The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1910-08-24

closed the presence of the perverted lndiviouai
who, in respectable neighborhood in great
city, was engaged in watching the people pass
the point he had selected on the highway, as
hunter might lie in wait along deer tran.
Surrounded by civilization, in elbow touch with
the ordinary Sunday crowds making tor the
Park, these people were struck by bullets which
came out of the void with not even so much to
indicate their origin as in the case OF bolt OF
lightning.
For hours fashionable club in the neigh.
borhood was held in a panic, policemen were
stationed in the danger zone to warn away ped
estrians, and on the wall of the park and on the
pavement were found the marks of scores OF
bullets. indicating that the hidden and silent
marksman had many more misses than hits TO
his credit. Although the investigation showed
that the shooting had been going on for several
days and had been INDUCED in at all hours
from A. NJ until late in the afternoon, there
was absolutely no clue to the perpetrator ana
apparently no way of reasonably hoping to dis
cover him.
Undoubtedly, this dramatic incident IN the
life of great city was made possible by the use
of the Maxim .'silencer'' for firearms. When this
invention was perfected year or so ago, the
world was quick to see Its possibilities as means
of assassination as well as in the conduct OF war
fare Smokeless powder and high power
rifles had already gone far toward making life
unsafe against any marksman murderer. / he
silenccr removed the one danger of detection,
the sound of the discharge as a betrayal OF the
criminal. If it were possible for one to deal
noscless death from window or root, the last
safeguard Of the law against the secret assassin
would be destroyed. So that in recognition OF
the harmful personalities of the invention
practically every European government prompt
up put the ban upon its sale, Only IN the limited
States, characteristically careless of human lite
was it possible for the private individual to e
into the market and openly purchase the most
modern facility for murder.
/ Strangely enough. the common fear and the
numerous hctional predictions have, up TO the
Central Park episode lacked confirmation in
experience This was in part due to the high
stand taken by the manufacturers in refusing tc
place their invention on pistols and in part tc
the lack of general information concerning the
invention itself which is sold in the main t.
armies The mysterious marksman of New \ orl
has, however given practical demonstration o.
vital danger 10 doubt he is insane but fol
all that ne Is hghiy suggestive 10 the cflmlha
and the anarchist More, than that, the wide
publicity given the incident will suggest a mean
TO many in whom is the mischievous germ O
that peculiar madness which glories III doing
secret hurt. Nothing is better known to psychol
, ogy than the sort of maniacal egotism tina
prompts the doing of thing which will Prov
| a mystery to all except the perpetrator of th'
deed. If some action is not speedily taken, it i
we'll within the possibilities that criminal ant
insane cunning will out of the Maxim silence
construct a reign of terror which shall compet
with the horror of the always pending death tina
distinguished the reign of the Borgias.