The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1849-05-08
Kew York State Anti-Capitai Punishment
ROclerv.


ciety
The President introduced the Rev. w. s. BALcH to
the audience who the report Of the Execu
tive Committee The committee, although they can
not congratulate their friends tho entire success Of
their liberal and Christian enterprise happy in
the conviction that their abors not in vain but
had wrought great change in public sentiment that
must eventually produce the repeal Of the law Of blood
and the substitution Of penal code which would bet
ter promote the objects OF good governmenthc rcfor
Of criminals In tho Legislature of this State,
although it WAS believed that majority was in favor
OF such law yet owing to the laencss Of the period
to which action postponed, there had been
fun vote or final decision on tho subject.
Early action in tho way Of petition, was urged
necessary to be adopted for the next
sion Progress had been made in other States la
Michigan restoration Of the gallows, abolished three
years ago was sought but theoretically; there was no
increase Of crime exhibited as the consequence. IL
was otherwise in this city and State owing as the
committee thought. to the death penalty In circuit Of
twenty miles. four murders had been committed within
a few weeks after the execution Of Similar in
stances were adduced in other sections of the State as
showing the pernicous influence of the death penalty
1t had become proverbia also that murderers were
generally acquitted and turned forth on the commu-
nifty to repeat their deeds Particularly was this the
fact in regard to those who possessed the of
ploying able counsel Abolish the death penalty, and
there would be difficulty in empannell jurors
curing convictions During the there had been
great ameioration in tho of prison line in
this State ard the universal testimony that 1T had
been productive Of the most favorable results in all
The men improved in conduct and did also
their Of action, had distributed thou
sand pages Of books and tracts among the people, and
especially legislative bodies embDdying arguments in
favor Of the abolition OF the gallows and they be-
lievcd with the most beneficial results This had been
done only by expenditure Of no little labor aud ex
pensc. II was DESTROYS to continue these labors and
the committee hoped for the active cooperation Of the
members of the society and the friends generally Of
this great reform Tho report concluded with con-
graduation the brilliant prospect whca opened Of
the speedy abolition of the gaows for ever from the
land.
Tl,ar M
The President then said he had the pleasure to in
troduce to the Society MIR MrNpEL PLLrs of Boston.
report of what they had been doing in Massachusetts,
in the good The general subject he would leave
those who followed him. The question Of the aboli
ton of the gallows was TO some, perhaps, tre sub
ject and which, locking at the familiar faces col
lected in that meeting might be supposed to have made
very little impression the community at large. He
could congratulate them however, on the fact that
there general awakening in community on the
subject He had jus, learned fact which h mad just
Of the immense progress OF public sentiment
there this subject within the last twenty
years. Until within third of that time, its agita-
ton had been confined to an attempt at legis-
lave reform of the penal code. in which, however de-
spite eloquent speeches. logical reports and convincing
statistics, very little progress was made Last month
miserable coored sailor, Washington Goode was con-
victed Of murder, and sentenced to be hung. When
few men undertook to rouse the public sentiment of
Massachusetts to grave and solemn protest against
his execution in seventeen days $4,000 names sent
in to Governor Briggs against the
cution of anybody under the laws Of Massachusetts,
And If was Of any consequence OF them
were voters too In 1925, Governor Morton was act
ing Governor Of the State and he had stated that
one occasion wishing to commute the punishment OF
sentenced to DEATH he could not secure name to
support him in 1t; but the contrary 5000 petition
urged him to speed the execution of the crimi
nal. few years ago, young man named Clark, some
sixteen years OF age was condemned TO dea.n Newoa
broken father made his way foot to Boston begging
from village to village, for petitioners for the pardon
of his and yet he could but or two in all
that distance of $50 miles In 1S49 the seed had fallen
in goody places and brought forth sixty and hun
bred fold and with effort $4,000 people had
called upon the Governor to allow no more executions
Applause) 1t was gratifying evidence OF the change
in the public sentiment. MIR. p then referred to the
fact that the doctrine of the necessity Of capital pun
shment was article in the orthodox creed of some
Of the Evangelical secs of New York. being merely
a theological and not Christian or Bible one. The
mass he sad did not argue, and the prejudces in IA
Of the gallows argued up, and, there
fore, never would be reasoned down. 1t was to be
frowned down by the spontaneous conviction of the hu
man heart Why that in all ages and in all lands
the executioner regarded disreputable and
disgraced man-that in Spain he obliged to skulk
into the village and perpetrate the deed the
people of the village could lay hands upon him.
