The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-07-01

s~tructive, and that constructive pres
ence L. made out when It is shown that
be acted with another in the pursuance
Of d common design. " A walt
ing and q Watching at q convenient dis
TANGO ID enough
It will be well for those who seek to
extol the murderer Of STANFORD WHITE,
or TO palliate the assassination, to ex-
anime carefully the statute law concern
ing murder, which 10 In the main the
embodiment Of the old common law.
And IL VIII be well to consider at the
outset tie question Of competent evil
dence In cases OF murder.
The idea that an Individual a with
safety bacome q public executioner and
assassthate those who commit any
~infraction OF morality, has never been
received with liberation by courts or
juries. A nan who would enter the
State prison at Ossining and shoot
down q convicted murderer in cold
blood would be indicted for murder in
the hrst degree and sent to the electric
chair, and no evidence rs to the bad
character OF the slain convict would be
admissible, The definition Of murder Is
not limited to the killing Of a moral or
good man. Murder In the first degree is
the killing Of any human being-whether
he be good, bad or indifferent-when
committed with deliberation and pre-
meditation. All the law requires is this,
that there should be some reflection and
como thought preceding the killing, even
though they be but instantaneous.
On the trial OF THAw for the murder
Of STANFORD WHITE the defence can
show any facts DR. acts connecting the
victim with THAw or THAw's wife, but
no evidence as to the life OF the muir
dered man disconnected with the THAws
and independent thereof a be given
or proved, or with decency or in the
proper conduct Of the case be brought
In any way TO the notice of the jury.
That Mr.. WHITE gave suppers to other
actresses, or In any way was at any time
attentive tothem, has no bearing what
soever on his murder by THAw, and any
attempt to prejudice a jury in favor OF
the murderer by such testimony would
be grossly improper.
Even the suggestion Of frightening
or blackmailing the friends Of Mr.. WHITE
in order TO turn the prosecuting officer
OF this county from his duty is mon
strous, and the miserable exhibit made
by the murderer in calling up ANTHONY
CoMsTook on the telephone tends to show
that an attempt may be made to excuse
the crime on the theory that Mr.. WHITE
sometimes gave suppers to women on the
stage and that his friends also paid at
tention to actresses and soubrettes.
Murder is murder, and it is nothing
else. No gayety or laxity OF life on the
part Of the murdered man or on the
part of his friends, disconnected in
every way with the murderer or the muir
derer's wife, can be brought into the
case or with deoency even be alluded to.
AL such alleged evidence is incompetent,
and no trial Judge familiar with the
criminal law will allow such testimony
to be logged into the case.
Even in a frontier town murder is ex-
cused only when the murderer finds his
victim in the arms Of the murderer's
wife. In no other instance is assassina-
ton permitted under the most primitive
code, and we know Of no community
we have never heard Of any community
where a husband familiar with his
wife's record can, with impunity, two
"a after his marriage. murder an
other man on the theory that his victim
was in earlier life and before the mar
rage too attentive to the woman in
nllastinn