What does it mean when a man's brain has been preserved for antiquity? Who on this earth gains such popularity as to have a piece of their body saved forever? These were the questions that Shall The Murderer Go Unpunished! seeks to reveal about why the very large brain of Edward H. Rulloff lays in a jar on display at Cornell University. Most of the other brains that make up the Wilder Brain collection housed there are those of great thinkers from the nineteenth century, except for Rulloff’s. The true account of his life that the author relates in the book is fascinating, so much so that it almost feels as if was a work of fiction.
Shall The Murderer Go Unpunished! follows the timeline of Rulloff’s extraordinary life. He first gained prominence in Ithaca, New York during the 1840’s as a brilliant young physician and school teacher, who also had an interest in the formation of human language. This promising future however, came to an abrupt end in 1845 when he was accused of the disappearance and murder of his young wife and infant daughter. This began a series of incidents that lead to one of the most exciting criminal investigations and legal battles of nineteenth century America. The events that occurred after the disappearance of his wife and daughter involved a spectacular cross-state manhunt, a jail break, mob violence, and brilliant legal wrangling by none other than Rulloff himself. Incredibly, all during this tumultuous time, he managed to continue his work on formulating a theory on the formation of human language, and nearly established himself as a respected scholar.
