Mr. Bruce has not only respited the poisoner Christiana Edmunds,
but has quashed the decision of the Court which tried her by directing that she be sent to Broadmoor as a criminal lunatic. The true reason for this interference with justice we have mentioned elsewhere, namely, the dislike of the popular journalists, and especially of the Telegraph, to the punishment of death against any persons except Communists, and we have also endeavoured to trace some of the consequences of elevating all children of mad people into an aristocracy privileged to commit Crime with impunity. The official pretexts for the decree are, however, that Baron Martin recommended it, which we do not believe, as the Judge was bitter against the plea set up by the defence ; that Sir W. Gull thought the convict mad, which may be suite true, and is just as important as anybody else thinking so ; and that Dr. Orange, Superintendent at Broadmoor, thought so too. Dr. Orange, of course, is a first-class expert, but so were
shaking it in the face of the class, cried out, " Now sing ' Christ be the four mad-doctors whose evidence on the trial was rejected. merciful,' will you ? " laid down the general principle of the Confer- It is, however, useless to criticize the doctors, the real reason for pardon being that a weak man thought the papers would scold him if he hanged a woman: of some education and refinement, whose father was mad. Had Christiana Edmunds been a servant she would have been hanged without more ado, and we should never have heard a word about her latent insanity.
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