The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-09-21
ANOTHER MOVE IS
MADE FOR PATRICK
Doctors Sign a Petition to the
Governor
WANT COMMISSION NAMED
Governor Higgins, However, Says He
Is Without Authority to Act, But
Wants the Case Carefully
Examined.

Albany. N. Y, September 20.-Nearly
$500 physicians of the state. representing
551 cities and towns, and including some of
the best known in the profession, are sign
ers of petition presented to Governor
Higgins today in behalf of Albert T. Pat
rick. the lawyer convicted and under SEN
tence of death since 1901 for the murder of
the aged Texas millionaire. William Marsh
Rice. in September, 1900,
The petition reads as follows:
I'VE. the undersigned physicians Of New
York state have read the medical testi-
mony presented on motion of new trial
to Recorder Golf in the case of Albert T.
Patrick charged with the murder of Will
liam Marsh Rice.
THE conclusions of the experts who tes-
titled on the motion are quite at variance
and the questions are novel, as we'll as
grave and important to the members of
society, especially to the defendant and
therefore should be justly solved. To this
end we petition your excellency to appoint
a commission, composed of disinterested
experts selected from the medical profess
sion to examine impartially into the aues-
lions at Issue and report their findings at
as an early date as possible and thus
avoid the possibility OF mistake in the case
of Patrick as well as to get the final and
just solution of the question
Effect of chIoroform On Lungs.
The main medical question involved,
vital in the conviction of Patrick, is
whether the congestion of the lungs, al
legged to have been found in the autopsy
on Rce's body said to have been caused
by embalming fluid or must have been the
result of chloroform with which Jones,
Rice's valet, in one of his several CONTRA
dictory confessions, said he had killed the
old man by Patrick's direction.
The petition was presented by f. o.
Logan, a prominent Chicago business
man who is a partner of John T. MILF
ken, whose wife is Patriok's sister; Ly-
man C. Smith of Syracuse and Samuel
b. Thomas of New York, of counsel for
Patrick
Mr. Thomas said the reuest for sig
natures had not been sent to the physi-
clans of the state until the second week
in July and up to date nearly 5000 have
returned their signatures and more are
coming In every mail. Only four physi-
Clans Mr.. Thomas says, and one of them
was Indirectly connected with the case
had returned the petition with refusal
to sign. With the petition was filed about
$50 letters from prominent physicians,
several of them addressed TO the CAV
ernnor and sent through Mr.. Thomas,
reinforcing the formal petition
A marked feature of these letters was
the contempt expressed by many of the
writer's for expert testimony" rendered
for pay by one side or the other In GRIM
inal cases.
Governor Higgins received Messrs.
Logan and Thomas and later explained
the nature of the application, saying:
Knows Of No Authority.
"I told those gentlemen I knew of no
authority vested in me by which l could
appoint me commission for which they
asked. nor of any jurisdiction on my
part over he case in the absence of a
definite application for a pardon or ex-
ecutive clemency. They are to file with
me references to the law upon which
they rely In asking for this medical COM
mission, and intl,nated that they night
make application for a pardon or other
form of clemency In case of the failure
of the pending application for admis-
sion of the case to the United States SUI
preme court
This is case OF very great import
ance, involving issues beyond the sim
pie question of one mans lift and must
have the various legal aspects of 1t care
fully examined before I can tell what II
Is my power and my duty"