Travesty of justice

Tucson Citizen, January 5, 1907. Interesting bit of reportage here. First you’ve got that skeptical “at least to the satisfaction of the police,” then a similarly qualified reference (“police say”) to a confession obtained “under the third degree,” meaning they beat the snot out of the guy. Which leads us to the point that the whole arson scenario makes zero sense. He sets fires and then runs into the burning buildings to steal “fluffy things”? There are easier ways than that to get your hands on some cashmere.