Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-09-29

! a call at his Office next day from Phelin
| O'Rourke. The mans face had new
wrinkles, his form was bowed, his eyes were
restless, and his language disconnected.
"Sit down." said the lawyer, kindly.
O'Rourke took off his hat and let himself
drop into chair in way that indicated nc
care for bodily ease.
"Can anything more be done for Dolf?''
he asked.
Mr.. Nannery shook his head.
| "WiIl you read to me once more the
legal definition of murder in the first de-
| gree?"
The lawyer read the statute, which de-
clared the premeditated and Intentional
taking of human life, except when done JUS
| tifiably in self-defense to be murder in the
first degree; also the provision which rem
dered the intention and premeditatlon un-
necessary elements in case the assailant was
| at the time committing a robbery.
ssThen understand,p O'Rourke contin-
ued, "that there is no possible hope of saw
ing DOLE"
SNot the slightest. The case was utterly
hopeless from the first"
"Suppose there had been no robbery. Are
there no conceivable circumstances under
which the deliberate killing of Mrs Begg,
powerless as she was would have been justi-
fable before the law?"
| NO"
"You are certain ofthat?"
Certain"
On the day before the one set for the
hanging of Dolf Mr.. Nannery entered the
| Supreme Court chamber with more hustle
than was usual with him, and elbowed his
way impolitely to the front row of lawyers,
| all of whom were anxious to be heard hrst
by the Judge.
''If Your Honor pleases," he began, II
have a"
"I think Mr.. Fitch is before you, Mr..
Nannery," said the Judge.
II am sure Your Honor and Brother
Fitch will excuse me, the perturbed law
yer rejoined, ''if 1 am persistent. !! wish
to move for stay of proceedings in the
case of Dolf Begg, who is under sentence to
be hanged tomorrow"
Everybody was instantly interested and
willing to give him precedence.
''The circumstances are peculiar" he con-
tinued, with strong effort to assume his
accustomed dignity of demeanor. 81 need
have no hesitation now in saying that |
believed the prisoner guilty, and did not
anticipate any interference with the in1ic-
ton of the penalty. Half an hour ago re-
ceived letter from one Phelim O'Routke,
and, with Your Honor's permission. will
read it."
Mr. Nannery had some difficulty in k.ep-
ing his hands from trembling while he un-
folded some sheets of paper. He read as
follows from document on which, mani
festly, the learned Irishman had spent much
care, in spite of the mental excitement
which must have attended its composition:
MIR. NANNERY: In this letter I give
you the means of saving Dolf from the gal
lows. In order to do so must first Tell
you that on the evening of Mrs. Begg's death
I attended a meeting of the Kosmic Khb,
which was an association of persons forIthe
discussion of social science. 1t was the last
gathering we were likely to have, fol all
except myself were to quit the city in a lew
days. Some of them, however. can be
brought back to testify as to the paper
which I read on that occasion. send you
the manuscript with this letter. You will
find it embodies my belief that, in thdin-
terests of humanity, the law should provide
for the killing of such persons as are htpe-
lessly i'll, and for whom, by reasoi of
physical suffering, the remainder OF life
would otherwise be simply a protractioi of
agony. outlined plan by which, on the
application of the invalid, an examination
should be made by three physicians will a
view to ascertain beyond a doubt Whether
or not recovery was possible. If they re-
ported that the case was hopeless, a prop
erly constituted authority should, at DIS
cretion, order that death be caused in some
painless manner. You will find that my
arguments were very full and carefully
considered; but the gist of them was that
the endurance of much useless SUFFERING
would be prevented; that powerful incen1
tive to suicide would be removed, and that
it was the 1nalienable right of every hope
less invalid to die at will. went further,
and held that an extreme degree of mental
distress, resulting from great sorrows that
could never be assuaged, ought to legally
entitle person to the relief of death NY
paper, as remember. excited the surprise
of my companions. They thought perhaps
that it was only vagary; but, in fact, it |
was an expression of conclusion forced |
upon nv mind by the long and awful e1pe-
riences of my neighbor, Mrs. Begg, and an |
elaboration of an idea which 1 had preyi- |
ously broached in the clubs meetings.
On getting home learned that Dolf Begg
had attempted to rob his mother. The wit |
Messing of so much misery made me pity |
her keenly. Then she told me of the phiysi- |
clans assurance that she could not BY any |
recover, which had long known, |
and of his opinion that she might live in |
constant torture six months longer Know
ing how sincerely she longed for the ease of |
the grave, thought that it was cruel that |
she was compelled to keep on living. 1 did |
not believe that she would commit suicide. |
Next evening, as her husband was away,
and her daughter, too, I went, at her request, |
to get medicine vial filed. On my way |
through the streets meditated on the poor
creatures case in the light of my paper on
the legal extinction of life for incurables
and could not help regarding such meas
ure as truly humane. But had no thought
Of practical demonstration until came to
The drugstore.
Alongside the building stood carboys of
acids, as usual, for they were deemed too
for storage inside. Each was
marked in large letters, and the words
'Hydrocyanic Acid" caught my eve,
knew this was a poison so deadly that it
killed instantly, and left no trace behind to
reveal the cause of death. Here was born
he idea of mercifully numbering Mrs.
Begg. I hastened away in downright
horror; but within a quarter of an hour
vas there again, looking wstfully at the
,arboy. NY repugnance was giving away
% reason. The store had been closed for
he night. Should I pull the bell and
arouse the clerk to fill nv vial with medi-
zine? My hand was on the knob. Why
lot obtain some of the poison instead and
lse it? The project rapidly fascinated me.
was aware that hydrocyanic acid could
lot ordinarily be bought owing to its dam
,erous qualities, and was sold only for GER
ain purposes of manufacture. Here was the
opportunity to obtain some, and without in
.ulpating myself. Iwaited until midnight
when the street was deserted. Then, with
leavy stone, broke off the protruding glass
op OF the carboy, being careful to keep