Southport telegraph. [volume] (Southport, W.T. [i.e. Kenosha, Wis.]) 1840-1850, 1848-12-29
CAPITAL PUNEsHgNHENTs.

In England, as in this country, great eff
forts are made to create a public sentiment
against capital punishments. Formerly,
the criminal code OF England was bloody
one, bnt of late years it has been greatly
mtlgated by the abolition of The death pun
ishmcnt for minor offences.
Oar relOrmers, i'll advocating the aboli.
ton OF the gallows, seem to rely more upon
abstract reasoning, than appeals 10 facts
they display much ingenuity in discussing
the theological view, and the question
whether Human Government has right TO
take life IN any case. Our transatlantic
trends are more practical. They investi-
gate with great care the statistics of crime,
and dwell upon the comparative effects
upon It's prevention. or Abatement ohsery-
able under the successive charges in the
criminal code. The London EIeciic con-
tans numerous interesting facts and figures
upon this subject, some Of which it will be
instructive TO notice.
1t is admitted that the number of the
crimes for which the punishment by death
has been removed, increased from 1926 To
i74G. 70 per cent; but the force of the
inference that might be- drawn in favor of
capital punishment from this, is destroyed
By several consideration. For example,
when the penalty for rape was death, pros
ecutors would often indicl only for the
minor offence, assault with intent" The
penalty being charged, prosecutions were
vigorously urged for the real cline, so that
the criminal tables showed an increase,
which. however, was only apparent. So,
when burglary CEASED TO be a capital of
fence. the law defined the crime anew, en-
bracing offences committed between certain
hours of the evening and morning, much
larger portion of the twenty-four hours,
and not, as formerly, those alone commit
ted during darkness. The tables of com
mltment and conviction would Of course
show an increased number of eases, with
out there being therefore real increase of
crime. Again: when forgery was capital,
1t was customary TO include under one head
only the capital, commitments but hang
ing for this crime having been abolished,
are classed under the same
head, which were never capital offences,
very large proportion Of the
entire number offorgeries.
In passing, we may remark, that these
examples demonstrate what mischievous
errors mere tables of statistics, without ac-
companylng references 10 explanatory
may lead to-.
In George the Thirds time, too, when
200 offences were punishable with death.
crime increased $50 per cent. i'll four
years.
Finally, il the crimes on which the death
penalty has been removed, have increased
20 per cent. since the removal, the crime
on which 1t has been retained, has increas-
Ell IN The same time l25 per cent.
The following official table is relied on
10 prove tie effect Of diminution of exc
cutlons on the number of murders.
In the Z years ending |
In England and Wales. 1920 1927 1854 |
Total executed for all crimes G49 iJi 355 |
Number executed Of Hlu, der
CTS convicted al 1l3 105 |
1--WE will next show that the fewest ex- |
scutions, in proportion to tie number of |
produces the fewest murders, |
n future years. We select, from great
mass of evidence, the following return
In Inc 6 years ending /
1918 1924 1886 I342 /
Executed for murder l22 81 IS 80 |
Committed for murder IA 407 All 35I |
But the lie Tic, anticipating the object
on that these cycles are too short TO fur
ash materials for correct judgment, says
I'VE viii take the lhirly-two years end |
ng 1912, london and Middlesex.) and I
iifldlng this period into two perinds Of /
sixteen years each, we get the following
striking result: In The first sixteen years,
Ill who were convicted of murder, thirty
our in number were executed. The ruisfs