The daily Alaskan., 1907-08-01
THE HAYWOOD VERDICT

The jury st Boise has declared Hay wood to be innocent and, so far as this newspaper is concerned, that ends the matter. Most people who have followed the case, long before the verdict came from the jury had formed an opinion one wsy or the other. There was much .u the case that tended to arose class hatred. Labor and capital entered largely into the proceedings. The legal talent, ou both sides, was of a high order; everything that could be done both for and against the defendant was doue-moDey was not spared by either sida-everythlug was laid bare before the twelve men who said he should go free, they were at the theater of the great trial drama, they saw it all and their opinion has to stand, They were farmers, honest men-all of them were long past middle life and were not likely to be swayed by passion one way or the other, and, very likely, they were as good a jury as could be gotten any where.
 y- ora balfavss that Orchard acted alone. Be was prompted to do it. By whom? The world may never know. But that some one was connected with him admits Of no doubt-Jhe defense admitted it, but claimed that the crime was committed for private vengeance. This claim was later abandoned by them. The defense tried to show that the Pinkerton detective agency, under the tutelage of the Mine Owners Asso- citation, had employed Orchard to kill Steunsnberg, believing thssby such a crime so great 8 sentiment would be created that the death of the union would result. Very few people, how eyer, will take any stock in this con- tention. Steuuenberg, while be was governor of Idaho, with the possible exception of Governor Peabody, did more to destroy the union than any other cause. Can anyone believe that, after standing with them through the Occur d'Alene trouble, such 8 thing would be attempted by the MineOwn- ersY To is impossible. The jury has declared that Haywool was nos con nected with the affair. Common sense prohibits the acceptance of the conten- tion that the mine owners tnstigated it. Thus both lhe AItueowners and the Miners Union are eliminated from the case. There was one portion of the trial which has apparently been over IOozed but which appeals strongly to The Alaskan;
 Orchard was declared to be a man of diseased imagination, wish a mania for murder, posing as a great criminal and finding merit for himself in crimes tha, men of moral sanity abhOr. This Is not unlikely. From the behavior of Orch ard it is indeed most probable, His air has been thealric. He seems to have courted uotoriety from the whole pub lie by his confessions, as formerly he had courted fame and confidence among his hmlliars for his resiiness to under take desperate crime, and it seems pro- babe that Orchard, buoyed up by that melodramatic-cr spirit which seems to have for years possessed him, committed the murder to gracliy that craving for nOtoriety which his insane, diseased mind yearned for, but, be that as 1t may, It has been clearly establish ed that Orchard asssssinated poor Frank Steunenberg and, although those who were implicated with him may escape, 1t is the duty of society 10 st once take his life as a forfeit. The world is much the worse for Harry Orchards living in lJ,