The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-04-24
Heightened Murder.

High-TOned Murder.
The indictment of Adams at Dallas |
for murder, the other day, brings up a
train of reflection from which use
full lesson may be extracted. Texas
has had a bad reputation on the score
of murder for many years, and the |
bitter thing has always been with her
friends, that she deserves it. There
has been too much murder, too much
killing, and by far too much immunity
for it. No man ever steals horse or
COW, or commits other roguery in
this state, and gets off without ex-
periencing all the evil effects
of his lapse from the ways
of rectitude. But with the crime of
murder 1t is far otherwise. Some of
the most attrocious, brutal and cow
ardly murders have been committed
and unless the murderer happens to
be poor and friendless he may laugh
the gallows and all of its dead paraphre-
MALTA to scorn. No rich man, indeed
no man of anything like respectable
position in society has ever been
executed for murder in Texas, and
there have been almost countless
instances of its commission by people
occupying the veSy highest social
positions. 1t needs not that we
say this is all wrong. 1t boots
us nothing to say that it
is dangerous, or that
gilt-edged murderer Is as bad as his
brutal, illy-clad and coarse hammered
brother in blood. Yet this is true,
nav, more, he is worse because more
dangerous. There is not county in
Texas which has not bound up in its
history from one to a dozen instances
of the point we are making, a dozen
high-born. heightened priests of blood
either in exile ;or washed and
made white-for the nonce-byian &C
quittal by petit jury Of his per-
sonal friends or those who come
within the circle of the bale
full light from his yellow
gold, that of his friends or the
influence of both. Criminal adj
ministration has been the broadcast
kind of farce in this respect, it is
yet, and will remain 80 until the end
of the chapter, unless indeed public
sentiment takes hold of the matter
and resolves that blood, no matter by
whom it is shed, shall no longer cry in
vain from the ground for Vengeance
Thisman Adams, although he wan
tonly murdered Ia poor man, as we
understand, and although he has been
indicted, will never hang-mark the
prediction. Whyp Simply because
his family has money, because his
brother is a banker, man of wealth
standing and influence in the section
where the crime was committed,
Outraged justice stands before such a
combination weak and powerless, or
blind, deaf and voiceless. This young
man wears good clothes, inhabit.
the houses and frequents the
drawing rooms of society. Hang
Bless you no. That would never do
never m the world. Money, work and
influence will neither of them be want
ing to interpose between him and the
fatal tree of expiration. He will, on
the contrary, play the role of hero
He will be pointed out as one who
has saved his man." Instead of
being Stunned as a vile wretch
who has forfeited his life to the
offended law for reddening the
earth with the blood of his fel.
low he will win distinction and con
sideration. How can we expect re-
formation or Improvement as long as
such sentiments prevail2 How can
we stay the red tide which has turned
so many good men, and so much money
aside from our state so long as we per
nit this freedom from the consequences
of the crimes our heightened murderers
commit ?We must meet it. We dare nc
longer remain inert and effortless be-
fore crime which has grown to be OF
huge proportions and whose bad.in-
fluence is daily growing and expand
ing in thisland of churches. universe
ties and refinement.
Adams is no worse by a single
whit than hundreds of others we
could name. He simply killed his
man, and that man having been poor
and friendless, and Adams rich and
influential, why of course an indict-
meat is but legal fiction-a sort of
expected formality, but necessary
and usual form. 1t does not mean
that there is even the remotest chance
that Adams's dainty and silk EMBODIED
neck will ever be made acquainted
with the coarse, barbarous rope Upon
which poor men and negroes only
are hung. Only another broad
farce will be added to the long
ist of similar histories, and after a
few months-years at most, Mr.. Will
lis Adams will walk about in the
bright sunlight of woman's smiles and
mans approval, again the petted dar-
ling of society-not one whit at disad-
vantage because the blood of a poor
mans remains unavenged, and which
was spilled by his soft, YelYety, kid
clothed hand
The law must reach these cases The
officers, the judges and the juries must
deal earnestly with them, else we
might as well turn Texas over to the
nihilists, the socialists or the savages
at once, and be done with the farce of
government and legal protection.
s'It Means Death"