag or have seen the inside of {
State prison. There is too much gush owe
notorious criminals and too little interes
| in fhnsa who are not