Camas Prairie chronicle. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1901-1917, 1909-02-05

| in his case amounts practically to life,
and the refusal of the court to admit
him to bail, have placed him securely
behind prison bars, while his lawyers
still are seeking legal loopholes
through which their client may escape.
The cases of former Mayor Eugene
A. Schmitz of San Francisco and Abra-
ham Reuf, the wealthy and influential
political boss of the western city, are
fresh in the public mind by reason Of
the attempted assassination of Prose
cutor Heney, who has been the nemesis
Of the grafters of the western coast
Once Sohmltz and Reuf were sentenced
and actually served several months in
prison. Then they were released on a
technically, but the law is pursuing
them more vengefully now than ever;
and Ruef was at liberty when Heney
was shot only because of his ability to
furnish $1,500,0oO bail
The case of Harry K Thaw, who
killed Stanford white, is probably the
hardest contested in which the wealth
of the criminal played an important
part, in the annals of the country
But even in the Thaw case It is posi-
BILE that his wealth has been against
him. At any rate, had 1t not been for
the Thaw millions he would either have
been acquitted or convicted promptly,
without all the narrowing suspense,
and the expenditure of a million dol
lars, that has not even resulted In Civ
ing him his liberty. His wealth made.
1t possible for him to be branded as in
sane. 1t saved him from the electric
chair, but had he been very poor the
circumstances leading up to the crime
probably would have caused a jury to-
be merciful.
In this connection the human sym.
pathy which normal beings feel Is,
found more correctly the cause of
biased verdicts. In the case of men
who have occupied high and respected
positions in a community, the Judge
and the jury cannot help remembering
the mans former estate, similar to-
what they themselves are enjoying,
his wife and his children, If he has
them, and most such criminals have:
The put yourself in his place" idea Is
strong, and shrewd lawyers take pains
to develop It.
But sympathy BENEFITS the rich no
more than the poor, except as 1t may
be manufactured by money The case
Of Johann Hoch. the wife murderer,
and Billik, whose case has been In all
the courts of the country, although he
had no money, refutes the charge that
1t Is only the rich who can invoke all
the machinery Of the law IN their aid.
General Charles w. Russell, assist
ant attorney general of the United
States, declares that 1t isabsurd to cav
that wealth prevents prosecution, or,
in general, convictions. He refers to
the work of Bank Examiner Moxey.
who appeared as the principal witness
for the prosecution In the Morse trial
and who has the reputation of having
; sent thirty-three wealthy and so-callet8
respectable men to Jail. But money
helps General Russell admits
"The whole thing is analogous to the
care Of a sick poor man and a sick
rich man." he said in a recent inter
, view. "The rich invalid can hire the
best doctors; he can take all the time
that is necessary to get well; he can
avail himself of proper climate and
environment, and it's a matter of COM
mon sense that he stands better show
Of recovery than the other fellow. Just
so with poor criminals and rich Grim
inals. The rich ones chances for ac-
quittal are better because he can AFFORD
to fight longer. Chicago Recorder.
aid.