Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1854-03-25


The Liquor Trniac.
The mode by which evidence mas Oeen o0-
tanned by the Carson Leagne' Tor the con'lc-
80, of l;ouor dealers, having been the subject
os ,nr.h remark in some quarters, we have
49, ourselves Of portion of the argument
of Gen. +. Hoar, Esq, in the case OF the Com.
Auon as clearly defining the position
,rh;cb tbev take upon the subject. We think
-, : orsot force and pertinence in Mr..
Hoar,s reasoning, and recommend it to the
D.rsfu, attention of all good citizens. After
.rou;no the case on its merits, Mr.. Hoar thus
continued:
: n. ,rlv ouestion remaining for the Court
=, ...ko+her Mr.. Stowcll and Mr.. Boyce, the
,-.,;tnesses called for the Commonwealth, can
y. Lol;aved The defendants counsel con-
80 with great earnestness, that the Court
.ssa,,nt rive credit to the evidence of Witness
- WHO have testified that they purchased the
Eonor mentioned in the complaint, for the
- ,,,,r,oae of causing complaints to be in
.t;tpfed He has hkened this to the case of
-, occonnlice. whose evidence, uncorrobora-
tod il always received with distrust, in Courts
~ ;nstice. He says, Mr.; Stowell tempted
his Client to commit crime, for the purpose
of bringing him to punishment, that the
tsmnter is the more guilty ofthe two, and that
his word cannot therefore be reliedon.
Rut This view is most manifestly incorrect.
admit that where a man is tempted into
crime. of which he is previously incapable,
where. by the arts Of the tempter. the mind,
innocent and pure before, is debased and pol
luted, where the witness, who Is seeking to
nunish an offender, has himself, by-any means
rendered him a criminal, IN that case we
ahould feel, for the informer, nothing but abb
borrence. and for the victim nothing but pity.
Butts that this case Have these witnesses,
in auy way, corrupted innocence, or instiga-
ted the commission of crime, which would
never have been perpetrated but for their So
hcitations On the contrary, they find this
defendant, holding himself out to the public,
as engaged in this unlawful traffic. They find
him stationed behind bar, for the purpose Of
making this crime the sole and daily business
of his life. He does not fall into sin in mo-
ment of weakness and temptation, but, de-
lberately, in the face of a law, which, in
some form has been on our statute book, since
the origin of the Commonwealth, in disregard
of the overwhelming public sentiment of the
community, in opposition to everything, in
the midst of us, that is respectable, or venera-
ble. or pure, he daily and hourly commits a
crime. which is the fruitful source of all other
crimes. Is he to set up the plea, which
man, first falling from innocence into sin,
might set up against his tempters He is him
self the tempter. He relies for his protection
against the law, on the fact that his traffic de-
stroys the moral sense, and the love of truth,
of those who are has victims, and that they
will commit perjury, rather than testify against
him. While, therefore, l agree with the
counsel on the other side, as to a man who
would make criminal of another, who would
debase his mind for any purpose, whether of
executing law or any other, | say that the
gentlemen, who have instituted these prose-
BUTTONS, do only what they are compelled to
do, from the necessity of the case. They sim
ply cause a man, in the daily commission of
crime, to do it under such circumstances, that
they may bring him to justice.
This is no more than is done for the detec-
ton of other offences, where the informer not
only escapes censure, but receives praise. Take
the common case of mail agent 1t is found,
that, somewhere, on q long mail route, be-
tween Boston and New York. for example,
every letter in the mail containing money is
rified. Out of some hundreds in the employ
of the government on the route, there are no
means of selecting the culprit. The detective
agent of the government takes this course.
He places in the mail bag, letters containing
money, SO marked that it can be identified in
the possession of the thief. He puts in the
way of the offender, the temptation and the
opportunity to commit the crime. lie tempts
him, as my brother would say, to commit the
crime. Yet, who ever heard any man blame
an agent of the Post Office department for tax
ing this courses Still less, who ever heard
his evidence questioned in Court of Justices
There is not police officer of any experience
or sagacity, who has not had to resort to like
means for the discovery of offenders, who 9TH
erwise would have eluded his skill.
repeat it. The broad and well founded dis
tinction is, between the case of tempting a
man from innocence into guilt, and the case of
leading man ready for, and determined on
the commission of crime, to do it under such
circumstances, as will lead to his detection
and punishment. cannot find any reason
for making difference between the cases
have supposed, and that before the court, ex-
cept, in that feeling which makes some men,
who are loud in their general professions of
sympathy for this law, always ready to raise
an cutlery against any practical means of car
RING ii into execution.
Let this case, then, be judged like others,
and these witnesses be judged like others.
II the defendants counsel can find any thing
in their testimony, either in manner or sub
stance, which can shake their credit; if they
have not testified fairly and frankly, stating
the whole truth, without concealment or
evasion; if he can show that they are not men
Of unquestioned character and standing in the
community, let them be disbelieved, other
wise there is no reason why these cases should
not be treated like other cases Of offences
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