The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1907-06-13
MURDERER. ORCHARDS TESTIMONY

tary of the Interior.
MURDERER ORCHARDS TESTIMONY.
Many people will be shocked into in
credulity by Murderer Orchards cold
blooded testimony as to the industry
and lack of remorse with which he fol-
lowed his horrid trade Of assassination.
1t seems unbelievable to them that any
man could go about day after day cool
Iy taking away human life with as little
| compunction as a pig-sticker in the Chi
cago Stock Yards Stays his victims. His
| tory, however. tells us that such ma
lures are not at all unusual. We of
| this generation have seen a Capt. WirZ,
| aided and abetted, specifically ordered,
by Gen. John H. Winder and Jefferson
Davis. conduct a system which every
| day sent to their graves hundreds of
fully as good men as Orchard slew, and
accompanied this with cruelties incom-
parably worse than Orchard visited up
on his victims. There are men born SO
destitute of moral sense and sympathy
about taking human life, and Orchard
is one of them. Pobedonostzeff, the Pro-
curator of the Russian Holy Synod, and
Weyler. the Cuban butcher. were con-
spicuous examples of these. Where
mercy, sympathy and regard for human
| life are prominent in most minds was
an absolute blank in theirs. The way
that Orchard told his story shows this,
and it adds much to the likelihood of
its truth. If he had boosted of his
crimes; if there had been the slightest
show of pride and exaltation in what
he had done. We could readily imagine
him one of that other common type of
criminals who when at last discovered
viii exagserate his wrong-doing and
seek to make himself a phenomenal
criminal. This is because vanity is a
| common trait among criminals and they
are usually boastful liars Nothing of
this kind showed itself in Orchards tes-
timony. He went along telling his story
in the same calm, emotionless way that
bricklayer would tell of the work he
had done. the walls he had run up and
the arches he had turned. 1t was moth
ing TO be especially proud of. but simply
bald. bare statement of how he had
story was singularly straightforward
and clear. and he came out of severe
jcross-examination surprisingly well. In
fact. he came out of it. to return TO our
smile on the bricklayer, precisely as
that mason would have done after being
severely catechised as to the story of his
daily employment.
The strongest confirmation comes,
however. from the fact that all the men
that Orchard said he killed are dead,
and We know were killed in very much
! the way that Orchard says he killed
them. His plain. straightforward state
ment conceded remarkably with the
facts that everyone knows. There are
no mysteries, no concealments, no
sleuth work. connected with them. 1t
is almost beyond n doubt that he did
precisely as he says he did
All that there is left, then, is as to
the motive of the crimes. Who prompt
commit them? This is the center of
the whole fight. A man SO -bIooded
and passionless as Orchard would not
have committed the crimes of his own
volition. bccause there is absolutely no
reason shown why he should do SO.
There must have been strong prompt
| ings and large payments of money from
n
question. The State of Idaho claims
tfa: the officers of the Western Miners
Association were the instigators. and the
presumption is very strong against
them. as the death of Orchards victims
contributed to the furtheraace Of their
plans ]; was their policy TO bring about
reign OF terror by the murder of those
who stood IN their way. The State has
the great advantage of having all these
| prescriptions in favor OF its case. OF
course. the defense claims that the OIL
GERS OF the Western Miners Association
| were innocent of any completely and
/ had 40 connection whatever with Or
chard What further the defense may
have remains to be developed in the
lcOurSc OF the trlGl, Dut IL Is so Tar SnOWr
that they viii claim t:lat Orchard is a
paid liar: that it can be shown that he
boasied Of crimes which he did no.
commit. and that he was employed by
the other side to create public senti
ment against the Association by shock.
ing crimes that could be laid at theil
door. 1t will be uphill work for III;
defense TO make this view prevail, bu
We can say, on the other hand, tina
men who have been capable of com
passing such fragrant crimes will b.
equally capable of other fiagitious of
lenses to pervert the course of justic,
and escape punishment. 1t looks as il
, jury of high character has been Sc
cured. The Judge is also a man of rec
ognized fairness and ability, and thu
people who are closely watching thu
proceedings will strenuously insist upoI
fair trial and bringing out the whole
truth and nothing but the truth.