ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.
THE CASE OF JFRATSON. (To the £ditor of the Daily Times.) Sir, —Among the Indians—the most uncivilized of savages—the common laws, of hospitality are held sacred, nnd the entertainer of the stranger or traveller would risk his life to protect his guest. But it would seem that it is only among our savages such laws are not held binding; else why should any petition be got up in favour of the criminal who barbarously broke them! The man who had "notlnn<r to say" why sentence of death should not be passed upon him, gives a tacit admission of the justice of his sentence ; and, it being so, makes his one of the blackest in the records of even colonial crime.
That, class hatred, combined with avarice was the actuating animus, appears from the remark—" Oh, but you are a gentleman, and I am only a poor man, Sec." It seems strange that Fratson's wife was not produced as one likely to be conversant with some of the circumstances, and as the criminal had expressed a wish for " an hour's conversation with his wite." Yours truly, J. de C. Young, M.D. Junction, Tuapeka, October 27th, 1862. [The writer should lenow that a wife is not competent to give evidence for or against her husband in a case of murder.—Bd. J). T. j
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Bibliographic details
Otago Daily Times, Issue 270, 31 October 1862, Page 5
Word Count
223ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE. Otago Daily Times, Issue 270, 31 October 1862, Page 5
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