The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1909-03-25
The Cooper Verdict.
Some Press Opinions in Which
Satisfaction is Expressed at
Finding of the Jury Should
Have Been First Degree
Murder Say Many While
Regarding Verdict as Vim
dication of the Law.

Negardlng VeIolCt DIS VIII
dication of the Law.
| Petersburg IndexAppeai
| On the whole, it seems to Us that
the verdict is very just one. The
public will agree with Judge Hart
| that no editorial abuse can justify
the killing of a man. At the same
time. Senator Carmack cannot be
held blameless for using his position
as editor to assail and Willy those
who did not agree with him on pub
lie questions. The Jury in the case OF
the Coopers seems to have exercised a
discrimination in making allowance
| for the resentment and heat OF pas
sion in men who had been subjected
| to fierce and relentless editorial crlti-
cism, against which all warning had
been unavailing. Anything less then
the sentence imposed would have been
a miscarriage of justice. A death
sentence would reasonably have been
] construed as an approval OF Car
mack's use of his editorial column to
make life miserable for big enemies.
| Charlotte Observer.
The verdict in the case Of the Coop
ers is the cause OF more surprise than
| if it had been one Of acquittal, not
because of doubt OF the guilt OF the
defendants, but because of the dispo-
| sition in many parts OF the country
| to excuse the taking of human life III
a quarrel growing out OF politics.
Colonel Cooper and Mr.. Carmack were
| political enemies, and they had said
many bitter things of each other.
The entire State of Tennessee under
| stood that they were enemies. and
when the tragedy occurred the feeling
was that the expected had happened
| that is, that their quarrel had result
| ed in blOodshpd. 1t is to the honor
| and credit of the twelve men who
| composed the iury-men who un-
doubtedly had lived all their lives in
an atmosphere of liberation Of crimes
| of the sort OF which the COopers have
been cOnvicted-had the courage to
| disregard the excuse for such crimes
| and to follow the letter to the law.
| Atlanta Journal.
The law has been indicated, and
the rights of the press have been sus-
tanned, whatever may be the final
fate of the COopers i We believe
the verdict will meet the approval of
of the general public, who have fol-
lowed the testimony with an unusual
| degree of interest. The result of this
trial will be to throw ADDITIONAL safe
guards around human life, not mere
| ly in Tennessee, where the crime was
committed, but throughout the coun-
try. 1t sustains the rights Of a news
paper to exercise it's legitimate func-
tions of criticism where public men
are concerned, and holds that such
editorial criticism cannot be made
the excuse for malicious retaliation.
The rumor ran, at the time the
| Jury was selected, that nine of the
twelve members we're partisans Of
the faction which was opposed to
Carmack, politically, and this charge
has never been denied. 1t is said,
moreover that the cause of the de-
lay in reaching verdict was because
OF the fact that eleven of the iurymen
were in favor of finding a verdict OF
guilty in the first degree
even at that the punishment suffi-
GENTLY vindicates the rights of news
| paper editor to make legitimate crit
icsm OF public men without subject
ing himself to the danger of being
shot down with impnnity by the men
who fancy that they have a grievance.
Monroe Journal.
The prominence of the defendants,
the apparent low average intelligence
OF the jury, the Discrimination to pun
ish crime, and the ever plausible plea
Of self defense all apparently COM
bined in this case to Indicate that
the verdict would either be an ac-
| quittal or a mistrial. = i Pub
lie sentiment is such that a man
of Col. Cooper's standing cannot be
condemned to a death penalty for
the killing of a personal enemy on
the street. And while he and his son
may have been guilty, technically, of
murder or nothing, a compromise
verdict is about all that any set of
men could agree to give if any senti-
ment at all existed for a harsher one.
II we are not mistaken, the second
| degree offence was put in our laws of
late years for the very reason that
the die might not in such cases be
cast upon the single issue of death of
| freedom.
Washington Herald
| The verdict was eminently gener-
Gus and merciful to the defendants.
They had no real right to expect SO
much in righteousness and honest
clv1c decency, as we view their case
in its entirety.
VI the two men, we have felt a
spark of sympathy for the younger
alone. While he did the actual shoot
lng we believe he was impelled to it
more through the influence of his
father than through the promptings
OF naturally abandoned, malignant
| and vicious nature. We doubt that
he had within him any large measure
OF that quality of malice necessarily
incidental to murder in the highest
degree. Of the other man we enter
tain precisely the contrary idea. So.
while Robin Cooper may be getting
an equitable sentence. his father is
surely escaping lightly, all things
considered.
| Charlotte Chronicle
| Contrary to expectation. the trial
OF the Coopers for the murder of ex-
Senator E. W. Carmack was not
altogether fash in the pan. The
counsel for the Coopers had much to
play on in the plea of selfdefence, but
it appears not to have counted with