The leader., 1904-11-16
CRIME Of PER- JURY.
JUDGE C0CHRANS STRONG CHARGE
IN KEMPER.
All Good Citizens Should Report Law.
breakers.

all GOOD I!llzeAS mould kep0n Law
breakers.
The Black Crime Of Perjury the Ref
uee and Protection Of Other
Grimes.
The following ringing notes are
taken from Judge Cochran's
charge to the Kemper Grand Ju-
~, Nov. 7th:
1t is the imperative duty of
every law-abiding citizen who.
knows Of violations Of the law to-
90 before the grand jury and in
form against criminals without
waiting to be summoned. Grim
inals are endeayoring to over
throw civil government and re-
duce society to that state where
every man will have to defend his
own by brute force. If your
house is on fire, you will exert
yourself to extinguish the flames,
and you will call upon your neigh
Dor to assist you in your efforts.
Why, then, should any good man
hesitate to inform against crimi-,
nails who are endeaVoring to over
throw all security of home and to-
famiIys Every good man who
hesitates to report violations of
law to the grand jury of which he
has knowledge is listening to and
influenced by the suggestions of
the devil. The, devil naturally
does not want his agents disturb
ed, and he whispers into the ear
Of The man who claims to be a
good citizen that If he goes before
the grand jury and informs on
criminals that public sentiment
will class him as an informer.
Every good man and every pure
woman will endorse and applaud
the patriotic action of every citi-
zen who informs against criminals
before the grand jury, and if the
true men and women endorse
your action, why should you pay
any attention to the criticisms Of
the devils imps? If your moral
backbone is properly lined up,
you will esteem their criticism as
an honor. Unless you want to
wear the devils halter, 60 before
the grand jury and inform against
criminals, and do not wait to be
summoned. If, when a defendant
is being tried, you are asked why
you appeared before the grand ju-
ry, answer that your circuit Judge
requested you to do it in the in
terest of good citizenship and
public morality. If you make
that answer, your questioner will
get the hot end of the poker and
not trouble you with other ques-
=tions of a similar character.
i am advised that in nearly.
every section of your county,
crime is simply holding high car
niVal. Do you want it broken up
and the people saved from its raw
agesg IL so, this is the time of
your salvation. H you will give
this court your earnest, enthusiast
tic and patriotic cooperation, we
will sweep crime from your coun-
#ty, and turn the minds of the peo-
pie to higher and better life.
THE PERJURY EVIL.
] want to call your attention
specially to the crime of perjury
which is a felony and punishable
by Imprisonment in the State PEN
itentiary. The statute is a dead
letter for the simple reason that it
is not enforced. People criminal
iy inclined to not hesitate to ccm-
nit perjury because they know,
or have good reason to believe,
that they will never be punished
for their crime. When we CON
slider that, perhaps, when one.
criminal is convicted and punish
ed in this court, we breed dozen
perjurers, including the proceed
ings before the grand jury, we
begin to comprehend the misera-
bic farce of attempting to enforce
the law by creating more crlmi-
nails.
There is not blind tiger nor
q gambling hell, nor a den of vice
that can live through one term Of
this court, except BY the perjury
of their patrons. The devil does
not desire a more effective agency
to populate hell with The souls Of
human beings than blind tigers
and gambling bells. 1t is one of
the strange phenomena of the hu-
man mind and heart that will in
duce a man, after be buys a pint
of whisky from a blind tiger and
pays him fifty cents for it, and
when be owes the blind tiger no
duty or obligation, to permit the
blind tiger TO put a collar around
his neck, like he was a yellow
dog, and lead him in before the
grand jury and there have him
Vornit out his miserable perjury
in order to save the blind tiger
from punishment, when he ought
not to be regarded as any better
than a beast of prey IN a civilized
community.
The foe 10 society is the insid-
|ious foe To, and destroyer Of, all
that is good and true and valuable
/ TO society. He seeks to balk and
destroy all judicial inquiry after
1.-THE truth, on which the very fab
rio Of our society and institutions