The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, December 1, 1901, Page 20

THE SUNDAY CALL. ZRE are two wavs of looking the n ter, it seems. You might not have thought It appears at a glance under cven the cumstances is disc he least. It is a breach uld certainl lite volumes of “Don't here are those whe se who say say that fbere are make excep- other i citizens has commun by = That 3 acquit £ f the charge of murder for kill- E. Wilson question o who d tehtial ev ¢ dving words 4 e murdered man he did it. By his repeated confession killed Wilson. 1 twe San ¥ that killing, in izens deeme case, was justifiable You remember what his case , den't imple matter of a pistol. He his property Wil rge, Wilson b wil- had abused t rding to defense, and trouble between tkem d. The lawyer told the story b he e into dicd, saying that Clancy had c 1= office and shot him down aft ersation. He gave it 1 that Clanc with the intent a short be under had come to the office committing what called a “cold-blooded assassination.” lancy, testifying in his own behalf, told a story of golng to Wilson's office to attend to busin Then, sald he, they 3 led. He alleged that Wilson eatened to throw him out of his office end seized 2 chair with which to strike him. Being afraid of his life he shot he This i the gist of the story of what has been determined a justifiable killing. The acquittal was popularly accounted for by the fact that the mufdered man had a bad reputation, so evidently Clan- cy’s story was preferred to his He was acquitted on the ground that he |killed in self-defense, and In the eye of the law that is not murder. But keener even than the eye of the law 13 the eye of the consclence. It is the morel side of the question that is here | €iscussed; this is what several San Fran- ciscans from several points of view have | to say on the subject: | Is killing Justifiable | DANIEL COLE. | 3 R. DANIEL COLE, at present Colner in our Mint, in the past | ploneer miner, ought to know | something about murder, thinks I to myself, thinks L If not he must have been a pretty unobservant fel- low during the years that he lived in the midst of nuggets, poker and guns. If any- | body knows what life is In the roughest mining ecountry of the West, that man s Danfel Cole. I 4o know .2 lot about mur- sald when I accosted him. “By observation, not experience,” he hastened to reassure me. “I've seen men steal and get killed for it. I've seen them cheat and get killed for it. And I used to think that was rigit But I've changed my mind these days, “When I was in the mines people used to leave a fortune In nuggets lying around loose, and it was as safe f it had been | under moffern lock and k Any maan in | that country knew that It was suicide to steal it. He wouldn’t have time to think | before he would be strung up to a tree or punctured with a buliet. The law wa law, and it was kill quick In those days, “1 was so used to thiz way of doing that I thought it was right, but it don't seem s0 now that I look back on it—no, It don't seem so. I dor’t helieve we have any right to take life except in self-defense “But there was no law what else could be don Wait unti aw migh ve taken & great ma g y bound to come whiie the 8 « progressing is n ands b; — X W. W. FOOTE. g & 3 e > R. FOOTE was ir e ha known what I wanted, it scem he wouldn’t bave He pointed t hair b gan to rd or n self. He had not 11t e however, when my eternal query ) him Is kiliing astifiable? He jumped up as if he had be : mited ng t anles How much a stage stamp. “It won't & “But this izn't a legal question,” I ex- plained t's purely moral.” “No; it's legal, and I won't express an opinion.” He was striding up and down the room by this time. “But the point of view I am after is the ethical, not the legal’ I sald, hesi- tating. “It's a legal question,” he repeated, striding moré terribly than ever. “But,” he added, and there came Into the corner of his eye that twinkle which is always death to his most fearful frown, “there are some people whom I should like very well to murdef now.” T cried: “that's a statement PAUL FRANKE, ONE OF THE JURY THAT ACQUITTED CLAN- \ CY, HAS SOME EXPLANATIONS TO IAKE. THE JURY . | THOUGHT THAT WILSON WAS NOT MURDERED. AUL FRANKE, one of that acquitted Clancy the matter of the acquit Mission-street store betw sales of pepsin chewing-gum and pink t paper. “Is murder justifiable’ I asked him. “No, murder {s NOT justifiable,” he re- ed vigorously. whacking the cou with a stick of striped peppermint cand; I never sald that murder was jurtifia- I never thought go. Clancy did not Wiison was what the jury de- th dfscus murd clded. “I tell you it was a hard case. I didn't like it. 1 lay awake a night or two over It all hinged on the accounts of the two men, and one lfed and the other told the truth. The whole thing was to declde which was the llar. “If Wilson told the truth, then he was murdered; that is, killed deliberately and with malice aforethought. If Clancy told the truth, then Wilson had attacked him and he shet only in defense of his life, which is not t ime thing as murder. The whole th! s to make up our minds which was the liar. Either those two an argument or they thought and I thought about it, and ught ane way and then I thought I kept changing my mind and 1 didr i ¥ don’t want another case t one bit of ecir- there was nothing dence; dicting statements of the man who was dead and the man who was mstantial « but the con alive. ‘When 1 voted f« caquittal it was be. cause I decided that Clancy didn't com- mit murder. He killed Wilzon self- defense. That is the only'case where 1 think killing is justifiable; murder never is."” He gave a concluding thump with the stick of peppermint candy and it shat- tered at the zrand climax into a thousand red and white atom f— e j» much about it as the sterner s : i s MRS JOHN { ~ “Wall. then, say not because I am a . 