The morning call., 1893-10-30
THE MURDER OF MAYOR HAR-
RISON.

1t does not appear that there is any law
which governs such events as the murder
OF Mayor Harrison. 1t may be said, per-
haps. that the propagation of anarchist
doctrines and the recent pardon of an
.archist prisoners by Governor Altged
tended to relax moral principle in the COM
munity of Chicago. But this hypothesis is
on a par with the notion that the corrup-
tion of politics and the rage for Office in
spired the assassination of Garfield by Gui-
teau. In both cases the logical continuity
of the conclusion with the premises is de-
fectiye. Guiieau, without being a mad
man, was a vicious crank. in whom innate
deprayity had impaired the reasoning fac
ulty. Prendergast seems to have been
simply lunatie, who, being a newspaper
carrier, got il into his head that Mayor
Harrison had promised to make hiE Cor
pOration Counsel. There was a lesion or
displacement in the cOnvolutions of his
brain and il affected both his moral and
intellectual action.
Most of the noted assassinations in his
tory were the outcrop of party fury
Julius Cesar was assassiuated by the
patricians. who feared his growing power
Booth murdered Mr.. Lincoln because he
had destroyed slavery and subjugated the
South. In these cases the assassin was not
an irresponsible instrument of manIacal
fury. He acted logically. pursuing a set
purpose, with malice prepense. But a
large proportion OF the murders recorded
in history, like the recent assassination of
a Spanish Archbishop by a nameless vaga-
bond. were simply outbursts of bestial
frenzy. inspired by causeless homicidal
instinct. They are examples of the curl
Gus mania which Is said TO prevail among
the Malays. and which prompts them TO
run 'amock" through crowd aud TO cut
down strangers Unfortunately with their
creese.
The homicidal form of insanity is noticed
in tn. books. and some of its symptoms
have been recorded. But the study has
thus FAR led to no result except to the oc-
casional aequittal of a murderer on the
ground that he vas irresponsible. Alien
lists should prosecute their researches
further. Tie structure and diseases o.
the brain are now becoming so well knOwr
that 1t ought 10 be possible to detect In tht
diseased brain indications of a ripeninE
homicidal tendency. When patient wh(
has exhibited signs of insanity is examined
+ by a competent physician the latter SD boulC
/ be able to say. 'This man will commit
suicide, or that man will commit murder i
he is not restrained" 1t follows tina
| when a man begins to exhibit signs o.
! alteration of mind he should be examined
forthwith by able specialists. As it is
when man goes crazy his friends let hin
alone till he kills some one, or tries TO taxi
his own life, or attempts TO burn house
This very Prendergast who murdered
Mayor Harrison called ON the Corporation
Counsel at Chicago and stated that be wa
to succeed to the office; it was mon oma
MIA with him. The counsel merely turned
him out and thought no more of the mat
ter. II Prendergast had then been seized
and examined by alienists Mr.. Harrison
might have been alive to-day.
There are as many different kinds o
insanity as there are kinds Of fever; but
as in the old days he faculty treated al
fevers by blood letting, so now almost al
madmen are dosed with bromide of potasl
and chloral hydrate. Yet it is evideD
that the cerebral disease which culminate
in homieidal attempt is very differen
FROM the disease which develops into mer
imbecility or incurable melancholy. VIVA
society needs is a radical reform in ou
methods with the Insane. There are mum
bers of persons in insane asylums VIII
ought to be at large. tenderly cared for b.