Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1897-05-06
QUIZ NEW YORK LETTER.
Me- icine snL the Law DIR. Flint on Ed
ucation and Crime The GRAPHIC
phone hot a Witness.
Especial Correspondence

The abIiiy and sincerity Of Dr. Aus
tin Flint have never been questioned,
but he has peculiar ideas sometimes,
and being an outspoken man he does
not hesitate TO air them, without any
reference To the manner in which they
may be received by the community. He
recently spoke before the Quill club at
the Windsor hotel on the subject Of cap
ital punishment. Among other things
the eminent doctor said:
"The physician should never counte-
nance a judicial murder, for it is a
murder 10 take human life"
The exact subject under discussion
was "Disease and Crime. DIR. Flint,
who is a member of the executive COM
mittee of the Prison association, treat
ed the subject from "a medical stand
point, and Charlton Il. Lewis, president
of the association, talked of the legal
aspect of it.
Medical Adviser and Judge.
DIR. Flint said that law and legal acu-
men in our courts have been busy look
ing for precedents TO justify the most
glaring offenses, and so criminal law
has not made progress. 1--WE shall new
er have thoroughly intelligent dag
nosis of criminal from the bench, he
declared, until we have seated with
the judge a medical adviser, who shall
bring to bear his wisdom and methods
upon the case. +"
This was all right, for while every
one does not agree with the doctor in
these views there is unquestionably
very large section of the community
which is in thorough sympathy with
him. But when he enunciated the the
DRY that the prevention of crime, or at
any rate its decrease, could be accom-
plished by withholding from children
of the poor an education III the higher
branches he started hornets nest
which is apt to cause a very lively buzz
ing in his ears for long time to come.
His idea is that if these youngsters are
we'll educated they will have ambitions
inculcated which are unlikely of attain
ment, and that they are likely eventu-
ally to drift into crime as means OF
gratifying the tastes for luxury which
their natural abilities are unable to pro-
vide.
The Great Of Humble Origin.
One we'll known student of the sub
ject delivered himself very forcibly on
the matter. He said: "If DIR. Flint be
correct, then the whole theory of our
public schools is wrong Even the gen.
ius of our republican form of govern
ment is inherently incorrect As | have
understood it, the desire is that each
generation should on the average be su
perior mentally to its predecessor. This
can only be accomplished through the
medium of education. That is the diff
ference between civilization and barba-
rism. If we were satisfied to stand still,
DR.. Flint's theory would be all right,
but it is history that we are a race Of go
ahead people Furthermore. some Of the
greatest benefactors of the human race
have sprung from humble sources
Where, under DIR. Flint's plan, would
have been Andrew jackson, Abraham
Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, Andrew
Johnson, Thomas A. Edison, George
Westinghouse and host of others who
might easily be mentioned? No, DR..
Flint is simply airing one of his pet
hobbies, which is as wrong as anything
that could be imagined, as he will soon
find out when the people of New York
have had the opportunity to make them
selves heard. f"
The Graphophone Not a Witness.
The graphophone has been held to be
not competent witness-at least not
in Justice Truax's court. An attempt to
introduce it was summarily squelched by
the justice in special term of the su-
preme court recently. The case on trial
when the ruling was made was that Of
Sauer against the New York Central
railroad.
Mr.. Sauer is a member of the Park
Avenue Property Owners association,
which comprises 90 per cent of the own
ers of property on that avenue between
One Hundred and Sixteenth street and
the Harlem river His suit is q test case
involving about 60 more suits He
claims damages from the railroad COM
pany on the allegation that his proper
ty has deprecated in value by reason of
the construction Of elevated tracks from
One Hundred and Sixteenth street to
Harlem river, which shut out light and
air and produce an unbearable noise
Unknown to the officials of the COM
pany the property owners of Park ave-
nue. had number of graphophone re-
ceivers erected at various points along
upper Park avenue. The receivers were
planted at the One Hundred and TWEEN
ty fifth street station upon the avenue
and in the houses owned by the assooia-
ton
Ordered Out Of Court.
Before the case was called the graph
ophones were tested in the offices Of
James @. Busbey counsel for Mr. Sau-
Ell, and were found to give very faith
full reproduction Of the noises made by
the trains
The graphophone apparatus was fit
ted with a megaphone or wide mouthed
trumpet and the noise it made was
deafening
The 9raphophones were in court when
the case was called for trial So were
Electrician Goudge and several other
experts who were to testify that the