Show ENGLISH COURTS Hard Work to Induce Them to Accept Ac-cept Insanity as an Excuse for Crime NEW YORK Nov 9A Herald special spec-ial from Washington says The reluctance of the English courts to accept insanity as an excuse for crime as just shown in the conviction of Mrs Castle recalls the case of Captain Cap-tain William C Miner a retired surgeon sur-geon of the United States army who is still confined in an English prison for a murder committed in 1872 while insane This officer is still borne on the army rolls and receives his pay through a conservator from the government gov-ernment Captain Miner was a native of New Haven Conn He was commissioned as an assistant surgeon in the army in 1S64 and continued in the field until the close of the war During the cholera epidemic in New York in 1866 Captain Miner offered his services in Fort Columbus where it was almost impossible to induce a physician to go and distinguished himself by his heroic he-roic work For his services congress conferred upon him the brevet of captain cap-tain His exertions during the cholera epidemic and dissipation shortly afterward af-terward undermined his health that he was retired in 1870 on account of disability disa-bility Captain Miner went to London in February 1872 During one of his debauches de-bauches in a cheap hotel in Lambeth in February of that year he became engaged in an altercation with a workingman work-ingman whom he stabbed and killed Former Ambassador Robert C Schenck of the United States spared no effort to insure the fair trial and as light a sentence as possible The plea of insanity in-sanity was advanced It had no effect in preventing the death penalty but the court finally sentenced the prisoner pris-oner to life imprisonment in Broad moore lunatic asylum where he has since remained despite the efforts of several Americans to secure his release re-lease Captain Miners condition at present is deplorable and he is seldom able to leave the ward for violent patients During his incarceration he has at no time failed to receive his pay as a retired officer which is received on his I behalf by his conservator Alfred Walker Walk-er of Rutland Vt II Ambassador Bayard said tonight I received a long letter from Mr Castle Ion I-on Saturday which I enclosed to Sir Matthew White Ridley the home secretary secre-tary who is kind considerate and sure to do what is right The officials have shown consideration in the entire case I have been precluded from doing I anything officialwith the home office in the matter because my official ve lations are confined to the foreign office Mrs Cnntle Relenscil NEW YORK Nov 9A special cable dispatch to the Sun from London says The home secretary signed last night an order for the release of Mrs Castle from Wormwood Scrubbs jail She will be discharged today unless she is unable un-able to leave the infirmary where she is still prostrated Her husband will go with her to America as soon as she is able to travel The pressure that has been brought to bear upon the government to secure Mrs Castles release has been of aston ishing weight and influence Both the home and foreign offices have received many messages daily from this country and the United States beseeching immediate im-mediate action Popular sympathy in England is en tirely in her favor and there will be no criticisms when her release is announced an-nounced this afternoon |