2 F.SWIFT. | woman, wut vecause 1 am anly 4 human — + being, I can’t judge for other people. r 2 myself, though; no, I should never con- DON'T know anything about it—what gider myself justified in killing." does & woman” know about such ‘Not !f some one robbed you?" things, anyway?" was what she said p at first. Not i some one robbed me.” avenge yoursel(?" 1 reminded her of the fact that she belleved women were a great deal nicer than men and a great deal more capable and that she wouldn't be a man anyway even if she could, and that, according to avenge myself.” avenge some ong who was still rer to you?" t then. Remember, “Not to de: say for myself. 4 *“Not in se!f defense?” She paused there. "That is the extreme , of cours she sald, whiie she thought. “Well, 1 think that one ought not to kill then, except after due consideration. I should want to welgh the fon: que: wh of these two lives, mine or my as- «assin’s, will be the greater loss to the community? 1 should act on the decision Mind, I don't take into consideration how much my lfe is worth to my immediate family. but to the community at large. It I can be of a greater good to a greater nuuiber than the man who wants to kiil me, I should think I might be justified in saving myself at the cost of his life. At least it seems so, but I don’t know whether I should dare to take the respon- sibility of killing on my shoulders if it came to the point. “Anyway, I am pretty sure T couldn't it I would, for I'm more afraid of a gun than of a man any ds — REV. W. K. GUTHRIE l Ito 8 murder ever justifiable?”’ sald the Rev. Willlam Kirk Guthrie. “What is murder? sald the Rev. Willlam Kirk Guthrie to me. Thcre were two of his delicious burrs in “murder,” rich and full, that made it a iyrie rather than a erime. It occurred to me that it was about titae for me to understand the fine points ot the definition. “It would have been a good thing to logk it up,” he rema-ked. “But you will do it for me now.” His dictionary sald that it was somo- thing about killing with malice prepense. “Now, you see, all killlng Is not mur- der,” he began. ‘“‘Murder is not justifia- ble, T think, under most circumstances, I pelieve that killing HOW p DASHING VENEZUECAN GENERAL | RIED TO RAISE MONEY FOR HIS TROOPS | NE of the most picturesque flgures in the Colombian-Venesuelan war was General Echeverria, the gal- lant Venezuelan who fell in battle in the recent rout in Goalira. He figured in the affairs of General Mendoza, the dictator, in 1882. The Ven- ezuelan soldiers who had fought hie bat- tles against Crespo for him refused to take empty promises for pay. They fol- lowed him around the streets of the cap- ital demanding their pay. Once in a while he managed to get hold of some money, which always divided on the spot, though it seldom appeased the hunger of the troops for more than a day at a time. In sheer desperation he called his friend Echeverria to his assistance. He told him | 1o go and get money anywhere, anyhow. He might even take the troops along to assist in any little enterprise he might think of—in fact, he would be delighted t> have them go with Echeverria. They went, for Echeverria had a scheme ready to hand The story of what next happened is in- tensely interesting to Americans, for an American Consul figured prominently in it, In the seaport of La Guayra, the com- merelal metropolis of the country, a num- ber of wealthy merchants were doing business without Interruption from the two contending forces. Several of them were Spanlards, others Frenchmen, Ger- —7 .. mans, Italians, Russians, Englishmen and Americans, besides the native Venezu- elans. A few were acting Consuls for for- eign governments. One was the American Vice Consul, The United States Consul was Philip C. Hanna, of Iowa, whose slender figure and pale féatures gested the student rather than the diplomat. Mr. Hanna was out of town on business of the Consvlate on the morning of September 11, 1592, when General Echevarria suddenly appeared in the city at the head of a considerable body of troops. He was after money. The method he took to get It was worthy of his dashing and original style. He simply selzed thirty men in thelr places of business and put them in the city jall. Among them were the Consuls and Vi Consuls of the entecn forelgn govern- ments. Then he made a list of the i o}f“hln prisopers, which ran something like this: Name. John Smith ‘Willlam Jone: David Brown . The summs were based on the supposed wealth of the prisoners or their ability to got money quickly through friends. The merchants and Consuls werc protected against outrage, and refused to pay any- thing. ‘When Mr. Hanna returned to the city he To Get Out. 500.00 ) was warned not to go to his office, where a squad of soldlers awalted him. His In- formant explained the sltuation of af- falys, and added that the American Vice Congul was amang those locked up. The young man went at once to thd harbor, In the hope that a Red D line stéamer or a United States gunboat might be there to give him help. There was none such, Only a little coast patrol boat of the Spanish navy was there, the Jorge Juan, mounting three guns, and com- manded by Lieutenant