The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-07-29
MURDER WILL OUT.

The death of Washington Nathan, more
| than twenty years after his fathers MUIR
der, finds Us as completely without clue
TO the identity of the assassin as We were
the morning the crime was discovered.
The Nathan murder was remarkable IL
lustration that the dogma murder viii
out" is popular fallacy, like the current
belief that "a bully is generally a coward"
that the real nature of a man comes out
when he is in liquor. So far from a bully
being generally a coward, a bully, We regret
to say, is four times out of six not q
coward; he is generally strong, healthy,
athletic, pugnacious brute, and as 8 rule.
healthy. strong men are seldom physical
towards. but will fight as fiercely and take
severe punishment as resolutely as buAl.
dog. So with the popular belief that the
real nature of a man comes out when he is
in his cups. Sometimes it does, but quite
as often the real nature of the man is not
simply obscured, but it is absolutely oblit-
Grated, or as completely changed as
if the man had suddenly received
a terrible injury to the brain
through physical violence or disease.
Nine men out Of ten, when IN their cups,
are silly or lugubriously tedious. no mat
| ter how robust in understanding or viva
| cious in intellect they may be when sober.
If the truth comes out in the wine then
| Stiffness and opacity of mind is the nat
ural state of mankind. The truth is that
| the truth no more comes out in the wine
| than the truth comes ont when any other
| form Of transient insanity or partial par
alysis of the mental powers is produced by
| another agent than alcohol.
But Of all popular notions that have be-
come current beliefs. the judgment that
murder, prominently above other crimes,
is morally certain generally TO be found
out. there is none that has less foundation
of fact to rest upon. As a matter of fact,
the record of crime in our great cities
shows very long list of murders that
have never been found out. Murder, when
not accompanied by robbery, is not diff
ficult crime 10 commit, nor is it difficult
for the assassin, if he acts with deliber-
alton. TO conceal his identity. During the
last fifteen years there have been dozen
young women brutality murdered in broad
daylight in the rural districts of New
Jersey. within fifty miles OF New York,
and there is 20 this day no clue to the
authors of two-thirds of these crimes.
The Nathan murder was committed in
the most public portion OF New YORK city
more than twenty years ago. The Nathan
mansion stood at the southwest corner of
Fifth avenue and Twenty-third street,
directly opposite the Fifth Avenue hotel.
Nathan, who was wealthy Hebrew OF
high character, was murdered about mid
night in his apartment. He was vigor-
Gus, well preserved, muscular man of about
60. and had evidently made a stout resist
| ance, but he was beaten 10 death with 4
carpenters dog" 4 small safe in his
room was robbed his diamond studs and
a valuable gold watch were taken. Al the
time of night when the murder was COM
mitted the corner OF Fifth avenue and
Broadway was probably the liveliest spot
in New York city. The Fifth avenue
stages were rafting TO .and fro by
one side OF the Nathan mansion,
the Twenty-third street stages and
cars were passing by the front Of the
house; the Fifth Avenue hotel was bril-
liantly lighted up across the street; the
Broadway cars were rolling up and down
that great thoroughfare. Probably there
were 81 midnight more people passing 10
and fro al this spot, where Fifth avenue.
Twenty-third street and Broadway inter-
sect, than al any other spot n New York
city. The policemen in making their
rounds had tried the door of the mansion,
| but discovered nothing 10 excite suspicion
until near morning. when the door was
| found unlocked, As It had been left by the
assassin when he passed into the street.
The natural inquiry Is, why vas Wash
ingtou Nathan suspected of numbering his
| father? The answer Is that there was
| really no sound reason for the suspicion;
| he had nothing 10 gain by his fathers
murder, ana the slight arrangement be-
| tween father and son caused by the fathers
| dsapproval Of the sons languid. INDECENT,
| dissipated dude lie had never caused anv
| domestic bitterness Of feeling that
| justified any suspicion that the in
| dolent. eaSy-going, goot-ustured, kindly,
| hayward youth was the brutal murderer
! OF an old father for whom he had never
exhibited any passionate hate. The soa
| easily proved an alibi, and the only rea-
! son that suspicion continued - rest upon
| him was that the unexampied reward Of
| sSo,ooo offered by the family AMI the au-
thorities never brought the murderer TO
| light. If, as appeared probable, the assas-
4 -
| that rare man, s creature who had no as
sociates. male or female, who knew Of MS
| coming and going
l Ninesy-nine times out Of hundred re-