The record-union., 1894-01-26

WHICH IDO case was tried, QlQ aS well dS
any counsel could have done. | deem it
proper to state these preliminaries In
answer to any claims that have hereto
lore been made on benalf of the accused.
Again, permit me to say that from my
Interview with you last night, | am salts
tied that you were misled as to my posi-
ton in this matter. You stated to me
that you were informed by Mr.. Cook.
counsel for McNulty, in response to your
inquiry as to why | did not take some
steps in the matter, til at | was unalter-
ably opposed to any communication or in
! reference upon your part III behalf of
AlcNulty, and also that you were in
formed TO the same effect by certain other
parties. Permit me 10 say in reply
thereto that | never SO stated TO Mr.. Cook,
or TO any one else that | now recollect OF.
My position in this matter all through has
been a persistent refusal on my part to
sign untruthful and garbled statements
III petitions which have been presented
to me for my signature, and also on the
| further ground that l have perslstently,
while in public positions, and almost in
variably refused To sign such petitions or
applications for executive clemency. The
only cases in which l have ever signed
any petitions or recommendations have
been those where l have been satisfied
that injustice has been done TO the parties
making the applications. | believe that
the indiscriminate signing Of petitions to
the executive OF the State, soliciting
pardons and combinations by persons
who know nothing about the facts in the
case, is pernicions and has tendency
to destroy the proper administration Of
justice, and thus believing, / have fol-
lowed out the course above indicated.
l have said to many persons who have
applied 10 me TO interfere in this matter,
and am confident that l made the same
statement to Mr.. Cook. defendants coun-
sci, that if your eXcellency desired ANY
information from me or my views OF the
matter, | was at all times ready TO eX-
press them. | nave no sympathy with
any sickly sentimentality, or the creation
OF public sentiment whose only object is
to defeat the administration OF the law,
thereby endangering the public welfare.
Such course OF proceedings has no
weight with me, and certainly does not
control my. action i'll this or any other
nattor.
With this brief statement l hope your
eXcellency Will believe that what L am
now about to state and ask OF you is not
the result of any pressure brought to bear
upon me; nor is it in view of any personal
advancement or benefit, or fear OF any
criticism that may How therefrom. AS l
have before stated, in my deliberate
Judgment, after giving this matter most
careful consideration for several years
last past, believe that the defendant was
fairly tried, anu that from the evidence
III the case he was guilty OF murder. In
deed, no tair-minded person, who will
take the record in this case and dispas-
sionately consider the same, can come to
any other conclusion. Therefore, the
only question now before your excel
lency is whether or not, under all the cir
cumstances of this case, the extreme PEN
atty Of the law should lie carried out.
l fully appreciate the gravity Of the
question that you are called upon to de-
termine. On the one hand is human
life. On the other are the execution of
the law, the public peace and the preser-
vation of human life; and from the con-
Versation l have had with you, am fully
convinced that you fully appreciate the
gravity of the action that you are about
to take in this matter. And now l urge
upon you in behalf Of the condemned a
Communication OF the sentence. briefly, in
addition TO my verbal communication to
you, on the following grounds:
During the course OF the trial, although
the defense was insanity. yet there was
testimony in the case tending to show,
and which undoubtedly was the fact, that
on the day previous the defendant re-
ceived at the hands of the Haskells a
severe beating, followed by serious in
say that the evidence failed to show that
he personally assisted in the infliction Of
these Injuries; yet the fact remains that
the accused Men ulty was injured. The
testimony also shows that during the af-
ternoon prior to the homicide McNulty
had been drinking to considerable excess.
There was testimony IN the case tending
to show that during the night following
this beating and preceding the homicide,
McNulty drank more or less into oxicating
liquor Now, at the trial, notwithstand
ing the plea of insanity, the thought sug-
gested itself to my mind whether or not
McNulty was in that condition of mind to
sedately premeditate and deliberate upon
the killing OF the deceased Collins. While
voluntary intoXication should not, and
under the law cannot be at all considered
as an excuse Tor the commission of a
crime, yet for the purposes OF ascertain
ing the intent and condition OF mind as
to whether or not the party is in that state
that he can deliberate and premeditate,
so as to warrant conviction,
the law permits the evidence of intoxi
cation to be submitted TO the jury
i'll that view, and in that view only, and
during the course of the trial, as | have
stated, that suggestion came into my
mind, and l charged the jury fully and
explicitly thereon. OF course, so far as
the presiding Judge at the trial was con-
cerned, this being merely thought, the
verdict OF the jury was conclusive on that
subject. Yet / must confess that that
thought has remained in my mind ever
since. 1t may be but thought. 1t may
be that the beating that Men ulty received
or from The effect of the Intoxicating
liquors used by him that the passion
which was aroused in him by either one
or both OF these causes continued and eX-
isted at the time of the homicide. This is
at least possible. 1t may be probable.
At all events it is suggestion which 1
make to your excellency and which j
pray you to duly weigh. In this connec-
tion permit me To say, as illustrating my
frame of mind at the conclusion OF the
trial and upon the rendering of the ver
dict, that / thereupon said to the counsel
for the defense that personally | should
have much preferred that the verdict had
been Imprisonment for life.
Again, let me suggest to your excel
lency that while fully indorse what you
have said aS to the ease with which sigma
lures to petitions can be obtained, that in
this case | lind not only large number
Of persons signing this petition, but
many of our most prominent and law
abiding citizens appealing TO your excel
lency in this case for clemency by letters
and personal appeals. Indeed, there
seems to be quite an extensive express
sion OF opinion among the people OF san
Francisco that your eXcellency should
grant this commutation. While many of
the persons thus making such appeals
may not be familiar and probably are
not familiar with the facts of the case, yet
| it seems TO me that when we find such a
large and respectable body of citizens
thus appealing for clemency, it is well to
duly consider the same; and il no injustice
will be done, if no barriers to the public
good and individual safety will be thrown
down, then certainly weight should be
given to such appeals. Indeed, as / am
informed, the Judges of our Supreme
Court, many of the Judges of the Su-
perior Court. the city and county officials