The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-03-17
BURNING at H STAKE.
An Incident of civilization" Which
shames Decent Humanity.

To the Editor or the indianapolis Journal:
The burning alive of a negro, John Hen
derson, at Corsicana, Tex, yesterday, was
pronounced just by a person designated as
Justice Roberts," who held an inquest
over the unremaining remains. Many per-
sons, anxious to be grateful for humanity's
progress, have righteously implored heav-
ems blessing on the great and good French
physician who. some years ago. went
through the prisons of France and un-
shackled the insane. Before then, if a man
lost his mind, his fellow-creatures became
very indignant. They spoke bitterly of his
lack of consideration. and when hands had
been laid on him and iron held him fast
they vented their righteous wrath by tor
turing the heinous monster. They would
kick him in the ribs and jerk him violently
about, and when they were tired they
would throw him into a filthy prison to rot
out the remainder Of his wretched life. The
remarkable part of it all was that the in
considerable lunatic rarely recovered after
this course of treatment. Doubtless the
good French physician noted this fact,
which set him thinking. At any rate, those
who were anxious to be grateful forhuman.
ity's progress rejoiced much when 1t was
demonstrated that kindness was probably
more appropriate in dealing with the men,
tally afnicted-they being the sorest affiict-
ed of all mankind-than cruelty; tenderness
than torture; solicitude than solitary con-
finement. Asylums have been established;
psychiatry has been developed; it has be-
come a tolerably ~well-knOwn fact that the
irresponsible insane were probably not in
tended by their Creator TO be vivisected or
fricasseed. Many of the worlds citizens
who are so luckless as to lose their minds
are now tenderly, properly cared for. But
not all. Only in the last few years civilized
mankind has bounded out of the world one
of its most gifted and famous fellows.
Men like Fritsch, Broca, Lotze, Terrier,
Charcot, Luys and Ladd some time since
arrived at the indubitable conclusion that
when an individual became possessed OF a
frenzied mental exaltation he was a filter
subject for kind and sympathetic care than
perhaps any other sort of treatment. They
nave had reason to believe that a homo
cidal monomaniac is not a criminal. He is
not responsible. He didn't catch the dis
ease purposely. Nine chances In ten he
can't even pronounce it. He has a very
rapid and brief attack of an insane desire
to murder, without any real passion ana
against his own wiSheS-an attack that is
followed by depression and sorrow. His VIC
tim may be his enemy, his brother, his best
friend or the mere stranger. He does not
know why he kills or wishes to Kill. The
main cause of this terrible monomania is
civilization" L forget which.
Surely this Texas moi did not burn the
| negro for revenge. 1t must be idle to sup
pose that the idea of revenge still exists.
The object was, let us say, the prevention
or the suppression of crime. This man had
iendishly slaughtered a defenseless woman.
If they burned him at the stake, they ar
gued. other men would think twice before
they murdered for pastime. This is looking
at ii as leniently as possible, considering
these Texas men. Go tell the truth, in all
the length and breadth of perdition there is
rot a viler creature than the ignorant aEh
cruelty-besotted members of that Corsicana
mob; there Is not a deeper, blacker disgrace
to the fair name of humanity than their
barbarity of yesterday If / get the ty-
phoid fever should L be barbecued to warn
others not maliciously to contract the dis
ease? Such action would be just as logical
as that of these Texas vermin.
Il don't know why L did it, John Hen
| derson said. Neither did the humane. civil
lied Texans. They thought it would be
~salutary to roast him alive, and, what IS
more significant, they knew they would en-
joy the spectacle. Don't tell me that these
men did not obtain supreme happiness from
the sight of this poor fellow-creature writh-
Ing I'm the awfullest physical agony human
ingenuity could devise. Is it difficult to
imagine them eager for the very odOr of
burning flesh, lighting for the good view
points. all their sense alert that they might
miss no sight or sound?
And TO think that in a mob of four thou
| sand American citizens there was not a sin
gle man. Not one man TO harangue those
brutes with the b~itterest tongue-lashing
that ever sprang from indignant lips, TO en-
deavor to force on those microcephalouS
Texans a little reason and intelligence.
How are we to gain sufficient encourage
ment in our civiliZation-Veneering to cour-
teract backsets like burning at the stake?
What of our boosted public schools when
they have not taught one man i'm four thou
sand the absurdity of killing the insane as
a salutary measure? Four thousand civil
lied fiends burned a sick man at the stake
yesterday.
us civilization a failure?
Or is the Caucasian played out?"
ALBERT CHARLTON ANDREWS.
C0nnprSNille Ind March IL