Eulate, afterward famous as commander of the Vizcaya. Mr. Hanna rowed out to see Senor Eu- late, whom he knew personally; and asked him faor the loan of a few marines. Senor Eulate listened to the story and promptly loaned the American thirty Spanish saii- ors, armed with cutlas: and carbines, and went back with his nd, who boldly marched up to the jail at the head ot his rescue party. But the guard house was heavily de- fended, the troops being lined up in front of the buliding, with a sergeant In com- mand. Mr. Hanpa demanded that the prisoners be released. He was met by a laygh. “Let them pay first, and weo will free them,” sald the pompous command- ant. Mr. Hanna and his Spanish friend with- drew for a consultation. Senor Kulate proposed firing a blank shot from the i . Jorge Juan to scare them. Acting on this, he went to the quay and signaled for the shot to be fired. It was fired promptly, and in response the litfle fortress on shore plugged a six-pounder at the patrol boat, narrowly missing her hull. Senor Eulate then signaled for a broadside, which was given, knocking off some of the masonry of the fortress to the in- closure, Echeverria hastened to remonstrate with Hanna and Eulate, who were again confronting the jail guard. The proposi- tion he made was for a cessation of hos- tilitles to enable him to communicate with General Mendoza at Caracas. This would take u day, he sald. “1'll glve you just twenty minutes,” sald r. Hanna. “If you don't unlock those tes, my friend and 1 whl blow your gonfounded old jail into smither P 8o saying, he held his wateh in d. At the expiration of exactly nineteen minutes, Echeverria gave the order to open the doors, and the prisou marched uut singing and cheering wildly. Lieutenant Eulate was court-martlaled in Spain for his breach of international comity, and degraded and imprisoned; but when Mr. Hanna notified all the forelgn snwrnmcnu of his danger, and seventeen iplomatic communications arrived at Ma- drid thapking the gallant officer for his timely ald, the Spanish Premier changed his tune and promoted the lieutenant to a mntnlncy. Ticheverria got money for Mendoza a few weeks later by selling a few conces- sions to Amerlcans with abundant capital. ‘flfi(@'&glfi!@}?—l}: ) PP g AN =) R "‘\(fi‘,}‘ - ‘ 19 is sor~2*"mes right in a lawless country. There are times when a terrible crime Is committed and the rcpulace takes the law into its own hands Understand me, I do not indorse hasty and excited action of this kind, but rather a deliberate and carefully meted ¢ut punishment. It !s, in £pirit, the same thing as the justice of the law, and must take place where no law exists. : “Killing in self-dafense cannot be wrong. The mstinct of self-preservation is planted in every on~ of us and ‘is God- given. There are cases where I will go even farther, and say that the giving of Ife is not the highest form of herofsm “For instance, a boat is going down. A helpless, useless fellow is drowning. An- other man, brave and strong and capable of much good, has the chance to give s life to save the other. “If he does ‘t he will be called a h If he does not, he will be eowardly to some—a man of good judgment to others. “He perhaps knows Lcw to handle some of the boat's apparaius, and is strong enough to be of use if he saves himself. I say that h& should do so and let tae useless one go. “Sometimes a man shoots to avenge & wrong done to a sister or some woman who Is dear to him. I think this 1s wrong—yes, I think so.” Notice, he was very slow about saying that it was wrong, and then he did it hailt-heartedly. nd’if a man’s wife sins and the man discovers it, he sometimes kills the other man, and sometimes the woman; to0. That is wrong—yes, I Lelleve it is wrong— and yet I should be slow to condemn’ him."” Mrs.W. B. HARRINGTON | <+ S murder ever justifiable?” “Never!" sald Mrs. Harrington, and she flourished a feather duster by way of emphasis, for I had come upon her In her housekeeping hours. “There can never be any justification of murder. Never! I don’t care what the motive, it cannot be justified. “If the laws of our country cannot at- tend to punishing crime, then let crime g0 unpunished, or rather improve the laws. Lynching and all barbarity of the kind known as ‘taking the law into one's own hands’ does nothing but retard prog- regs. Taking life is too serlous a thing to be done without the due deliberation on which the law insists. Nothing justi- fies murder. I feel very strongly upon the subject. Nothing, I repeat. “If the laws of our nation are mot what they should be, as some complain, then whose fault is it? The fault*of the na- tion that makes those laws. Lynching Is not righting the wrong: No form of kill- ing is doing that. It is not getting at root of the matter. L “Make the laws right, then adhere to them."” o+ HON. HO YoWw. O YOW recelved me in lavender brocade pajamas that fluttered about the willowness of him. He discussed murder in a cool ani esthetic mood. “I follow the teachings of Confucius, said he. “Confuclus teaches us that there is no good in killing, for by it nothing is accomplished, and two lives are lost in- stead of one.” “Then you believe that all killing is wrong?"” " Yes; except In self-defense.” “‘And do your bellefs represent those of || your people?” “I think so. They are Confucland, and follow the laws laid down by the great teacher.” Ye gods! What would poor Confuclus think has become of his teachings were he to walk the streets of Chinatown, where men's persons furnish lodging for bullet or hatchet blade? \