Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, October 30, 1910, EDITORIAL, Page 5, Image 13
B Tin: omaha srxDAV I5F.K: KTom;i: an, mio. 5 JUDGE CONDlCrS Til CASE PICTUEE OF THE CRIPPEN TRIAL Trctrmtn aad prrd from Slart to riaUh Part Taken ay Trial Jidir In Ulrrctlijjt the I ane. i ( nil1 tij.on whether a mark on n viw ff flh was tlie near of an operation or rrifiely a mnrk our by ful.lint-' arvl I ITfssuiv when bi-nemh the iirirku of tin- Striking Feature, of Criminal Court cellar floor. Th meillrnl expirts for tin.'. Procedure in En2land crown brought cnTwh.lminK evidence to " ' i'ioe the mark n war. an.i it win ' ! known that Helle Kltnoio hud n h a war, the renult of an operation. J "The medical witncKn for tln defense ' nave a flirertly opposite opinion. After both counnel had finlHlieil with him the JudKS took him In hand, prcss-d litm and shook his v,dcnci. Thrn. expressing re gret that the wltnexs had ab-nted him- elf from the court lien the crown wit- I neae gave their evidence, he called one! of the latter Into the witness box and , made him demonstrate on a piece of skin ! and flesh his grounds for declaring thn j mark must be a scar. This done the Judge said to the witness for the defense. 'Now. after hearing and soelnjr Mr. Pep per's reasons for declurlns the mark must bo a scar resulting from such an opera tion. Is not your opinion modified? Sou not think It may be a scar? "The witness adhered to his own opinion, but when he left the ti'ltrvs hn there was no doubt that his evidence had been robbd of all value In ti:e Jury's eves. "Earlier In the case, w hen numerous ex hibits of the dead woman's Jewelry wero produced for identification by witnesses, the Judge examined all and selected a few for the Jury to inspect, dismissing the rest as of commonplace, ordinary appearance and thus of no value for purposes of Iden tlflcaton. so that It would only be a waste of time for the Jury to examine them. ( hrrki on I. an rem. "Again, when counsel for the defense outlined the story of Crlppen's arrange ment with the quartermaster to hide him on board the steamship Montrose, after the first sentence the Judge Interposed, asking, To you produce the quartermas- ! ter?' I " 'No, my lord.' counsel responded. "The judge nodded, and th weak story, I evidently shortened, fell Ineffective from counsel's lips. Ho it was throughout the trial; the Judge v. ould pull all counsel j when, after receiving1 an answer from a ; witness they worked around to the same question. ' ' 'lie has answered you,' lxrd Alverstone would say, " and you mum take his an swer.' "Frequently he would interpose, telling counsel: 'It Is now time to press tills point,' or to press another point as being important. It was the judge's questions that made Crippen contradict himself on an Important question, the date of the purchase and who purchased, himself or his wife, the incriminating stilt of pyjamas part of which were found with the remains. Chief Conductor of Cur, "Twice the Judge Intervened In behalf, of Crippen, once when the prosecution was pressing him as to what he meant by the word 'it' when he said to Inspector Dew of Quebec: 'It is only fair to say 1 told Miss In eve nothing about It.' Crippen said he had meant he had told her nothing of his series of lying letters and telegrams. Defects in Nebraska's Taxation System Sharp contrasts In the procedure of mur 4r trials In England and the T'nheJ States ar brought to public attention by the trial, conviction and sentenc of the American doctor, Ilawley Ilaivev Crippen, In Lon don. The promptness shown In securing a Jury, the absence of leal pettifogging and technicalities, and the dominating part of the trial Judge in the examination of witnesses, Is so different from American methods as to call forth commendation for the former and condemnation for the latter. The trial Judge was Lord Alver. tone, lord chief Justice of England. In the ilavs of Premier Sallsbui y he was Sir lU'liard Webster, attorney general, and was chief counsel for the London Times In the famous I'arnoll trial, in which the gov ernment and the Times wen: down In humiliating defeat. The pi.s tve of the lord chief Justice as presiding j'idge In a criminal case is explained by the fact of the prisoner being an American citizen. A review of the trial as a whole, and the part taken by the Judge In the proceedings la necessary to a full understanding of English procedure and the manner In which It differs from the methods of American ! trial courts. The London correspondent j jf the New York Sun presents this graphic account: Trial Seenes. "Although a Hrltlsli court of Justice where a murder trial is proceeding Is al- ! ways characterized by