The record-union., 1896-02-29
THE SHATTUCK CASE.
Severe Criticism of a San Francisco
Jury.
1t Is Held That the Treatment of This
Woman Has Been Travesty
on Justice.

The verdict of the jury in the Shat
tuck case has created such universal
comment that the subjoined criticism
an editorial headed The Strange Case
of Mrs. Shattuck" in the Wave" of
February 22d inst.-wilI be of interest:
Mrs. Shattuck, now at liberty by
grace of twelve duly qualified and high
ly unfit jurymen, is, viewed in her ordi-
nary aspect, a woman of most common
place type. Thrust into passing promi-
nence as the living exponent of a system
grievously and dangerously wrong, she
becomes interesting. Possibly, she feels
grateful that the Chill walls of San
Quentin are no longer her home, but she
seems to have no regret that her hands
are bloodstained. To her duh intelli-
gence the verdict of the jury setting her
free may have seemed the wiping out
of the stain. The treatment of this
woman has been a travesty. According
to the statutes, as interpreted for the
other sex, she should have been hanged
Judgment, tempered with mercy, would
have sent her to prison for life Mercy,
untempered by judgment, has turned
her loose, with tacit liberty to slay at
will.
'The case is familiar. Mrs Shattuck,
with the utmost deliberation, killed an
unarmed, defenseless and unsuspecting
man, whose presence in her house was
at her own solicitation Living with
Mrs Shattuck was ner daughter, a girl
of some beauty and no brains, singer in
a chorus, and striking figure in an ANA
zon march. Naturally enough, the girl
had admirers. Among these was Harry
Poole, a young man of neutral quality;
neither very good nor very bad At the
time of the murder he was the girls ia
vorite attendant. What the relations
of this pair had been, matters nothing,
as whatever they were, ii is certain that
Mrs. Shattuck was fully cognizant of
them; yet she made no protest-at least,
none strong enough to lead Poole to
think himself an unweicome guest in
the household, where ne was accepted.
virtually, as a member of the family.
Poole had, prospectively, a considerable
estate. From a material standpoint, he
was a desirable catch for the Shat
tucks. Possibly, his attentions seemed
to wane in fervor.
"One Sunday a note was sent to Poole
Ia note dictated by the mother and
written by the daughter. This note i'm
plored him to call. 1t was a bait Turing
him to death. That such was it's delib-
crate purpose there has never been the
slightest reason to doubt Coming in
answer to the summons. Poole was re-
ceived by Mrs. Shattuck. who demanded
that he marry her daughter at once
He indicated his willingness to do SO,
but explained that no license could be
procured that day. This seemed satis-
factory, and he went into the next room.
assisting the daughter about the home
ly duties of the kitchen. Mrs Shattuck
called him back, and, without further
exchange of words, shot him. He was
dead in an instant. He had been assas-
sinated as part of a malign and elabo-
rate plan. There was no shadow of pal
liation. If ever murder demanded JUS
tice of heaven, then a cry went up from
the place where Poole lay in his blood
"A plea of insanity was made, a plea
recognized by thinking men as being
generally at once an admission Of guilt
and a defiance of the law. What of
that? Experts viii swear that any
person accused of crime is crazy, if
this be the chosen method of escaping
punishment. At no time was there the
shadow of circumstantial evidence to
support the theory of 1unacy, and, so
Mrs. Shattuck was convicted of murder
in the second degree, and sent to prison
FOR twenty five years.
The ground on which a new trial was
had in the eye of the layman, would
have been insufficient, but it is not for
the layman to declare, There are those
who are to decide such matters, and on
their wisdom we must rely. and in
their probity have full confidence. 1t is