The Charlotte journal. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1835-1851, 1846-02-13
From the Greensboro Patriot;
WE HAVE A PENITENTlARi


the respective SherIils OF North Carolina,
TO open poll at our next August election,
for the lreemen OF the State to decide thus
question. Every person entitled to vote
for member OF the House OF Commons,
will Je at liberty TO vote for OF against
Pentenlarv. The same act requires the
Governor of this State 10 obtain such sta.
tlstical information as he may be able to
procure from the Governors oi the several
States in which PenltentiarIcs are now es-
tablishcd, and cause the same 10 be pub
ished, previous 10 the election. W hen
this report shall be published, II will no
doubt assist the voters OF the State ia COM
ing TO u correct conclusion IN regard 10
the Penilentiary System, and Is therefore
looked for with some interest.
In advance Of this report, wish 10 Of
fer few plain, practical HINTS touching
the subject, for the perusal Of your read
crs. And although | may not rival IN PHI
losoplcal reasoning or persplcuily OF style,
Mr.. Sylyanus," whose first OF series
of Nos. appeared in your last paper, co.
pied from the Raleigh Register, yet II |
can add any thing towards awakening an
interest on the subject, aud induce other
more competent persons entertaining sim.
liar views with myself in regard to the es.
tablishmen, Of a Penllenliary, to take up
the subject and give It that thorough lnyes-
,igalion which its importance demands,
my main oblec, will have been attained.
] believe the people of North Carolina
are more 10th TO give ~ old established
customs than perhaps those Of any other
State IN th, Union. We hive no sudden
changes IN Ihe political character OF the
State such changes are graGual-almust
lmpercePtib!e Ia our agricultural pursuits,
We follow, generation after generation, the
same routine Of our fathers before US. Our
fathers cut down and cleared Up Just as
much woods during the winter Is they
could, IN order that they NIGH, haze plenty
Of fresh land to ull IA summer, with very
little effort 20 improve and keep good Ihut
which was already cleared wr 10 pretty
much the same thing. The monomaua
for something new Ia religion has never
taken possession OF our people. \ Mile.
rite or Mormon would hardly flourish on
North Carolina soil. As people, our Old
established rules and regulations, both IN
Church and State. are almost a. Hchunge-
able as those OF the Medcs bud Persians
This policy, although It has caused Us Ia
some respects to be behind the age 10
which We live IN improvements Of various
kinds. and 10 have the title Of Cd Rip
Van Wrinkle applied to us, il has also
preserved US from The difficulties and en-.
thraimenls under which many Of the o'hcr
Slalea. Isi-at, Il oar lel.a.loae policy has
not developed the resources II the State SO
fully az might bc desired, It has KEEP, US
out Of debt.
Bu, IN making the radical change IN our
criminal code which would be necessary,
should the Penientiary system be adopted,
we arc not making leap IN the dark-wc
are not irving some new experiment, that
may or may no, succeed Other States
have tried Il, aud We can have tic bcncf,
Of heir experience, IN the adoption Of such
sysiera. 4 large portion OF our SISTER
States have ti.ed the system. II any If
them have abandoned after once adopting
It, am not aware Of the fact. The pre-.
sumption Is, tina, It a Pcultoutiafy IS a
curse instead Of blessing % O State, the
people OF those States that have So long
tried them, would have been sufficiently
keen to have made the discovery and to
have abolished the system. It's not often
that sou hear the lankecs accused cl not
attending 10 their own interest. But It
may be said that our sliu5tion Is so !Ir
different from that OF the Northern States,
as to render course or policy injurious to
Us, which would DO b.uchclul 10 them. In
some things It mhy b. so. But the South
as eell as the North has tried the Pcuitcu.
tiary system, and found il 70 work wei.
The nett profits Of such an establishment
Ia North Carolina might not, aud prubu.
bly, would not be as gtoa, rs those OF some
other States. The profits Of the sing Sing
State Prison, y. York, for the yeurs 737,
%, 80, amounted h upwards Of $50 600
la Tennessee, from which We might
form some estimate for cur own State, the
profits were for 1886, '37, Sli,43O ~.
But were | sure that Pcnitcnllary would
be an annual expense 70 the State, still, as
at present advised should 20 for It, az a
matter Of sound State policy, and better
calculated 10 meet more fully aud lmparll-
ally the ends Of justice.
/ The No. over the signature Of sylvia.
nus" published in the Patriot last week,
contains little which feel nj present dis.
posed 10 controScrt, being mostly made up
Of general principles and Gne.spun thco.
RES, that may or may not be correct; bur
which cannot, IN the present state Of socl.
ETY., be reduced to practice. For instance,
It Is said, with emphases--" The great pre-.
dIsposing cause Of crime IS the want Of
moral prIncipIc--a weak and perverted
/ principle" 1t is even 50. Be it very far
from ne to contend that q high minded
honorable mau--onc that has had the prln.
cipIe Of honesty aud probIty mstilEcd into
bun from his youth ~, IL likely to com.
mt larceny OF that christian man will
STAY his brother. Tho writer then argues
correctly that the strength Of this " moral
principle Is dependent upon the character