quiet, passionless I decorum, combined with a steady, business- I like dispatch, when one of these big murder j cases Is being tried there nro always be- 1 neath the surface tense excitement and i deep emotion, which only come to the sur- face when the Jury retires and again on Its return to give its verdict. "Lord Alverstone, lord chief justice of I England, Is the most Impressive and dig- ! nlfled figure on the British bench. Kobed i In ermine and scarlet and attended by the I ' lord mayor and sheriffs wearing their of- j flclal robes and gold chains of office, he ! is the personification of Judlciul strength. ; oX which the black and - gold scabbarded I word Is the emblem. Beneath him sat the ! black gowned, white wlgged clerk, and In ! the well of the court between him and the prisoners' dc;k, where Crlppen's draper. Insignificant figure was dwarfed by the burly forms of three warders, eat gowned and wlgged counsellors at a large table, at which the Instructing solicitors with books and papers were also seated. 1V- I So far we have been speaking of reenter' taxes taxes that become doe and delin-I quent reeularly t dates fixed by law. j Another kir.d of tax. called a special tax, i Is levied avainst property on account of ' 'peclul benefits to that property, such a i street Improvements, sewers. sidewalks. etc. Special (axes are now kept separate i and distinct from other taxes. They are kt In separute books, written on sep arate receipts and one department of the treasurer's office devotes its time exclu sively to this kind of tax. Hence we have now three kinds of real estate tax. and two kinds of personal tax, each kept in a Sep arate book, all five of which must be ex amined before you can be advised as to condition of your taxes for any one . car. and as the men who take care of the regular taxes have nothing to do with the special taxes, after (oil have had your regular taxes taken care of. you are obliged to call at the special tax window to pay your special tax. and If you fall to pay any one of these three kinds of real estatetax. your property will be sold for taxes. The most lamentable feature of our spe cial tax svstem ' the fact that a special tax may be lev ed at any dat? and will become del nquent In fifty days from date of levy. Regular taxes fall due at regular dates, and It is possible for people to learn these dates and be prepared to meet the tax as It comes due, but no one knows when a special tax Is coming unless he follows closely the .proceedings by w hich It is created. For example, the last regular tax becomes delinquent July 1. At the time you pay this tax you may co to the upec'-al tax window and inquire whether any special taxes is due or delinquent asainst your property, and may be cor rectly Informed that there Is not, and yet your property may be sold In November for a special tnx that came due subse quent to your Inquiry. You may go even further than this. At the time you pay our last regular tax, you may Inquire whether sny spec al tnxes levied are charged ncnirist your property, and may be correctly informed that there Is nothing whatever on the books auulnst your prop erty, and yet as late as the lHh of Au gust a special tax may be levied aetlnt your property which will become delin quent September 3l. be advertised In Octo ber, and offered for sale In November. It Is hardly conceivable that such a condi t on would be permitted to exist, and yet It Is true. We have a striking Illustration this year. After July 1 about twenty ord'nances were passed levying a special tax against about 1,500 or l.,oo pieces of property. This tax became delinquent be fore October 1, and some of this property Is now being advertised, and there Is no doubt that many of the owners of what Is being advertised do not know that a tax has been levied. It is true that thi: tax was levied on petition of the property owners and at their request that Is at the request of a certain portion of them, and yet many owners of vacant property, or persons who hsppened to be out of town had no part In this request. It Is also true that notices are mailed out, but It Is not always possible to get the correct ad dress of property owners, particularly of vacant property, and a notice may be sent to a former owner Instead of a recent purchaser, so that the actual owner may have no actual notice of the tax. This Is particularly true of a tax for opening streets or Improving boulevards, etc., where there Is no visible evidence of any Improvement until after the tax Is col lected. We hare a recent example of this. During this summer a tax was levied on all property from Center street north to Indiana avenue, and from Twenty-fourth west to Thirty-eighth, for the purpose of Improving the boulevard. This taxed sev eral thousand pieces of property, and an astonishingly large per cent of the owners had no idea at all as to what the tax was for when they received the notice, and many of those whose card failed to reach hem " never know that there is such a tax. until they receive infirtr.a tion In the form of a surprise, either at the special tax window, or by finding their property sold for taxes at some future date. Our Fpeciul taxes are subd vldn' into five different cla.