Alexandria advertiser and commercial intelligencer. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1800-1803, 1803-02-08

2
elaIly applicable TO the crime of tuellin9.
That this-erime prompted by rover &c and
committed with malice aiorerheusns, al.
ways Yartakes OF the nature Of mxulas .nur.
der and that j, fome,imes amounts 10 The
eveyt 4a ot,he mott aggra, ated marder.
none can realonably deny. 1t IS ALTO a
very general belief amorg civilized and
ESPECIALLY among chriitian people, ,aoe
every murderer, in the overt zt,, .clfeits
his lie and ought TO be cot off by the
fsord OF the civil power But, Under
., eient circumstances, it would be i'm
practicable, in this county, TO pun;fh
murders, commisted in deels, win dealt. 4
Laws. enatting capital Pun;lhments a.
gaintt duejling, however equitable They
might be in an ATTRACTED view, would
prove imperative and futile +; becaufc The
coauavening opinion, Especially OF the
higher clsacs, would 10 far parallze facI,
Isws, as 10 prevent their being impar.i-
ally and generally executed and if, in
Ifome inaances, the penalty Of death fhould
be inflicted, comsaaion for the criminal,
rather than horror againf the crime,
would be excited in the public mind -
Other means, more practicable, and con.
fequently more certainly eiGcacious, lhould
be uied for the fnppreRion of duellirg.
Ii the parties concerned in duels were
made to incur legal incapacity of hold
ing any office Of honor or prof. in the ma
tlon and alio the penalty OF disfranchife-
ment, for given time, or for life, Accord
ing to The various aggrayations of their
crimes fuch wholeiome meafures, vigor-
ouAy and impartialIy purified and esrri-
ed into complete eAed, might, in great
degree, prevent .heie bloody affrays.--
The fear of difgrace would, in many
minds. operate more powerfully than the
fear of death. Nor would it fail to have
a comfortable tendency to check the al
dent ipirit for duelling, thould the editors
of newspapers generally refufe TO publila
the details of Guch barbarous comhats.
There is not another country in chriifen-,
dom, probably not in the world, where
the seesads in a duel, have the prefump-
ton, Immediately after the CONTEXT, TO
publilh with the iignature Of their names,
detailed relation of its commencement,
progrefs and catastrophe, together with
encomiums on the gallant behaviour OF
rbeir REFLECTIVE f,,ncipUl,. Europeans,
muf read fnch publications with aaonih-
meat. and it is devoutly hoped, in behalf
of humanity, and for the honor of the ma.
ton, that they may rot be reiterated.
The comnoo plea for duelling it is not
impoGbIe TO remove, either by bringing
perfonal afronts, between gentlemen, IN
der the cegnzance of the courts Of juRice,
or by eaablihing fpscial tribunals of h.
nor, which ihall award the contending
parties. Bot any eaiettual attempts Of
this kind are, however, rather to be hoped
than expected, un!eis at iome diftant period.
9y properly educating the riGng genera
ton, the public opinion and tate may
gradually become 70 lar corrected & pufi-
fed, ,ha, the next age will reject the alb
furdi,y of afixing the name Of bonar to
a mott A,grant violation of the laws Of
humanity and of Heaven. Let all maxims
and leions of vicious nature, and eipc.
cially thole which tend to encourage duel
ling, be expunged from our fchool- books.
Let children be carefully taught the pure
and benevolent precepts Of the chrliisa
religion together with its foiemn doc
trlnes, rsfpetting the accountability and
endlefs exilience Of every human creature.
Tsis would be " laying the axe at the
root of the tree"
The principal fou,ce ofduelling is the
prevalence Of contempt for the chriAiau
fyltem Of faith and morality. II Is the
modern atheiltisal phiIoiophy, challenging
independence and ditclaiming all ideas OF
accountability, that emboldens men to
precirate themlelves before the awful TIL
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