Year: 1878

make complaint for violations of the provi
sions of the statute, Is indictable.


If you have occasion to investigate any
charge pertaining to this class of offenses,
the county attorney, who is fully competent.
will give you, as well as in other cases, the
law fully ON the subject. A return has been
fled in this court from one of the magis-
trates of this county, and one of the most
efficient officers of my acquaintance, charging,
and for which the party is under recognziance
to answer to the court, the crime of rape.
The statute provides punishment for such
offense. It is the ravishment and carnal
knowledge Of any female of the age of ten
Or more years, by force or against her will.
1t may be perpetrated upon a common
prostitute, bat there must be no element of
consent on the part of the party making the
complaint.


A report has been received by the court
alleging that number of persons banded
together in the western part of the county
for the purpose of driving settler from his
land. This, under certain circumstances,
may be an offense for any unlawful COM
bination of two or more persons to injure
person or his property, &C., or to
do an unlawful act for the i'm
poverishment of another. although nothing
be done in prosecution of it to complete the
offense. For the good name of our county,
l hope it is untrue, but, nevertheless, mat
ters of this character must not pass un-
noticed.


PERJURY.


Another matter that question may pos
sibly arise before you on the course of your
investigations, allude to the crime of per-
jury. A practice at the bar for nearly 25
years has daily convinced how lightly the
solemnities of an oath sit on the conscien-
ces of witnesses in many cases; in fact, so
prevalent is it that if the great Jewish king
were to listen to an ordinary trial, his wrath
would never subside. The practice is slow
the result of trials, and the in
tegrity of judicial decision, as
founded on false testimony. The statute de-
fines. ETC., Statute ready.


THE INSANE ASYLUM.


l am come to very delicate, yet seri on
portion of my charge, and one that l would
willingly omit, and one in which you, gentle
men, are to act a very prominent part:


Recent events transpiring in your juris-
diction connected with charges against the
officers or attendants of the hospital for the
insane have attracted the attention of the
press and people of this State, and excited
feeling throughout the community as to the
truth or tals!ty of such charges, to the high
est pitch. Your action i'll the premises is
watched with strong feelings of interest, not
only by the people OF large, but by the per-
sons charged. and by the friends of the un-
fortunate insane in the ward and under the
control and power of the persons accused.
SO grave and important are the charges and
accusations conceded to be to that the Leg
islature in its wisdom deemed it to be to the
welfare of the State that they should be in
vestigated by a committee of one of its
II uses. with which, however. you have
nothing to do.


Charges of the grayest nature-not less
than the deliberate murder of one. at least,
of the unfortunate wards of the State have
been publicly made and subscribed To by re-
sponsibie parties signing their names there
TO. and published broadcast over tho length
and breadth of the land You will not suffer
such u charge to be passed over lightly or
ignored In the interest of any person in
your midst by making a trivial matter of it.
The law proposes to know no man. or set of
men. however much they may have deter
mined to stitle inquiry. nor does it stop to
inquire the cost of all investigation Of crime,
charged with circumstances OF horrid bar
barity and criminal recklessness of the life
of miserable. demented. human fellow
being.


l say 10 you, gentlemen of the grand jury,
you must investigate these charges that the
responsibility rest not upon the court for a
failure to perform a duty the people of the
State demand of us. The accused are EMIT
led to II. We must commit no error here
or it must rest where it belongs. That no
charge of crime of the magnitude of this GO
uninvestigated.


That no guilty man escape or acts of crime
CLOSED over. The law must. nay, with your
assistance. 1t shall be rigidly enforced: retri-
button meted out to all violators. and the
rights of the citizen protected. You are the
ministers of this court In criminal accusa-
tions; it is powerless without your active.
duigent cooperation. 1t Is for you to de-
termine. III a measure, whether the guilty be
punished and also as we'll to see that no in
nocent person suffer under the damning
of crime. maliciously charged
without cause. From my charge to you, you
cannot be misled. The law in one respect or
other has been violated within your iurisdic
tod. The grossest of crimes committed,
our State in the eyes of the civ
ilized world. or one of the most outrageous
calumnies circulated TO the injury of inno-
cent individuals that wicked and corrupt
men could invent.


The law laws il down that the killing of
human being without authority of law is
either murder. manslaughter. or excusable
or justifiable homicide. according to the
facts or circumstances OF the case.


First-HRrdcr. when death ensues from
the premeditated design TO efec. the death
of any human being.


Ia The Second dsgrec when perpetrated By
an act dangerous to the person and evincing a
depraved mind. regardless of life. although
without any design to effect death.


There are many ways for the destruction
of life. 1t is not the way. but the result Of
means used. If man deliberately do a
thing calculated to endanger the life of an
other. and death results. he is guilty OF hom-
icide.


When physical force is used to compel q
party to do an act. whether it be from per-
sonal malice TO the deceased. or from brutal
InsliCnity OF conduct. such as carries with i.
the plain indications of heart regardless of
social duty. and fatally bent or mischief re-
sulting in death. il Is murder.


If man do an act which is the primary
or proximste cause of another death. he is


- -. L. =.