-sts, and we have five different khids of special tax districts. fH, Street Improvement districts. (Including paving and cn-htng). (?). sidewalk districts, t"), sewer dlstr'cts, H. grading districts. n. miscellaneous districts (including boule vard Improvements, opening streets, etc.) Taxes for (treet Improvements are paya ble one Installment each year for ten years, ami each of the others Is payable In fifty days from date of levy. It seldom hap pens that all five kinds of special taxes are charged against the same property at the same time, but It would be entirely ; possible for this to happen, with each tax becoming delinquent at a different ! date, and If one owns property In different ! parts of town. It would be entirely possible ble under our present system to have a tax becoming delinquent every month In the year or even oftener. In fact some of the large real estate owners keep a spe cial tax account on their books, and pay a list of special taxes the first of every month with as much regularity as they do their gas or 'phone bills. This condition certainly ought to be changed. It ought to be made possible for the property owner to know where he stands In tax matters. In my Judgment special taxes should be Included with the regular taxes, so that one Inquiry and the examination .f one book would answer all questions as to taxes on your real estate for the whole year. Instead of being obliged to search three books, and be on guard continuously for new developments throughout the year. If special taxes were Included with the regular taxes It would make It possible to dispense with the spe cial tax department altogether, without materially Increasing the work of the other departments, and thus make possible a Ereat saving In the collection of taxes, as well as add nir to the convenience of the tsxpa yer U Is true that several things must be taken Into consideration In making this chsnee, but none of them offer Insur mountable obstacles. The great number of different districts suugest one problem, but this can easily be taken care of An other problem Is suggested by the fact that If a special tax were levied too late to be Included with the regular tax for that year. It might have to stand over a year before It would be collected. This could be largely overcome by keeping in mind the proper time to make the levy, so as to get It Included In that year's tax. Or It would be possible to make th levy at any time and Isrue warrants against the fund before It Is collected, as Is now done by the county with the county funds. In some respects this would be a desirable plan, as It would make It possible to Issue warrants as soon as they were ne"ded and would save collecting money In advance and hnv'ng It lay Idle, and would give the taxpayer the use of ills money until It was actually needed for the purpose for which it was levied. However, it is not out tiurose at this tlnv to work out details li is our purpose rather to suggest food for reflection. We have pointed out in a rencrnl wav what the defects of our tax system are. and bow they operate to the detriment rnd in convenienoe of the taxpayer, and have made renewal suggest. ons as In what should be done to correct existing condi tions. The details of the solution must be worked out through state legislation. Our local officials and local law making bodies, such as the city council and county com missioners, are powerless In most of these matters. The relief must be had through the state legislature. In our next paper wo will give a brief review of the laws of other states, show'lng what states have adopted laws similar to the suggestions we have made, flOYI) HYSART. Mastntf of n C'Tnle. A woninn is a'most as much afraid of a mouse as her husband is of a milliner s bill. Charity begins at home, but unfortun ately you can't always find It there when you call New York Times. NEGRO DREW FIVE PENSIONS tine of Them Mas Ills. l Othera Were t, bat He Got Them Kegalarl?. For many ears there lived In rhlUideV phla a negro veteran of the civil war named lee Wilton Laws, the Janitor of th tiiand Army of the ltepubl c headquarter. Ills dutbs In this connection occupied a part of bis time; the rest