Year: 1873

The atrocious murders of last week awakened the people of this town 10 the necessity of administering justice, ana It was administered in manner both dra- matic and tragic. While they were IT, resistibly determined, their conduct was calm and orderly. The bodies or mur- dered man and wife were buried with lit ting solemnity. Before returning from the graveyard to their homes, with as good order and almost as profound solemnlty' the people went to the jail and closed the earthly career of the three confessed mur- derers, and of another who had been pre- vious ly proven guilty and convicted of murder. Stores, saloons, shops ana all business places were closed, and at times not a man, woman or child was on the main business street. In fact it appeared to the careful observer as if the interment of the bodies of the murdered man and woman would be incomplete without plac- ing those who so bruta'ly killed them, be- yond the possibility of repeating the of- fense. True, these fiends were in jail, but many others equally bad and deserving of death had been there and escaped statutory and all other adequate punishment. The people argued that the lawful penalty for murder must be enforced without delay, If they would have any assurance of safe slumbers and even life itself, But short time ago, twelve good men submitted to weeks imprisonment and total neglect of their business, as jurymen; they found a man guilty of murder in the first degree, but even before the verdict was rendered, it was understood that mere ambiguity in the law would lead to an appeal, and the culprit and his friends were justified in believing it but question of time when in the face of conviction, the righteous ness of which no good citizen seemed to doubt, liberty would be given another murderer. With the Dorman, Burt and Willis cases fresh in their minds and a largely increased county debt in con- sequence, it is not to be wondered that the late murders exhausted the patience of the people and impelled them to simply en- force the penalty prescribed by our statutes for the horrible crime of murder, without vainly waiting for lawful proceedings which have never yet, in such cases in Pima county, led to the execution of jury s legal verdict.

 The action of the people in this town on Friday, August 8, was not pleasant to the actors. For over q year, they discussed the growing necessity for it and feared 1t would soon be unavoidable. One of the most oonsoling results Of 1t is found in tho quiet approval thereof by this com munity as Dody. No Tegrots aSe e1- pressed so far as we have heard. The mind of this people was never more tram quil; the expressions of personal safety in Tucson, never more numerous.

 Now is a good time to again plead for the execution of legal penalties in legal way. Let the verdicts of juries be re. spected by lower and higher courts. Let the statutes of Arizona to punish crime, have application according to their intent and spirit. Let not another ten years be marked by murder after murder without single murderer being legally punished. We plead for justice inside the forms Of law, because experience has shown that a point can be-aye has just been-reached wherein the best, most orderly and upright of our citizens will execute justice regard- less of such forms.

 PETER KITCHEN is in from the upper Santa Cruz and reports fine crops of corn