Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1910-11-17

fanatically technical Supreme Court.
What his chances are in England
may be inferred from the fact that in
London court the somewhat COM
pick case of Dr. Crippen, accused OF
wife-murder, terminated in a death
sentence after a trial lasting only
four days. 1.-The case" remarks the
New York Commercial. was of tx
actly the sort that are almost in
variably stretched out over weeks and
months here in the United States
the crime itself most uncanny and
revolving one, and the morbid among
the masses excitedly eager for every
detail of the testimony and the pro-
cedure. 1T would be unfair to as
sumo that Crippen. had he been tried
for a similar crime in this country,
would have surely gone free or es-
capped the extreme penalty" says the
New Orleans Times-Democrat "bul
no one doubts that his trial here
would have been much longer drawn
out and its result decidedly uncer-
tain, with a strong likelihood of
mistrial, or appeals, reversals, re-
retrials, and the consequent delays
seemingly unavoidable under the
American system of procedure" The
same paper is at once with most ii
its contemporaries when it asserts
that, in spite of the swiftness of pro-
cedure in the London courts, Dc
Crippen has had, we think. as fair
trial as could have been given him
anywhere"
To emphasize a comparison which
they find far from fattering to the
American criminal court methods
many papers recall the fact that in
Tennessee the trial of the Coopers
for shooting ex-senator Carmack-an
act committed two years ago in broad
daylight on the principal street of one
of Americas largest cities-is not yet
fairly disposed of. Others refer TO
the inderminate outcome of the
twelve weeks trial of Harry Thaw
in New York for the murder of Stan
ford White-a case, as the New
York World remarks. in which "all
the more important facts were indis-
putable." The same paper reminds
us that while the Thaw trial was go
ing on London court tried the mpr
1erer of the great merchant Whitley
in five hours. mot per cent of our
murderers go to the gallows, even
when there is no doubt whatever Of
their guilt" declares the Baltimore
Sun: and the Richmond Journal asks
pertinently: us it difficult to under
stand why murder is more prevalent
in this country than in probably any
other civilized country in the wOrld2'
The facts of the Crippen case, it
will be remembered. are briefly as
follows: After DR.. Crippen had mys-
teriously disappeared from his Lon
don house the mutilated body of a
woman, believed to be that of his
wife, was found buried in the cellat.
The doctor was finally traced ANA
captured as he landed in Canada
with his mistress, Ethel Leneve. and
was taken back to England for trial
The evidence showing the body tosbe
that of his wife, as we'll as that point
ing to him as the author of the crime
while very convincing, was admitted
IL circumstantial rather than direcr.
The case was tried at the Old BaileJ
before Lord Alverstone, Lord Chief
Justice of England. The selection
and swearing of the jurors, dispatch
es tell us, occupied eight minutes.
Perhaps the most Illuminating ac-
count of the trial that reached this
side is given by the London CORES
pendent of the New York Sun. 10
quote in part:
Once only in the four ana half
days did the counsel protest at any
thing that happened This was done
by counsel for the defense. who OBJ
jected to the Introduction of crown
witness after the case for the crown
had been closed. The Judge said. II
will admit the evidence so far as
it is justified by the prosecuting coun-
sells opening statement. Counsel foc
the defense remained standing a mo-
ment in further protest
I viii take care of you, Mr.. To
bin, said the judge. Counsel bowel
and took his seat. The incident oc-
cupied hardly a minute.
Not a single witness was examM-
ed or cross-examined by counsel on
either side without the judges in
tervention. sometimes requesting
counsel to make his question clearer
sometimes helping the witness 10.