The Sun.
London, England, 1869-03-17 00:00:00

THE REPRESSION OF CRIMINALS.

The humanitarian view of the criminal qucshon is
still taken by a small minority of our public writers,
by Mr. James Greenwood amongst the rest. On the
day after he wrote protesting against the theory of
. thieves co-operating together, and of pawnbrokers
quickly disposing of stolen property, the letters of
"N. A. W." appeared in the Times. These
conclusively shewed that the thieves do, for
some purposes at least, co-operate together.
They act to protect and hide one another, and have
houses in which they regularly meet. There are
regular leaving shops which take in,. and very
quickly—too' speedily the police say for detection
under the present system—stow away, the goods. Mr.
Greenwood appears to be still unconvinced however.
The latest thing which has frightened him is the
proposal for a branl on criminals. He brings before
, our eyes the old picture, albeit not from life, of the
would-reform-if-he-could criminal being hunted
down by the brutal officer, not being able to obtain
work, and being driven back to live the life he wished
so much to shun. The criminal has Mr. Green-
wood's full sympatiy. His extermination is a thing
to be guarded against. The policeman, on the other
heaanddt isthle eanftdiestbvhialan and Mr. Greenwood has one con-
solationthe suppression of crime would
l
ding of the odious officers of the
law. We should have no objection to the times
interests," be sent about his
business. But whit Mr. Greenwood would rejoice
becominge
s o
toq alluie t v
o t htaetd the policeman might, " with
due regard
rd
at the absence of tie man in blue, we should more
exult if the slouching rascal who had been wont to
live on other people's money had disappeared.
In connection with this subject the complaints con-
cerning the Irish police may be noticed. We are
about to model our system somewhat on the Irish
plan, and we should be careful that we copy only
that which is good. The Dublin correspondent of
the Standard, referring to the increase of un-
detected crime, stye " The strictly military
organisation of the force disables its mem-
bers from discharging the most important
duties of a police ; they cannot lay aside the habits
and bearing of the parade, alter their personal
appearance, mix with the people as if they were of
them, and become " ill things to all men," as the
Londen detective or the French monchard does with
such effect when ferreting out information or hunting
down a criminal." The Tipperary magistrates
have taken the ratter into consideration, and
have unanimously resolved that the attention of the
Government should be called to the matter, the
opinion of the meeting being that a special corps of
detectives should be added to the force, and that
encouragement should be given to those members
of the general body who should distinguish them-
selves in, or spew special aptitude for, the tracking
of criminals and discovering the plans of the insti-
gators of crime.

MURDERERS ON CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.
We must commend to Mr. Gilpin, M.P. for North-
ampton, a r 3werful argument in favour of the aboli-
tion of capital punishment, which he will hardly fail
to use when next he brings the subject before Parlia-
ment. The American papers report a meeting held
under permission of the warders in Thomaston
State Prison. The iacetmg was made up of con-
\ cted persons, and all the officers were under
sentence of death. The question discussed was

capital punishment. The following resolution on
the subject was passed :—" That we appeal to the
humane Christian citizens and legislators of the State

in behalf of society itself—society which is brutalised
and made a breeder of criminals by its infliction of
punishments which are vindictive—not to go back a
quarter of a century, and re-establish this relic of
barbarism, the gallows—not to go back to incurring
the ever-impending danger of shedding the blood of
innocent men—to statutes which statistics shew
12inw.,asol!ftill?y iiife.a.s.e_cfimmetileainrdpenrslaoltnes
and property. We ask this because it is not so
much Harris we would save from ignominy as the
State." This is not extracted from the pages of

Punch, but is, so far as we know, a trio Story.
The extreme unselfishness of these men is remark•
able—" it is not so much Harris we would save from
ignominy as the State."

CROWNEVS QI/EST LAW.
A book detailing some of the more remarkable
incidents connected with coroners inquests would
make
Riding of Yorkshire.
jury comes from the West
grimness
very
ofplethaseanitmiea ding
m•our if oneAsingular getretfhae
nTahmeye .dweßreeeNc.earll.edlt in
to
appque
eairredinttohate
thhedeawatsh
roif a man
dingon
the shafts of a waggon, and driving it on the high-
way, the wheels -of the cart came in contact with
some large. stones on the road, and the man was
nt. ibeehrlogax.d,
out. 'rho
maurrh
en
Jaifinryed,
jaeirrie:lionfrooifniiihiesroicadtsaufdvefyeollrsu,nder the wheels, and
Crti
was killed. It appears that the stones were placed
on
to prevent
under. the
prevent the road
fr:in the first instance,
found . that the man's death " had been caused as
stated,' and recommended the surveyors to mercy.
The coroner said that he could not accept such a
recommendation, but the jury must find whether the
deceased came by his death through not using due
caution, or whether through the conduct of the sur-
veyors. The foreman of the jury proposed to decide
this point at once,.but the coroner told him he must
consult his colleagues, and the jury, having retired
again, brought in a verdict of accidental death,
caused by the carelessness of the deceased. Then a
juror took upon himself to state that they did not
want to get the man Taylor into trouble, or they
W4Natiliticht in344oauglittrj ,