Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1855-04-05
Capital Punishment,

n blll To nbollsh capital Punishment mas
been reported TO our Assembly; but we pre-.
sumo the pressure of business will furnish a
sufficient excuse for leaving il I'm .cted on -
Yet the subject is one OF lar wider import.
ance than many of either the advocates or
opponents OF Hanging imagine, 1t is not the
few wrelchcs whom the Galows deprivcs OF
life, but the many whose moral perce ption il
darkens and deprtvcs-to whom it teaches
the morality of evil for evil and vengeance
for wrong-for whose sake we mainly desire
its uboli ion, aud ask our readers to ponder
the following facts:
The States of MAINE and VERMONT vrtu.
ally ubol shed the Gallows many years ago.
But Vnc mar has since been hung in Maine,
and none in Vermont Aud the recollection
of Our readers will bear witness with ours
tina: no portion of tho Union is more moral
or more exempt from sanguinary crime than
those two States. The champion of Hang
ing is welcome 10 nj intain that their moral
ity is cause or consequence of their disu,e Of
the Gnlows, as he shall see fit.
Michigan was the pioneer State of the FIR e
West IN the abolition of Hanging. Eight
years ago her Legislature eracted its down
fall. Immediately thereafter, strenuous eff
forts were made to restore it -mpelled we
regret to say, by clcrgymcn. Dut they dill
not prevail, and the State has never receil-
ed from her advance movement. During the
eight years in which her laws have utterly ig-
nored the rule of blood for blood, her popua-
ton las averaged some Four Hundred Thou
sand; it is new over Half Million. Fifteen
lives have been feoniously taken within her
jurisdiction during these eight years; or, at
the rate OF one per annum for every 2l3,000
Of populations. In this City, the number OF
human lives feloniously taken exceeds in
each year those thus taken in Michigan,with
a population nearly equal to tlut of oui City,
in the entire period of eight years. And
Michigan, though she has but one large city,
has very full share OF Foreign born and of
rude border population-mners, pioneers,
seG-farng men, &c
We think these facts clearly establish the
safety Of abolishing the Gullow'. We do
no, suppose that men will wholly rease to kill
where the State ceases to hang; we only in
sist that no more murders occur because oil
this abstinence from legal blood-shcdding.--
And if it be safe to leave man-klling TO fell
ons, " no would 1t prefer to have his chill
dlen grow up where the air is never polluted
by the spectacle of gallows bearing its hor-
rible rruit-where the lesson Of revenge i.
never taught BY the legal exaction OF LIE ioi
life!
The late Election changed the political as
cendancy in Michigan-turned out the party
which had abolished the gsllows, and install
led their old advrrsarics, from whose ranks
tie cry for u restoration Of legal homicide
had mainly if MT wholly arisen. leading
Whig Editor thereup0n raised the STANDARD
of repeal Of the humane and humnnizing sta
tute. But it met with no response from the
People nor rom the legislature Not ever
show of support for the moment could be
got up in either House-no report in its Ia
vor--not even bill. We believe one Sena
tor and five Representatives were the full
extent OF the force that could have beer
mustered for Repeal had there been anybody
to lead the tornrn hope. But the project
fell still horn; and we presume there will ne
yer again be u serious effort madt in Michl
gan for the restoration of the GalIows:
In Indiana, a recent Legislature gave tc
each Jury in capital case the power OF ad
Judging u convict to the GIllows or the Stat
pr,nun onid Jury shouid thiuh proper. w
haven't yet heard of any one sentenced tt
be hung under this rule and do not expect to
We do not approve Of this mode o: pitching
the old machine overheard, but none cal
doubt thut it indicates the set of the current
IN. Y. Tribune.