The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-01-30
HUMAN LIFE IS
HELD TOO CHEAP
Former ambassador Andrew D..
White Gives Out Strong, Sen
satiOnal Statement.
UNITED STATES LEADS
IN EXTENT OF MURDER
Finds Chief Cause i'm Fact That
Law Offers LOophOleS for
the Slayer.
BY Leased Wire to The Tribune.

and women in the United states VIII
have been murdered. But for the NAL
administration of the criminal law III
The United States they would have es-
capped"
This strong statement was by An
drew D. White, statesman and educator.
former ambassador 10 Germany and
former president of Cornell university,
III remarkable interview today.
Continuing Mr.. White said:
"The generation now passing away
rrsppled with slavery and its prob
lens; this generation should grapplc
with the evils that now bcsct us. and
above all with incbriety, crime and cor
T7lptiou. The astonishing number OF
homicides in the United States and the
breaking of the criminal law makes tho
problem OF crime not the least i'm
portant.
.'Human life is so cheap in the
United States that men and women may
be murdered almost with impunIty.
There are men in the city of New ork
today whose title to admiration is that
they have killed a fellow man and
have not been punished. II is safer 70
Kill a man in this state than to Kill
Il deer IN the forest. Some of the worst
criminals today arc those who have
most influence with mon in power, men
who sometimes control elections,
Personal Experiences.
''Mv attention was first called to
the enormity of this situation on tour
through tho western part of the United
States with Andrew Carnegie s party
in 1902 We ioumcvcd through the
middle, southern. Rocky Mountain and
Pacific states. The stories of brutal
murders / heard in California and of
the impotcncv of the law 10 check them
|
vestigatlng and have followed up the
question ever since.
''I am not alone in asking the Amer
lean citizen TO take Zip tins question
Recall The statements made by Presi-
dent Taft. Justice Brewer Justice
Brown. Judges Thomas, Kcan, Wigmore
and others.
"My Investigation shows 2 startling
state of affairs. There has been In this
country steady increase in the mum
Der Of criminal homicidcs: twenty-five
years ago there were about 1900 homl-
eides yearly in the United States,
There are now 5000 every year.
"I have read with approval the sta
tistcS recently compiled by Judge Will
liam H. Thomas Of the city court of
Montgomery, Ala. The statistics show
that the number Of homicides IN tins
country is greater by far than in any
country in the civilized world.
Canada has three per million Of peo.
pic; Germany less than five; Scotland
and Wales about ten; France about
fourteen; Belgium, highest of all, about
sixteen; the United States. l29.
1.-The United States can boast Of
forty-threc times as many as Canada,
which is Just the other side of the line.
and eight times that of Belgium, which
has the worst record in Europe
''In this country the record number
is in the southern states, and the next
in the central states.
Illuminating Facts.
.'Thc statistics make plain two IL
Eliminating facts. First, that Belgium,
which is the highest, has no death pen
ally. In Canada. which is the lowest,
seycncighths Of the mon tried for mur"
der were punished generally with
death In London there arc many homi-
cidcs in one wear. Eleven Of the offend
ers were hanged. In this country about
one murderer out Of seveuty-hYe
gets the death penalty. The average
life sentence is reduced to seven years.
'EAuothcr Illuminating fact IS that
in the whole British empire, including
Australia. New Zealand and the like,
no lyuchings were reported. In the
United States in 1909 thcro were
cighty-sevcn. In other years the num-
ber has been rs high as 100.
When asked to explain, DR.. White
leaned forward and SAID:
"1t seems impossible that on one
side of an imaginery line homicide
could he so much more prevalent than
on the other as in the ease OF Canada
and the United States. But the reason
is that on one side tho law prevails
and that on tho other side it docs not,
The greatest of all causes is that the
L. ,,e4r ,f lau
country has become game between
Two or three lawyers and the whole
thing is very much OF farce.
'''rherc arc other causcs,P he con-
jnucd "Thc law breaking spirit is
common.
Careless as to Immigrants.
''We arc also careless in admitting
our foreigners TO this country. ] know
Of a Sicilian who made the boast that
there was greater liberty for criminals
III this country than abroad, Then the
influence of evil literature must be
taken into consideration. Novels and
plays with thc pistol AS a solvent; the
atrical show bills with pistol scenes;
children allowed 10 carry pistols; pris-
oDs and iails as nurseries Of crime"
DR.. White was uusparing IN his con-
dcmnation of expert testimony. lie
called the present procedure "scanda
jous aud a disgrace
He said he hoped that The efforts Of
he committee OF the New York Bar
association TO bar out INSANITY as Il
defense in murder trial would be sue.
cessful.
he scored the procedure by which n
new trial could be obtained and cited
instances in which murdcrcrs had gone
free, reciting one case Of man who
had been convicted seven times before
he was punished.
"Tho history of thc Thaw and other
notorious trials III New York state are
disgrace TO JUSTICE he said.
''1 would do away with thc system
which allows lawyers TO choose the
most incompetent or ignorant men for
Jurors ! would abolish all appeals.
except on the merits. II might bc n
good idea 10 follow the procedure Of
other countries and not allow an ap.
peal unless the trial Judge. after a care
full review of the ease, was convinced
that substantial injury had been done,
Contrast With England.
Contrast the conditions in England,
10.