1t was that there were something in the human heart
that rcvolted against it. Mr. urged that the agta-
ton should be shaped to and excite this in
nate feeling twould be of great service to Chrstian
ty The Bible gave sanction to the death penalty,
and he who claimed it being arrayed against the
moval Of the abuses of the past injured its far
more than the ndel or the habitual sneerer scoGer
Mr. p dwelt this point illustrating it by references
to the history Of the past and present He referred to
the fact that convictions among respectable men were
another instance, evincing the growing dislike
Of the people to the death penalty In Massachusetts,
not man scarcely, who had money enough to secure
the services Of Rufus Choatc, could be convicted by
Boston jury Such had always been the progress OF
reform In England, in the age of Queen Anne, no
person charged with capital offence allowed the
assistance Of professional man. but obliged to de-
fend himself To the peasant who had never spoken
in the presence of Judge, thus brought before ri-
bunal he mad been ever accustomed to regard with
awe, 1t was virtually dcpriving him OF all defence
But when the higher classes were subjected to the
law-when the Lord Lenoxes and Others in their
treasons caused the streets to with blood, the
British Parliament granted them the of assis-
tant counsel, though still refusing 1t to the pea
peasants SO in France was supposed that the reveu-
ton in its first BREATH had abolished the death penal
ty. Not at all it merely exempted from death the
Lamarines and the Ledru Rollins, and the law still
mains the statute book to operate the laborer OF
France, who may take single life instead Thousands
lie deepiscd the reformation confined to the upper
classes alone (Applanse2 Take the case of Washing
born in Pennsylya living most of his time the
bosom of the Mississippi river and then sailor be-
longing to degraded class through the prcjudices of
the American people ignorant alike of the laws and the
Bible which Dr. Cheever quoted in of the gallows
Qarghtcr) He comes to Boston, where his class Is
prescribed in the charches the schools and everywhe
else and yielding to temptation the influence ntox
ication, neither Of which he has been taught
sist commits murder. Mr.. p, in eloquent appeal
denied the propriety Of hanging such man 1t had had
no eject in restraining crime for since the sentence Of
Goodc, several atrocious murders had been committed
in the neghborhood of Boston He believed that such
had been the change in the public sentiment of Boston,
that not another execution would take place xn they
had another Governor Briggs and another colorcd
to hang Mr. r. ut great length continued his remarks,
arguing from the fact that executions requr
ed TO be private instead of public there longer
any beneficial effect to be derived from the public
example and deduciug thcrefrom that as the people
thus began to close their eyes to the sight it
must soon become unpopular TO be dispensed with
altogether. He urged that the agitation should be
tinued vigorously, not entirely with arguments but
with novels newspaper caricatures, and every
OF arousng the prcJudces Of the people.
a collection was then taken up in aid of the funds
OF the society; when
Mr. GREELEY delivered brief address, referring to
what he considered the growing progress of the prin
cple and urging its continued and vigorous agitation.
lie combattcd briefly the objection of the clergy tho
subject and referred to What he considered ridi
cuous position of othcrsurging upon them. that they
should form society. with their to be
styled the Callows Mon.
The PRrrpESr then proposed the following named
gentle men, officers OF the society for the ensuing
year, who adopted and confirmed as such by the
meeting:--
President MIR. +. McCouu.
lice Presdents.-RchardS Williams, BEN amin Ellis,
ia cob Ilaison. NJ. ID James H. Titus.
Il rg.m Hum