of It was pretty well occupied In drawing four pensions, One of them was his own. Put the others were those of other men two dead, on living. Ueing rather keen on pensions I-nws furthermore had his wife draw an annuity which was not rightly hers-mak-Ing five pensions In the family. I-aws and bis wife lived in the So)th End of Philadelphia, whe-e for several years there resided with them an old neirro pensioner named Itob nson and his wife, Susan. Robinson died; his widow, Susan, began to draw the pension Then she died. The pension bureau never beard of Susan Kohinson's death, for Mrs. !ce Wilton I :ivvs could sUn a voucher .bis! ns well as Si'sim Robinson herself. So for four yenrs the government every three months handed, Annie Laws a snug little sum on account of the fact that an old nt'snt nnmed Hobln son had once served In the army. I'ee Wilton long liv ed happ ly In receipt of bis own annuity and of the pensions which the government thought it was pny Ing to William Lewis and James O. Parks, both of whom were dead, and of Ocorgei Harrison, a feeble-minded veteran In the almshouse. Laws received his various checks at different addressee, the homes of friends of his. Johnny I'lman, Ninth, and locust streets, atid at the shop of a Jewish clothing dealer in South street. Eventually the pension commissioner wa Informed. Il was an easy matter, ones, attention was directed at the rascal, ta convict hint. Ills sentence was three yenrs In the federal prison at Atlanta, where h languishes today. Ann'e Laws got uwny. No one suspected her. The investigation of her husband wa riot extended to Include bis family. World's Work. 'TIipm loud knoeka behind the 1iide's Mt warned the court of the chief Justice's iThe J1"38 male counsel accept the answer, entrance, preceded by a mace bearer and j mu ln '""lining up he drew attention to accompanied by the officials already men j the weakness of the explanation. Again tlon.d. The Judge and the standing court j he refused to put a question a Juryman aiiriK'-nLQu ifvi'aucvj, netiu u, il is miner argumentative. exchange bows, and forthwith the trial na TwaIv rriAn fllfl irttn thn liirv hnx nd sr. .worn nn. hv on. ta sve lustice ! "ln fttCt- 11 hardly too much to say between "Our sovereign lord, thn king" and the prisoner. Three jurors, and this Is very exceptional, are rejected by the prisoner's counsel. It Is done by an almost inaudible word. The men's personal ap pearance was sufficient explanation of their rejection. Three others are brought ln, and wihln eight minutes of the Judge's . rn tjance the Jury Is empanelled, the prisoner ll arraigned and the clerk reads the In dictment to Crippen, who pleads not Kullty. ( Down to Business " "Mr. Muir,' says the judge, and the leading counsel for the crown stands up and begins Ms statement of the case for the prosecution ln calm, passionless lan guage, without a gesture, without the slightest attempt at rhetoric, with no trace of feeling against the prisoner, frequently vN even pointing out facts which may tell ln the prisoner's favor. In eighty minutes counsel gave a lucid masterpiece of nar rative, throughout which he confined him self to the admitted facts of the long story of the relations between Crippen and his wife and his mistress. "Once only ln the four and a half days did counsel protest at anything that hap pened. This was done by counsel for the defense, who objected to the Introduction of a crown witness after the case for the crown had been closed. The Judge said: 'I will admit the evidence so far as It is justified by the prosecuting counsel's opeo tas statement.' "Counsel for the defense remained stand log a moment In further protest. " 'I will take care of you Mr. Tobln.' said the Judge. Counsel bowed and took his seat. "The Incident occupied hardly a minute. "Not a single witness was examined or cross-examined by counsel on either side without the Judge's Intervention, some times requesting counsel to make his question clearer, sometimes helping the witness to couch his answer! always snaking every effort to save time. It mattered nothing whether it was a crown or defense witness, when counsel had finished with him or her the judge would say: "Now I want to ask a few ques tions." Then ln three or four lucid ques tions he would elicit In plain, concise form what counsel would take twenty minutes and Innumerable questions to get out. Then the judge would ask a few questions, al ways straight to the point, which counsel had overlooked or did not desire put. Jilt Takes the Case. "A good example of the manner ln which Lord Alverstone took the cuse into his own hands was his dealing with the medi cal witnesses for the defense. The Iden tification of the