To the Editor of the "Norrs-Cursa Datty News."
Siz,—In your issue of the 10th instant is an account of two criminal trials in H. M. High Court at Weihaiwei and the result is that three persons, one a women, are now under sentence of death.
This would seem to be the first oe casion, since the territory of haiwei passed under the British fish, that capital punishment is to be inflicted. There are features about these trials which must strike any, but the most casual of readers, as unusual, if not irregular and possibly the procedure adopted on this occasion will form a precedent in future trials.
Is trial by jury unknown at Weihaiwei? Is the white population there too small to empanel a jury? If s0, why should not the decision rest with a native jury 1 Again, we read, ''the accused were not defended by counsel" while "Mr. Francis Ellis appeared for the Crown." Is it not the invariable rule of Bri criminals are provided with defence at the public expense?
I believe, Sir, that if the case of the persons condemned for poisoning could be referred to Criminal Court of Appeal they would—if defended by s lawyer—have a "fighting chance," for (1) No legal defence was provid-
(2) There was no trial by jury; on account of " loss of is quite common among, Chinese. It is quite within the bounds of possibility that the deceased took arsenic, and in revenge maintained, even with his dying breath, that he had been poisoned.
I am, ete., Fiat Justitia.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.