Going Postal, Pre-Pistol How did mass murderers operate before the advent of modern weapons?

slate.com ^ | 26 July, 2012 | Brian Palmer

[marktwain]

The shooting spree that killed 12 people in an Aurora, Colo., movie theater on Friday has sparked a public debate about the availability of automatic weapons. Gun control advocates argue that mass murder is exceedingly difficult without them. One source told the Washington Post, “It’s kind of hard to be a pseudo-commando with a musket in the 18th century.” How did people commit mass murder before the advent of automatic weapons?

Often with fire. Revolutionary War veteran Barnett Davenport is widely considered the first mass murderer in U.S. history. On the evening of Feb. 3, 1780, Davenport burst into the bedroom of his employer, Caleb Mallory, and began to bludgeon Mallory and his wife with a club. When the club broke in two, Davenport beat the couple to death with Mallory’s gun. If Davenport had stopped there, he would be remembered as just an ordinary killer; most criminologists define mass murder as the killing of at least three people in a single incident. After beating the Mallorys to death, however, Davenport burned the house down, killing their three grandchildren.

Hundreds of other mass murderers have perpetrated their crimes without automatic firearms. Frenchman Pierre Riviere killed his mother, sister, and brother with a bill hook in 1835. In 1932, Julian Marcelino, a Filipino immigrant of relatively small stature, managed to kill six and wound 15 on a Seattle street using only a pair of blades. In 1915, Monroe Phillips shot seven dead and wounded 32 with a shotgun in Georgia.

Guns aren’t even the most lethal mass murder weapon. According to data compiled by Grant Duwe of the Minnesota Department of Corrections, guns killed an average of 4.92 victims per mass murder in the United States during the 20th century, just edging out knives, blunt objects, and bare hands, which killed

[stpio]

It’s not the “guns” but the times. God’s “grace” is off
this nation, look at what we declare legal, a right, mortal sin.

We’re like the walking dead. We need God’s grace in our
souls, He can’t be present in us with even one mortal sin on our soul.

Regular Confession, true repentance and confession to God
of our mortal sins and a daily prayer life...for the life
of your soul.

[allmendream]

Just going by what Annie said.

[virgil]

The Our Lady of the Angels school fire (1958) was an arson. Over 90 children perished.

[Cyber Liberty]

Jack the Ripper probably never saw a gun. Explosives were also pretty common.

Actually, a pistol or rifle or even a shotgun would be poor weapons of choice to someone out to kill a lot of people. We’ve seen what can be done with the clever application of box-cutters.

[UCANSEE2]

This guy is one bad dude.

"He's just a pussy with a gun."

[dznutz]

Here is a link to a documentary about Holmes on hulu tv. I live on the south side of Chicago and worked in the neighborhood where his murder castle was located at 63rd and Stewart Ave. There is a postal building there now. Occasionally near Halloween, the media will do a story on how people say the postal building is haunted. link

[stuartcr]

Also because in modern times, there are way more opportunities to find large groups of unarmed people gathering.

[Born Conservative]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qItugh-fFgg