The Portland daily press., 1900-09-20

of them was willing to admit that he
had a rational motive for turning
against his friend, such as the Inn munity
which Is usually promised to accom-
pllces who turn States evidence. They
must nave lied in denying any rational
motive for their treachery. Under the
law their testimony was insufficient, un-
less corroborated from other sources, and
each OF them was amply cOntradicte0 or
lmpeached by men Of infinitely higher
S tanding.
The Indictment charges that one of five
named men, or some other person to
the jurors unknown" killed GoebeI, and
tnat Powers (who was out of town at the
time OF the deed), Taylor, and five others
consp1red among themselves and with
the fVe first mentioned, and cOunse'ed
and procured the murder Of Goebel. All
this is highly improbable. While
GOEBEL'S EFFORTS
to grasp wrongfully the governorship, the
highest Office in tn state, might int1am
some foolish hothead to play the role of
the tyrannicide; while the son or some
klnsman OF OF John Il. Sanford, the man
murdered by Goebel in 1895, might take
advantage of the turmoil to hide his own
bloody revenge, there was no ground for
a conspiracy among leading Republicans
Tor removing this man by the assassin s
bullet, for his death could not benefit
| OhOAA3 huO WOu1U only COuuA4u Ju0 l1bkl5-
lature and the self-constituted Election
Board In their unholy purpose Of unseat-
Ing the officials chosen by the people.
What, then, was the motive which led
the packed grand jury at Frankfort, the
packed petty Jury at Georgetown, and
the politicians who stood behind them to
indict and to convict PowersY It's but
| the old maxim, odisse quem laederis
on hate him whom you have wronged.
The men deliberately robbed OF the posi-
| lions conferred on them by the choice OF
the people became to the robbers an OBJ
ject of the keenest hate and there was
also political necessity.
The men who had cheated Taylor and
| Powers out of their offices, and who had
upset free government In Kentucky,
needed the cry OF assassination to offset
the CRY for civil liberty OF their OppOn-
ents. Judge Cantrin instructed the jury
that If the prisoner had conspired with
any of the persons named in the indict
menS OF with anybody else, for the pur-
pose Of
TERROR OR INTIMIDATION
and one of his feIlow-conspirators had
in pursuance of the conspiracy killed
VIM. Goebel, then the prisoner was guilty
as an accessory to the murder, which
certainly is carrying the law Of conspir-
acy to most extravagant length. But
the purpose of terror and intimidation
was abandoned when the bulk of the
mountainesrs were taken back on the
very special train which had brought
them to Frankfort. Yet the jury are told
that If one Of them remaining in Frank
fort, or even If one Youtsey, named as a
possible principal, who had always lived
in Frankfort, should five days after the
demonstration of January 25th take it
into his head to shoot VIM. Goebel, then
Caleb Powers suddenly becomes a mnr-
derer Don't talk to me OF the definition
Of treason in the State Trials in Stuart
or Tudor times, If suoh is the law of MUIR
der in an American State in the year of
grace. nineteen hundred
But suppose Judge Cantrill in that
fearful instruction were right, what evil
dence was there that any one In the con.
spiracy for terror and intimidation
fired the shotg None whatever. During
the whole trial the attorneys for the
prosecution. SO far from proving who
fired it, never even gave their own opin.
lon as to the name of the actual murderer.
For aught that appeared in evidence, II
might have been young Sanford, aveng-
Ing his father in the grave, his widowed
mother and orphaned sister
IN THE MADHOUSE