The Trinity journal., 1856-05-24

horror or detestation. Robbery, arsons ands
murders, it is true, have been recorded, ands
'even the assassin has dared to lift his arms
lin an unfrequented street. but never beioreE
has an assassin audaciously performed hiss
;dastardly work in the light of day, amid u
crowd of witnesses, at the risk of increasngs
1.-The number of his victims from among our,
most peaceable and best citizens.
Our society, instead of advancing, seems
I ito have retrogaded. In years past, robber-E
ses were sufficient to consign the culprlt to-
sthe gallows We have now proceeded fromI
robbery to murder, from murder to assas-
ssination.-Epeneng Neacs.
Much as this individual occurrence may;
gbe and deserves to be deplored, there is al
Sfeeing now more general in its natures
sabroad in this community The question:
1 has arisen, and is now agitated and discussed
whether condition of things is to be per-.
omitted longer to exist in which any man, any,
sgood citizen, is liable to be shot downin the
sstreet like dog, in broad daylight. There
EseemS to be fixed conviction in the minds
sof the people of San Francisco that the
Stime has come, and the circumstances have
garisen, when the question must be settled
sfnally, whether rowdyism, violence, and
smurder, or law and order peace and quiet
Sshall reign in this community-thatth the time
Shas come, when either the men of violence,
&the men who have ruled our elections for
syearS past.b bullying and fraud, the men who
Son the slightest occasion are prepared with
aknives and pistols to sacrifice human life, or
sthe quiet, peaceable, law-abiding citizens
smust leave California. One or the other
sclass must succumb The past condition of
athingS cannot much longer eXst.-AHa.
] The condition of things has changed
sOur best citizens have come together ahS.
fOI uulLCu IuC CACIJCultnU HIS DcCOIllt d
sentiment They feel that the time has
Ecome when murder must cease-when it
SShaN cease when this community must be
spurged from its dregs the creatures, whoev
fer they are, who have poisoned the fountains
sof society, and made the place as loathsome
las charnel-house. With this sentiment
1--we fully agree. There are men among us
for whom we have no use They are a curse,
Ia leprosy There is no use for the murderer,
Except to hang him. There is no use for
5the gambler, except to drive him out of the
acity. If the courts will do nothing, what
sare the rights of the people?
When all other means of address fail j,
have not they, who are the source of all
spower, the right to arise and vindicate vio-..
Hated law and outraged humanity? Most,
certainly. The right Of revolution is theirs
The right Of defending themselves and each.
other. The right to weed out the villains
of whatever kind who league together to
cheat, to rob- and to murder. For seven
long years our streets have been turned into
slaughter pens. For seven years, almost
without exception, the courts have stood asI
protectors of murderers, cheating justice byi
their Shams, and turning the offender looses
cpoiott, with g
cence," while the whole community knew
that endorsement to be lie. They hayef
punished miserable thieves with dispatch, \
but rich robbers, moneyed murders and sue
cessful gamblers have gone free.
What punishment has been inflicted for,
'any of the murders of the past seven years ?,
Only two men have suffered, and they be-
cause they had no money and no friends.
IOne or two others have been found guilty. !
t'The poor German, Oldham, killed like dog.
lis in his grave. How the lawyers and the
courts tried to save his slayer 1t is onlv'
because Judge Hager was on the bench
THAT he was not set free at a quibble the;
second time. DIR. Baldwin, an old man, was
|shot in the back, and his murderer was
.cleared and sent out upon society, as if he9
lhad done good deed Twitchel was muir;
,dered because he stepped over an imaginary
.line, and a farce in the form of trial set hiss
murderer free. Richardson's murder is stiIlS
Iunavenged-so that of many others of our,
slaughtered citizens.
What use have we for the thieves, vaga-IE
.bondS and murderers who infest the city and
make it hedious ? In the gamblers hells,
lin the strumpets' dens, murderous deeds have
been concocted in the city's streets, in the
'marts of business, in the dark alleys, in the:
highways and byways, life has been taken !.
lin the courts perjured jurors have acquitted