Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1843-03-03

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Of the penalty, but the putting ii where God puts for
all mankind, as the penalty alone for murder.
ihavc proved the restraining influence Of this pen
atty in preventing crime. Next as to It's protective
influence for society 1t is manifest that this is jus.
proporoncd TO us restraining influence the GRIM
NAL. Whatever prevents crime, protects society,"
Now, your n rogang course is so fur from giving
cety projections that II Is almost m invitation to muir
der Let us trace the course of things Memo re-
pente fuit turpissimus. No man becomes n mirdcr.
er at once. man begins his career with small steps.
From his fathers house forth into the wilderness of
crime he goes tindIy But the tenderness of his con-
science is gradually destroyed, and one crime and
another is committed il may be with impun,y The
penalty of discovery he has often faced md became
cnstomcd TO look at it calmly and to balance
sequences: Disgrace, fine, imprisonment all these
are evils that may be borne. If the worst ensncs.
still life remains and there is hope in ingenuity and
even in guilt But at length his steps in crime have
brought him to the verge Of murder His victim is be-
fore him. Perhaps it is rich, gray haired old man,
sleeping calmly in his bed at midnight The dagger
ia hited Now, between this crime about to DO per-
pc,rated and every lower crime, there is vastness
OF separation which the mind cannot fathom. Ii is
invested with horrors; puts whole coils Of serpents
in his conscience; it has redncss and blaze Of
guilt, which, ii my symbol could mark them, ought
TO he set up in open day to the universe ought to be
made to flash like sword Of fire upon the soul. Put
your hardened man Of guilt does not this And
what have YOU done to remind him OF it? What sep.
nrating wall have you raised to Keep his soul from the
dannation of this guilt, Of which God himself hath
sad that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him
He has come 20 the verge of murder. What Is there
now to stay him What writing on the wall, what
external sign what additional terror to rouse up his
conscience and show him tho tremendous depths Of
the gulf he is about passing? What is there to show
him that the step he is taking is not of his pre-
vious degrees of crime, bu. convnsivc, awful sweep
of his being into depth of guilt, compared with
which the whole previous inquity Of his life is as
thing You have put no mark here. You have torn
down the barrier, which God himself had erected in
mercy to the criminal as well as 10 the innocent
You have taken away the landmark the warning
which God himself has put up for all mankind, and
which assurcdly marks mrh,incss of guilt and of
in the next s,ep Of evil, which nothing but the
wide difference between the penalty Of death and
~ lower penalty con'd mark. You mus, have such
mark the soul Of humanity calls upon you for it /;
the ood of every murdered victim creth from the
ground, you are guilty of monstrous inqaity if you
blot 1t out; for there is no comparison between the
madness the ruthlcssncss the consciousness Of muir
der and every other crime. In mercy to your fellow.
creatures, you called on to distinguish it from
cry other b, penalty which like that tniute of God
that statute of mercy at the world opening, stamp
ed the image of IT'S inlqLIty into the soul of mankind.
D.. | have taken the of whose successive
steps in crime have brought him to the verge of
der, as new and separate guilt. But suppose him to
be brought to the verge OF murder while IN the com.
mission of some other crime, and in order to conceal
It, then the argument becomes vastly more powerful.
While the Temptcr is whispering, If take this man 8
life, may conceal my chine, conscience and the law
should answer, You die for it. The ministers OF JUS
tice will be infinitely keen in your pursuit, the
eyes Of the whole community will be flashing for YOU
mere suspicion will detect you your own conscience
$ will lead you TO discovery; and DEATH temporal and
eternal is before you. The motive for the conceal
of crime is powerful an incentive TO murder in
such case that we are bound TO guard against it
But 10 abolish inns penalty is directly 20 throw the
il temptation of murder in the wa, of criminal who,
perhaps, otherwise would have dared to think of H.
. even for the cOncea!ment of the crime. To abolish
this penalty is 10 mike murdereTs out of common VII
lains. They will murder 10 conceal their other crimes
= soon as you reduce the penalty for murder to the
same level with that for others The penalty for muir
der being no greater they no worse off even ifds-
o covered. Without the murder, perhaps discovery is
Il inevitable and imprisonment must ensue. With the
C murder even fdscovered, the penalty can be no more
v than Imprisonment. But by the murder the whole
crime may be concealed and the murderer may come
Il off completely clear. Ii is manifest in such case
= that nothing Ut this penalty can protect society.
, have shown that this penalty is necessary for the
n .estrant of crime and the protection Of society.
shall now show that the proposed abolition of it is un
just and lnhuman in the last degree Ii is a policy
the cruelty and b,rbarsm Of which is susceptible OF
e perfect demonstration, 1t introduces the element
@ nhumanity into the education Of society. You
If jurisprudence is most important part OF your cduca
If ton for the community II trains The common con
1t science. But in the abolition Of this penalty you
n cason general deg radiation Of The moral sense yot
d teach that there is difference between the guilt o
murder, and that of mere forgery and stealing lo,
lessen mems estimate of the sacredness of human life
d and you unconsclousv training men passions FOL
o the cruelty of murder You degrnde the whole sup
ec and science of moras for dis is at the ground
full swing dueinr bloody riots, and private revenge
II Whn, you refuse as government to do for the family
and friends of the murdered man. and for the nteres
II of the community, You may be sure the m1iiShv o
y private vengeance will not fail to accomplish. Y Oh
lake away the strong security of your police and yo
expose the lives of your keepers to imminent haz
y ard a most faithful and viganl police officer, sine
,r the abolition ofcapta punishment has been spoken
t. az probable thing has had his own life Threatened
J. and the lives of others in his presence. and when h
has told the villain that his own life must pay the for
lie felt of such crime, the answer has cen There
to no fear of that in these days. The polce officer nd
died. that if the law should deprive him of This protec
u ton, he should be afraid to 60 to hnunts oil crime
y which in the support Of the law he now visits Wn
indeed what public servant, either in this city or |
G. London would dare plunginto the of crime
" ferret out the villain, il the strong fear Of this penalt
or d not go before hunt
i'll Your zeal for the abolition of this penalty may b
lg the zeal of love- but il the logic and philanthropy
", Of cruelty and murder 1t is n mosr nhuman neg
lect Of the interests Of the innocent TO save the fo
ry ieited lives Of abandoned villains, the example
h. whose security will sharpen the appetite of oil oh'
n, murderers and who will certainly themsc YES murd
e- aeain, if they can get out of prison. It's phla'
lat thropy that pays regard whatever TO the unqle
ID toned fact that thousands OF murders have been pr
nd vented by this penalty, thousands of innocent me
n saved and innocent families preserved from the stu
be Of the ASSASSIN but with morbid, diseased pseudo
- benevolence rakes the records of crime TO. tho:
Ter mistakes to which human lmpericclon necessary
Of expose human legislation, and if in hundred cas-
he false executions be made out in two thousar
Sn years il regards the lives Of thousand innocent pc
"a sons saved from the murderer nohingln the con
os parison. Ten innocent persons killed by mistake
hal two hundred years, more than balance again
re the lives of hundred innocent persons who won
eve have been killed by the murderer, had not been
TO this penalty. The truth is your statistics anc calc
n laiions of profit aud loss Of human life are as III
g been admirably sad the arithmetic OF Judas lscarle
nj the calculations of the price Of innocent blood.
len Now that have met this objection OF the dang
me of mistaking the innocent, for the guilty, allow me
re- demolish il more f w.. There is the same dang