The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1901-02-25
THE INCREASE OF CRIME.

Murders and Suicides Have More Than
Kept Up With Country's Population.
Now York World
Death by violence keeps it's place in the
mortality rec ords Of the United states. and
the last yenr Of the Nineteenth century
shows an increase in murders. ynchlngs
suicides and legal executions nor all nc.
countablc for -in--the Increase OF popula
ton. o1n
Tho inhabitants have increased nearly
onc-tftb in ten years. or 20 pcr cent.
In the same time murders have Increased
by one fourth of - per cent. and suicides
- per cent.
OF course there is constant 1uctuation
In crime which has nothing to do with
population. Financial causes, panic dull
moss OF trade md epidemic III health are
all causes Of wickcdnCss.
Last year G7d1 persons took their own
lives. and the year before only $40 com
mttcd suicide, Comparison with other
NHnrs SHOWS mat more women killed them
selves than ever before. Before this the
proportion was tive TO ono in favor of mcl
Professional men lose their moral cour
agc hrst. Six clcrgymcn, six lawyers. four
Journalists, seven bankers, two actors, one
artist and three college professors lost
their self control SO far ms To XIII them
selves to escape trouble.
Dependency is always the chief cause
of suicide, both among the poor AMI tx
norant and the better educated: lack Of
courage, faith In themselves and fear OF
tho luture
The reasons as given are as follows:
pcsponuehcN 's'.. ...........-..... y, Ia
n,nknoWh ''''.'. '....'.','..'...''.2 ~ 81
iusahltS '''''''.'''. ''''..-'....''' aoI
,,iquor ,.'.''. '''''.s...'..' ~
nom msae ipfeic,ty' '......''...'.., Sts
Disappointed love ............. l55
Business losses .................. "a
In these cases poison remains the most
It, 1887 10y shooting. 40 by hanging, a53 by
drowning, l0d by cutting their throats, -
by Jumping from roofs or windows, q
ROY TSn 3 IN sHS6nf bT 81 fp
themselves on hre. : by the use of dyna
mite, = by starvation. | ny freezing and I
This Ingenious method is more troublesome
for beholdcrs than for the suicide himself
This number of suicides allows twenty
eight for each day in tho year and few
There has boon ono-tenth per cent in,
crease In tho number of legal hangings
since 1890, the proportion Of population 70,
manning the same; onc-tenth' per cent de
crease in lynch!ngS since the same date.
but one-tcnth Increase In the same violent
punishment between 1899 and 1900
Lynchlug shows 1oI eases In the South
tall of colured people, against eight tall
whitel in the North Eighty persons were
legally hanged In the South thlrty'nlnc in
the North
one lynchlng and one hanging every
three days Is certainly generous allow,
ance even for country OF $4,000, 900 per.
sons. Race hatred Us the cansc Of many
crimes and their punishment In defiance OF
the law Thus ten persons were killed Tor
no other cause than race prejudice In the
South last year.
The crimes against property Involve mil
lions of dollars. In issS was the smallest
loss hv bank wrecklnE. $29oo.00O and In
1894 the largest, S25.a3i,li2 Thus II is
not the increase in population or In ma.
tcrial wealth which Is responsible for this
addition To crimes against property.
The largest thleving is done by hank ot.
"details. the second largest by public ser
wants: the smallest by postmastcrS The
amount stolen during the last year OF the
century was Si,W0,l3+. taken In the tol
lowing ways:
Stolen by public officials ........Sl ,sa2, CTS
From banks Observation-Disclosures. l,S3I,l6l
liv agents Observation-Disclosures. .tl,aie
forgeries 500. ....,....s...... llbfW
From loan associations ......,,. 10, ~
BY postmastcrs ,.-..........,... ii-s
Miscellaneous stealing ...s...-., 'fu'sN
One crime usually starts an epidemic OF
the same. One large bank robbery last
year was followed almost Immediately by
Two others.
The kidnapping Of Marion Clark was fol
lowed by several others OF the same sort
and the Cudahy how was again the nrst
in series Of attempts at child stealing.