The Express.
London, England, 1849-11-26 00:00:00

aye grovels*.

OUTGOING MAILS.
The ant nine for Lisboa. Bpsia, sad Gibraltar will be
aide imp to-morrow, Nov. 27.
The mails for British North Almeria. sad the United
Mates will be made up is the evestag of Nor. 30.
The Well India Mails, iselading Bermuda, Havanne,
Nassau.
Madero, New Orleans. sad Mezieo, sad ezelsding
Uwe for Madeira. Bt. Issa-da-Nieueras, New Granada,
Mi. sad Peru, will be made up sa Dee. 2.
The mails for Madeira, the Brazils, an& Bassos Ayres,
will be made up on Des. 4.
Theels& asa Marsei/leo, to the Moditerreaems, Egypt,
Ceylon, India. Hoag-Kong, in, will be made upon
W main et Dee. 7.
The sew far Gibraltar, Melts, Grease, the lonian tetrads,
Egypt, Coyle., India, and Chins, via Southampton, will
be node up at the atoning of Dee. 20.

IEIOII WAWA AT LONDON MIME
Teo tok. Ahem.. II k. Au.
IIA Ala Afeeraos. 12 A. O.

LONDON, MONDAY, NOTEMBDR 26

THERE is a sufficiently large class of people in the
world opposed from their very nature to ideas of
either philanthropy or change, and who scout both
one and the other as idle and as dangerous. This
clue is quite numerous enough to cry down the End
eloquent philanthropists, and most certain to reamed
in doing so if philanthropists will quarrel, and instead
of advancing together, fall out by the way, divide
their efforts and their paths, and thus betray them-
selves and their cause to the machinations and the
triumph of their common foe.
Such would seem to be the conduct of those,
who strive to do away with the barbarism of death-
pwaistments. Certes, they who labour for the
complete abolition, and they who are contented
with substituting private for public execution,
are animated with very similar eentiments, act
in obedience to the same feeling, and would
deliver humanity from the same horrid
and brutalising night-mare. Their interest, there-
fore, tells them to go together, and duty dic-
tates to them to observe the common rale of political
action in the attainment of an object which must be
straggled for and won in a political field.
The abolition of capital punishment is a great thing,
which must reform the very heart and soul of our cri-
minal jurisprudence,tind force it into that path of moral
prevention, on which it has not yet had the wisdom
or courage to enter. As long as people gave monarchs
despotic power, and armies to exercise it, the monarchs
cared or thought little of the arts or wisdom or
niceties of government. It is only since rulers Dave
had the great powers of coercion and intimidation
taken from them, that they have learned to govern.
So will it be with judicial gages. Take from
them the whip and the halter, and they will
soon learn how to repress and prevent
crime without them. The abolition of death
punishment in law is what the abrogation of absolute
power and divine right was in monarchy, the com-
mencement of the reign of political science and humaue
progress.
This is but one of the many great reasons for the
abolition of death punishments. We state it, merely
to show how narrow a view is taken of the sub-
ject by those who demand it solely for the
make of mercy to criminals, or of affording
a lesson of cruelty the less to a cued mob.
The abolition of death punishments is, we repeat, a
great thing. The substitution of private for public
executions a small thing. The one is a great political
act, full of purport and of consequences. Tree other
is a mere satisfaction to decorum, the skin-healing of a
few leprous spate, a superficial application that leaves
the core as rotten and as corrupt as ever.
But if a small point gained were a progress to the
attainment of a greater end, one might bail it and
accept it. Instead of being any such thing, the pre-
sent small point, on the contrary, is the very thing to
perpetuate death punishments. It is the very dodge
that politicians like Sir GEORGE Gaze, for example,
would imagine to defeat it. And we, for our parts,
have known it as Bir GEORGE Garv's dodge, long
before the Mehotixo festival impelled Mr. DICKENs
to write his recent lettere.
And in applying the word "dodge" to Sir GEORGE
OUT, we do not mean to impugn the sincerity of
that statesman. A minister charged with the policy
of a country is naturally disinclined to disarm him-
self of a power which he has hitherto wielded. And
in order to perpetuate the punishment of death,
which he prizes, he seeks to get iid of its popular
objection by removing the scene of punishment within
the gaol. If we understood Mr. Iltchehs. he would
prefer the abolitiou of the punishment of death, but,
despairing of attaining it, he grasps at Sir GEORGE
°ELT's middle term, and thereby gives the greatest
blow that could be given to those, with whom he has
hitherto thought and struggled.
Mr. DICKENS having done this, must, we think,
have been prepared for an outburst of annoyance and
almost of resentment. Such an act as that of Mr.
Diceeses, however allowable in philosophy, is
scarcely pardonable in poli'ics. Contemplate the fate
of PEEL. Llok at that awaiting DISRAELI for daring
to abandon protection, and demand some middle term.
All the good intentions, pure motives, conscientious
scruples, in the world wit not save a man in such a
position from the strenuous and naturally provoked
remonstrance of his party,or from being apostrophised
in the rude and home-spun language of political 1r
We must confess ourselves in nowise reconciled
private executions by the example of the United
States. The population of America, however more ad-
vanced than we are in some respects, is still very much
behind us in others. One difference is, the spirit of
vindictiveness, which is much stronger in America
than with ut—a country where the want of law and
tribunals has; in so many districts and instances so-
enstome d the ptoplc to act itself as judge and execu-
tioner: In many cases the American people, would not
be satisfied with less than execution, and the Ameri-
can public is sovereign. Now, an English public has
no vindictive feeling, which is one of the reasons for
abolishing death punishments, those really not find-
ing any echo in the breasts of the people. Bad es
the Matthreet were, who o jolce 1 in their fate, or
would 13 va been disappointed by their consignment
to a Norfolk Island dungeon ?
Another argument employed against those who
repudiate private execution on the ground that pub-
licity is the basis of our judicial system, and ought
not to be dispensed with is, that these same persons
demand the ballot. Our political, oar religious, and
ear Judicial instieeions are, however, three very dif-
ferent things. If we were to frame a new society
and a new cc,de of law, we eh oeld certainly frame
both so as to admit publicly, and insist upon
it. But if you have already founded a state
of religions society, for example, which renders the
holding of certain opinions p.na!, you must allow
secrecy es a protection. Again, if you have a state
of society divided into kids and serfs, or into
erapinyets, and labeurers dependent upon them, there
too if you would have them wield esditical power,
you :mu,: unit et cr. cy ti,,:.
judicial proceedings you cannot admit any such rule,