The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-07-05

Cotten, 1t could be supposable that the
detectives obeying 10 auto or self-sugSes-
ton reconstructed in their mind the scene
or the murder, came 70 the belief that
what they imagined was really true and
suggested themselves the confession to
the accused while forcing him to re-
hearse time and again the various phases
of the crime. Indeed, and one not pos
sessing strong Will power would be apt
10 admit almost anything under similar
circumstances. There are striking exam
pies of confessions of that kind which
were discredited later on by facts.
Laurent cites a mysterious case of a IL
year-old girl belonging to the Reformed
confession, who disappeared in the pom
titical states. Nineteen Jewish families
resided IN the town where she lived. The
report soon spread that in order to obtain
her blood to mix with the unleaVened
bread the Jews had killed her.
She had disappeared just before Easter
A cadaver was discovered in the river
and recognized by certain persons as the
body of the girl The mother of the girl,
however, was incredulous and would not
recognize her daughter, Thirteen Jews
were arrested on account of the state
ment of the son of the sexton, a boy Is
years of age. After being questioned at
length by the prosecutor the boy made
confessions:
He had heard a cry: he went out and
| looked through the keyhole of the lock of
| the temple; he saw the girl stretched up
| on the ground; three men held her, while
the butcher bled her by the throat and
| collected the blood in two bowls"
In court the boy persisted in these con-
LESSONS. The presence of his father with
| twelve other Jews who were threatened.
and the ardent applications that he should
| tell the truth, were of no avail. He re-
peated the statements, which proved to
! be false later on.
Bernheim's explanation is that the pros
| ecutor, by questioning the boy, suggested
| the matter to him. His imagination was
| struck with terror; the scene was called
J % hal MT inn
| took possession of him, and he fancied all
| the incidents in the scene which the pros
| ecutor had mentioned. 1t was just as one
can do eXperimentally in profound sleep;
| the hallucinatIon is created; the remem-
| brance Of the fictitious vision IS so vivid
| that the subject cannot escape from IL. In
| reference to this 1t is well known that GER
| tain subjects show disposition to obey
/ suggestions while awake. Some may sug-
/ gest that the boy told a deliberate lie, but
/ what could be said of another case re-
| ported by Liegeois? woman, being ac-
/ cused of infanticide, at first denied, but
/ on being further questioned by the police
/ authorities and asked whether she had
1 not placed the child where the pigs were
| kept, after much hesitation, admitted it,
/ The midwife had already been asked the
/ same question, and she had confessed
| She renewed the same confession before
| the prosecutor and the court. II took
| the child" she said, II opened the door
/ of the place where the pigs were; I threw
| it in; l don't believe that it cried; did
| not see it move" When the woman was
| taken to prison it became known that
| she was soon to be a mother.
This showed that the crime of which she
| was accused, and convicted, was impos-
| sible. On being questioned further, she
said that her parents and the midwife
had pressed her to make the confession;
| that they frightened her with the pros
| poet of severer condemnation II she
| did not confess. Laurent, distinguished
| authority on hypnotism, while admitting
| that the woman was vividly impressed.
| does not believe that II was matter of
| persuasion by force, If she knew that she
had not committed the crime. 1t is not
| impossible, however that suggestion and
| persuasion cooperate.
| The sweat box" no matter what can
be said in its defense, is apt to produce
| lots OF mischief. The public at large is not
aware of this. simply because no attention
! Is paid to the matter. Detectives and ac-
! cused alike keep silent on the subject.
and, therefore. but little information is
| obtainable. With close attention. how
ever 1t would be possible to place on rec
| ord many interesting instances of So
| called confessions, which proved after
! awhile utterly groundless. No later than
| two weeks ago st. Louis man had a mar
| now escape on account of the "sweet
| box" process. This man married a widow
| with four daughters, ranging from 70 TO
| II years in age. The girls had no partic-
ular love for their step-father, and it was
/ not long before family quarrels began.
| Dame Rumor had II that the woman was
| jealous Of her daughters, and the police
| started an investigation. The accusation
was very strong, and two detectives nut
| the four girls in the sweat box. After
much questioning and threatening they
! admitted their intimacy with the step-
! father. The last one was arrested. but
| at the trial the accusers refused TO an
/ pear, stating that the confession had heen
obtained from them by force The fudge
! dismissed the case for want of prosecu-
| ton, and nothing has been heard of it
| since.
1t is useless to comment on the subject
! The above facts, nevertheless, are conclu-
| sive, and demonstrate that a self-confes-
| sion secured under certain conditions is
to be considered with suspicion.
| Tcad Tads aud = f,15