The Trinity journal., 1856-05-24

useleSs-it is criminal-to longer shut our
eyes to our moral rottenness, and talk of or
der and justice, when murder stalks openly
upou our higways, and crime and corruption
rule our Judiciary Year after year have
we seen the sacred rights of the ballot-box
trampled upon by armed cut-throats and
bullies, and hell-hatched villains raised to
Offices of honor and trust year after year
have we seen cold-blooded aSsa ssinatonS and
butcheries perpetrated in the broad glare of
MONDAY, and the murders escape unpun-
ished year after year have we seen defiance
hurled at the laws of God and man. and
heard the shouts of riot and the cries of
murder borne upon almost every breeze
month by month, for six long years, have
we seen our fair State struggling under this
weight of moral and physical damnation, its
crimes a by-word and its name terror
hoping for something better We have
cried peace and justice when we knew that
neither were to be found in the land, and for
the honor of the State, have extenuated the
commission of crime and violence, until we
are sickened at our own hypocrisy.
We shall do so no longer. We shall,
hereafter, call murder 10y its name, and de-
vote ourselves to the eradication instead of
the justification of crime and outrage. I'm
less something is done, and quickly, too,
families will leave our shores by hundreds,
and California will retrogade into the social
barbarsm of 40 and 80 The permanent
emigration of women and children from
California during the past six months, has
been fearfully large, and warns us that un-
less this rule of ruffnism is ended, unless
life and property can be held with Il tenure
more secure than the will of the assassin
and robber, the next half year will leave us
without hope TO cling to. What can be
done? Can we find relief in the ballot-box,
when elections are controlled almost the
State over 5y shoulder-StrikerS and bulieS ?
Can we look for a remedy in the law, when
many of its administrators are the abbettorS
of villainy and the protectors of outlaws and
murderers Can we expect time to correct
outrages which every year have grown more
rank, until they have become almost sane
toned as right ? All these remedies have
been tried, patiently, hopefully tried, and
have failed What, then, remains to be
done 1t is fearful alternative, but there
is nothing left but for honest men to arm
meet these ruflianS with their own weapons,
set aside for the time the authority of our
egal tribunals of perverted Justice, and
strike terror to evil docrs by speedy trials
md the rope There is work for the Vigil
lnce Committee, and We hope they may not .
shrink from the task The blood of muir
dercd hundreds "crics to them from the .
ground, and the voices of outraged justice
md humanity join i'll the terrible supplca-
ion. We advocated law until it became a
arce and shield for villainy we talked
1f Justice until it was banished from our
courts.
San Francisco is the heart and core of
his community of hell-hounds scattered
over the length and breadth of the State,
md here must be struck the blow Already
Turing the present month twenty-sX muir
lerS have been committed, independent of
the Indian massacres in Tuare county, and
two men hung and lastly comes the assas-
sination of James King of William, editor of
the Bulletin, by James Casey. A pretty
catalogue to forward to the East by the next
steamer! Does this look like reform ?
Contrast it with the bloodiest days of 40,
so and 81 and let the record show 1t is
anything but pleasure for US to have writ
ten what we have in relation to the existing
state of affairs in California, foc we had
loped that the Vigilance Committee might
never again be mentioned except as a stern
necessity of the past. Sad, indeed, is the
lay when it is made our only hope for the
'uture !-GoLdea Era.
The Calaveras Chronicle is responsible for
he following "On the 22d inst, and du-