The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-01-25
BELIEVES MURDER
Is A SCIENCE
Astonishing Statements Made
by Public Prosecutor
OBJECTS TO PUNISH MENT
Declares Light Fine Enough
for Convicted MurdererS.
OBJECTS TO PUNISH MENT

World says:
/ "A wave Of poisoning is sweeping owe
the country. How and where it will sto
80 man can foretell. You may find
direct incentive for this in our lax judicia
system. In all the criminal history @
this city there is 10 record of singh
! conviction by circumstan,ial evidence d,
| second trial. Here you have the rea
son for the deduction of murder 10 ,
science.
Therefore l have come to the belle
that capital punishment should be abol
ished. No matter how brutal the mur
der-no matter how it may have bee,
Accomplished believe that the crimina
should be tried, convicted fined $40 ane
allowed TO 60"
This astounding statement fell from tn.
ilps OF Assistant District-Attorney Jane.
W. Osborne, the man VINO tried Rola M
Moiineux for the murder of Mrs. Adams
1t was fine bit of sarcasm. 1t wa,
a protest against existing conditions. Hs
paced the floor angrily.
In face of the damming court records u
he resumed. why should not murder by
poison become science There have been
at last fifty cases of mysterious poisoning
Ill this country within the past fou.
years
Many times arsenic in candy has been
sent through the mails Paris greer. ground
glass. cyanide of potassium. mercury
heliebore, morphine, opium and henbane
ary.ia
mination innumerable times ranked bv
government postage stamp.
Why is this? Let me tell you. In all
cases of capital punishment in this state
the persons convicted are those who
ought not to have been
Murders by revolver or knife or lead
ell bludgeon or the axe wrought in a
moment of frenzy-off to the death chair
with the criminal.
Murderers by poison-the most sneak
ing and dastardly of all murderers-are
practically shielded by the very laws and
sentiments which should hang them as
high as Hannah.
The poisoner knows this. He knows
that the man who uses deadly drugs as
means of murder has fine chance of
getting off on techncality, and that
the more insiduous the crime the less
the chance of conviction This is true.
because in nine poison cases out of ten.
the evidence, however conclusive, is pure
ly circumstantial'
Then you believe, Mr.. Osborne, that
the more certain the discovery of a MUIR
der by direct evidence the less chance
there will be of the commission of the
murder
true Take the temptations that come to
a man who wants to commit murder He
reads about mysterious poisoning case
He is already on the stocks. so to speak,
just as hundreds of others are, at this
very minute.
He reads of the alleged prisoners ar
rest. Then what happens? The friends of
all criminals are active and malignant.
The friends of justice are passive and
critical.
The criminal is tried on circumstantisI
evidence, which may be as conclusive as
the sun in heaven. but there are legal
te chnicalities III the. way The public
prosecutor has nothing to work on but
the invisible trend of the prisoners mind.
Let us suppose. however. that he is
During that long intermin that
must elapse before second trial his
friends are active. The righteous indigna-
lion of the public has cooled. Some wit
nesses fly. Others reverse their testi-
nony. Still others are bribed and perjure
themselves.
Whenever you put man in the aw-
'ul position of fighting death in any form
7ou make him heroic. Sitting day by day,
,heek by jowl with death, dignifies
nan. The public begins TO cry out that
lie is a hero. The public always takes
he side of the prisoner, and this is
cry injurious TO the cause of justice"
do you believe. Mr.. Osborne. that this |
entimental attitude on the part of the |
'ublic has any real effect upon the minds |
# would-be murderers?" l asked.
Il do so believe. he replied land / /
'elieve, as l remarked before that this /
fleet is responsible for the present poison |
wave sweeping over the country. Just |
ook at the awful effect of the Moli- |
eux case, / received hundreds of let
ers from ali over the country accusing
ne of unprofessional conduct. The press
naligned me.
why. one newspaper went so far as
o call the young prisoner a young god.
'hink of il, Take a District-Attorney
Fho, against his friends and the pros
ects of advancement. prosecutes to the
litter end a wealthy man accused of
rhine. You know what the temptation
'ould be. He has every reason 70 relax
4 the performance of mis- duty. What
oes he see? The man accused Of MUIR
er called a hero and he himself dubbed
criminal. He is sneered at scoffed at 1
nd villiied. 1t takes a mighty strong
haracter TO stand it
In dealing with jury you are not
ealing with psychologists. They are only
uman- Unfortunately. however. they
o not represent law and justice, but the
verage public sentiment.
The man contemplating murder by
olson understands all this What does
c do them He begins to plan He con-
,mpiates the most encouraging precc-
snts. He ses the mistakes of the muir
erer whom he would emulate and then
themes to avoid them
He spends weeks and months in study.
Ie goes to various places to cover his
-acks.
NO man viii poison another because
e can first confidently say 70 himself.
30 man or earth can catch me or trace
he murder TO me Even II arrested the
1blic prosecutor viii have 90 convict ne
y proving mental state and this the
abIic and the newspapers viii not a.
w"
What horrible encouragement this is
crime
Il tell you that public sentiment is re-
,onsible for more murders than human