mutilated remains, apart from the fragments of timnti hiirlAH With them and from mere Inference, de- he was the chief conductor of the case both for the crown and the defense. What little could be suggested In Crlppen's favor ho pointed out ln summing up. What points might 'be considered debatable and they were ' very' few he stated, saying It was for the Jury to decide on them. But his whole lucid retelling of the story from the evidence Could not have been more damning had It come from 'the . mouth of the prosecuting counsel. Incised, Its Im pressive delivery and Its aloofness from all personal feeling made It far more con vincing of the prisoner's guilt than the final MdUress of the prosecution to the Jury." SOME HUMORS OF THE CENSUS Omaha Woman Contributes a Mite to the t.alety of the Questioner. That the divorce question met with con siderable trouble In other sections of the 'country as well as ln the east is evident from several other stories that reached the ears of the metropolitan census talrors. There was a woman ln Omaha, Neb., for Instance, who flatly refused to commit her self one way or another on the question, and who only complied with the enumer ator's request when threatened with arrest. Then, to the surprise of the census man, ehe said she had not only r.ever been di vorced, but never married. Her rebellion against the question consequently puzzled the census man greatly until he learned that the woman, who had come to town only recently, had been posing In the com munlty as a divorcee with a large alimony Income for the evident purpose of obtain ing credit on a considerable scale from the local merchants. A second story has to do with a woman named Allison of St. Iuls, who was actually taken to the police sta tion before she waa made to realize the necessity of complying with the census rults. "What's the trouble?" asked tho sergeant. "She won't tell whether or not the has been divorced." came the com plaint. "You must answer all the ques tions," was the command. "Well, then." said the woman, "I was divorced a year ago, but us my husband and I are thinking of making up again soon I don't see why I have to be labelled as a divorcee. hate the sound of It." The third story comes from Toledo, O.. where a woman told the census man that If he failed to chronicle the fact that she had been allowed the cus tody of her children and that her husband was a brute she would see to it that he "lost his Job." Harper's Weekly. Many a man never turns over a new leaf because he allows the pages to get gummed up. Are They Tight? Your windows nd doors will ae'p out rain, dust, cold nd wind. It you will lt us install Monarch Metal Weather Strips Old and new buildings Bhould be thus equipped, and especially old ones, because the windows are so loose. HKSIDKM'KS AM OFFICES. No storm windows necessary. Sunderland 1014 Hariwjr Stret. f u, W e Hub f - t Vacate eir EMlldHsusf January First $250,000.00 stock of Furniture Carpets, Rugs, Stoves, Crockery, House furnishing Goods, Mens and Women s Clothing, Hats, Shoes, Furnishing Goods, Etc., must he sold at once. Omo -TBufiipal to irne Mai HIE fit A Special Opportunity. for hotel and roominghouse keepers to pur chase in large lots at less than factory cost. Complete me r? fir" Mo Outfits A most opportune time for those contem plating furnishing their homes complete to se cure a HOME OUTFIT at a saving of fully 50 per cent. Cash or Credit Why We Must Move The United States National Bank bought the Farnam Street section of our building last spring and the Brandeis Company bought the Annexes on the west side of our building, which, we have occupied for years. Our negotiations to renew our lease, which expires January 1st, have failed and we were notified by W. Farnam Smith of Omaha, the agent of the building, that we must positively vacate the building not later than January 1st. Where we will move this enormous stock we don't know. Hence this sale. Former Cost and Selling Price Not Considered A splendid buying oppor tunity for cash purchasers. v The biggest and grandest values ever heard of, are pre sented to you in this sale. Nothing Reserved. Everything Must Go. r The Greatest Compulsory Sale Ever Held in Omaha. In Order to Unload This Enormous Stock We will Sell for Either CASH mi m EASY PAYMENT Positively nothing to compare with this sale, has ever before been Dresented to you in Omaha. A chance of a lifetime to furnish your lome or clothe your family at about one-half price. Come early and get first choice. 35 extra sales people engaged to serve you. No waiting. n 1612 & fARNAM STREETS. OMAHA. Prompt Delivery Service Extra waqons and de- ,P9 'I liuervmcn (tnaaaad tn nt sistin prompt deliveries, i 7 T"