Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-03-30
WHERE LIFE is CHEAP.
IN America Murder and Homicide Is
Too Common to Excite Remark.

| IN America Murder and Homicide Is
Too Common to Excite Remark.
| Referring TO a remark Of the New
| York Tribune To the effect that after
recent occurrences in Great Britain,
that hereafter there will be no other
refuge left to the anarchists. and that
they will become literally men with
out a country" Andrew d. White
writes to that newspaper saying that
There is some mistake about this, that
| they have an admirable refuge,
icountry lying wide open to them, in
which they will find more companions
sympathizers and effective helpers
than in any other-namely. our own
He goes on 10 say in enthusiastically
| Vigorous language:
| Our nation affords them the happiest
| OF happy hunting ground. Events in
New York, in Los Angeles, in Chicago.
| in Paterson. in scores of towns
| Throughout the country prove this.
| These persons whom John Bull, in his
| instructive determination to have nc
nonsense in dealing with crime, seems
determined to drive out. will doubtless
be pleased to favor this country with
| their presence, and IT, join the thugs
anarchists, yeggmen, safe blowers
hold-up men. members of the Black
| Hand fraternity and the like who al
ready enjoy American hospitality. The
pettifoggers, the sentimental phloso-
pliers and the "cranks" who disbelieve
in anything like prompt and effective
punishment have already produced an
atmosphere in which all these crini-
nails and many others thrive thorough
| ly Wei.
| President White refers to the sta,is-
ties OF crime published by Chicago
newspaper which has for years made
specially Of their collection, and for
the substantial accuracy Of which he
touches as being confirmed by his own
| Investigations and study. According
to that collection of figures the num-
| Der OF homicides (by which term is
meant, in all save very few cases
| murders) was during the year Just
closed. 1915, and this was an increase
of nearly nine hundred over the num-
Der during the year preceding. They
| also show that of the perpetrators OF
| these homicides only one in eighty-s sly
was capitaily punished, as against
about one in Seventy-four the year
preceding. The number of murders
in London last year was nineteen,
while in New York with population
| approximately two millions less the
number of murders was 1856. Compe
| tent students say that while Belgium
probably ON account of it's mining
population and bitter political strifes
has greater number Of murders than
has any other part Of Europe, save
perhaps lower Italy and Sicily, the
number of murders in the United
States, compared with the number in
Belgium, is about 116 to 1S; also that
the number OF murders in the United
States is to the number in Great
Britain. as about 116 to 6. More than
this, the number of capital crimes in
! this country has for many years been
steadily increasing, and is now in
creasing at a greater rate than is our
population. The Chicago Tribune
shows that the most significant fea-
ture of these figures this year is the
increase in murders committed by
thugs, thieves. burglars and hold-up
men, the number being an increase of
eighty three over that by the same
classes of criminals in 1909" This has
all been told in substance before many
times. The statistics of 1910 are new;
the truths which they emphasize are
mot.
| President White offers variety of
reasons for this disquieting condition.
lone is the freedom with which the
lpardoning power is exercised in many
Estates, and, he might have added, with
4 apparently the full approval of large
numbers Of exemplary citizens.
Another is found in the processes Of
the criminal courts, which have ex-
lcited frequent comment that the ad-
ADMINISTRATION of criminal justice as re-
CARDS murder has become farce in
this country. We append to that our
Town reflection that his way Of manag-
ing murder trials has tended to de-
grade much other criminal practice.
Speaking of certain recent trials for
murder. both in New York and else
where. he makes these caustic obser.
ivations:
N These trials were by most of those
WHO conducted them, and indeed by
q Me public at large, evidently consid-
e I.N not as efforts to secure justice,
: Atmply as games, and mostly sbe-
pettifoggers. the judges appear
L like umpires at games of
t ,' Safeguards devised in tho
s M.uu es TO ,.prptact = tnS9 W sak
Il as ~. No .atrong.aor dbe fserf agaiast
!. .her leuo t0rd ). are now use1 with Gus
" p'o'ece criminal, and, above all,
NJ