St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-05-03
HOW THE CHINESE SWEAR
The Peculiar Forms of 0aths Taken by
Pigtailed Witnesses.
Maxwell's Brief Career as Citrate
and Temperance Reformer.
a Man Who Drinks Whisky, Ammo
MIA and Ch1oroform.

Correspondence of the Globe.
ST. LOUIS, May IA riot in the Chi
nese population, collision of two paSsen-
ger trains on the Iron Mountain, a contest
for every office filled at the recent municipal
election, the burning of the Lindell hotel,
the arrest of Editor Little of the Chronicle
on charge of criminally libelling Recorder
of Voters Clarence Hoblitzelle, and the
opening of the League base ball season, have
served to enliven the week at st. Louis.
The absorbing topic through the state is the
pleuro- pneumonia cattle plague. Gov Mar
maduke has asked Gov. Oglesby of Hi
noiS to reconsider the quarantine order
against Missouri cattle, as it is feared other
adjoining states will follow the example.
~
The lives of DR.. W. II. LennoX Maxwell
and his victim, G. Arthur Preller, previous
to the Southern hotel horror are gradually
becoming known. To-day information was
received which goes far towards explaining
the relations between the men when they
were of different tastes, likes and diSlikes.
Preller was a Pilgrimite, Bible student,
and deeply religious young man, while
Maxwell was a wild, reckless adyenturer,
whose tricks carried him to all parts OF the
world. It develops to-day through the
mails that Maxwell devoted his at
tention to religion a few years ago.
At Morley, Leeds, he served as curate to Rev.
Mr.. Crooks vicar of st. PauFS church,
though his conduct was even then under
suspicion. He made a hurried trip to Amer
lea, but on returning to Leeds he gave tenn
perance lectures and enlisted many in the
cause being well paid by subscription for
the zeal he displayed in his work. When
Tho doro of tho Or npu ra1narnhnr that
during his stay in Boston Maxwell could
find no intoxicant of sufficient strength and
was in the habit of drinking decoction of
whisky, aromatic spirits of ammonia and
chlOroform the thoroughneSs of the hypO-
critic will be appreciated. Assistant Circuit
Attorney Mcdonald returned from Toronto,
| Canada, to-day. Mr.. John A. Frazer, a
photographer who knew Preller, was shown
| a photograph of the dead mans face and
identified it positively. Everything is now
waiting Oh the arrival of the City of Sydney
at Auckland, New Zealand, when. it is
hoped, the murderer will be captured. Two
agents of the state will be named to go for
Maxwell if he is captured. Detective James
Tracy of the regular force and Mr. Frank
r. O'Neil, a newspaper reporter, will prob
ably be recommended to Gov. Marmaduke
and by that official to President Cleveland.
| The steamer is due at Auckland May 2
OF 3.
~
Bad feeling between the Hong Kong and
! Canton Cinnamon in this city has led to
several gambling and opium raids and sew
eral prosecutions in court. James BaptiSte,
an Americanized Chinaman, came here
from New York city to settle the troubles
and appeared to-day for Lon LIE, Dung TIE,
and G no Gong, who were charged in the
court of criminal correction with black
mailing Hong Kong man named 10 Gong.
| Under the laws Of Missouri a man must be
sworn according to the form most binding
Oh his conscience. The citation of this
statute provoked an interesting discussion
| on the forms of Chinese Caths. Baptiste
who has been official interpreter for several
years in the New York courts, testified that
there were four forms of oaths generally
recognized by Cinnamon as being sacred.
! The first was for murder cases. where the
witness cuts off the head of chicken, hop
| ing that if he does not tell the full truth his
head will fall as does the fowls. Oath No.
| 2 is the most formal. Several pieces of yell
low paper, each nine inches square, are
| given the witness, who writes on them his
name, age, country, social condition, his
knowledge of the facts and candid belief
concerning the same. After completing this
he burns them, saying: May my soul burn
like this if do not tell the truth" Oath
No. 8 is one during the administration of
which the witness breaks saucer and says:
MAY my soul be broken like this if l lie. !"
Oath No.4 is an appeal to Joss, the Chinese
god. While burning a JOSS stick-about
the thickness of match-he pledges to tell
the truth, concluding by extinguishing the
light against the curved palm of his hand,
saying: II hope the light of the world will
be shut out from me like this if L do not tell
all the truth-if 1 tell one lie." AS the
Cinnamon professed to be members of the
Y. M. c. A, Chinese school bible oaths
were administered to them. AsMoDUs.