| Show Juvenile Depravity The shocking case of shooting by a boy in this city resulting in the death of his victim recalls some similar cases of I juvenile homicide which were equally startling in their character and bore direct evidence of murderous intent The boy ANTON WOODE who shot and killed young JOSEPH SMITH in Colorado in order to get his watch and chain which took the shooters fancy is fresh in the public mind WOODE had two trials and was convicted of murder in the second degree He made no secret of his crime or its purpose and was considered a psychological mystery A few days ago a boy twelve years old in New Jersey shot and killed a little fellow fel-low scarcely three years old His name was WOOD he was a New York street arab and was taken by Louis WAGNER to his New Jersey farm to do chores In a week he was discharged for laziness le was followed up stairs when he went to get his clothes by the employers little son and claimed that little BERTIE had shot himself Two guns had been discharged charged into the childs body WOOD seemed to have no sense of the enormity of his crime JAMES MOORE 13 years old in New York the same day WOOD shot BERTIE WAGNER fired a small pistol full at the breast of a five years old boy named HEFELFINGER He was offended at the child put the pistol to his breast told him to prepare to meet hid GOD and shot him It was not a dangerous weapon and only inflicted a severe but not fatal wound in the left breast He claimed he did not know it was loaded I I We do not wish to pass any judgment I on the intent of the boy who is now charged with murder to wilfully commit that crime That will be for a jury to determine when all the evidence is presented I I sented But the precocity of children particularly in the direction of recklessness I reckless-ness and defiance of law and restraint is I remarkable and lamentable The common use of fire arms is to be deprecated Too many men carry revolvers re-volvers There is too much carelessness in leaving guns within reach of young I sters There is a fascination for them among many of tho boys Such dangerous dan-gerous weapons ought not to be entrusted ito i i-to them There is also too little parental i I restraint and too much of the liberty that recognizes no law among our young I people I The practice of carrying a pistol aright to be discouraged It is very rarely that any one butan pfficer needs to follow it And the necessity for policemen to go armed except with a club is growing rapidly less even in the wild west The measure of responsibility that attaches at-taches to such young violators of the law as the culprits we have named is a serious question for the administrators of the law to decide and is not without interest in-terest to the students of mental and moral philosophy |
