Kanawha Valley star. [volume] (Charleston, Va. [W. Va.]) 1856-1861, 1857-09-29
KANAWHA VALLEY STAT.

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|eign mower committed by the Constitu-
ton t. Congress. and the derfyative pow
CIR Of providing for llle punishment ef Of
fences against the integrity ofthe coin is
ALSO committed TO the same Legislative
body. The due exercise of these imror7
tant functions very nearly affects the IN
dividual and social interests . fevery citi-
zen. In the execution Of the latter, Con-
gress has said that be who coins money
Or paper ntiers, publishes or sell as true,
on attempts to do any one OF these acts,
any false on forged money, IN the resenl
blance and similitnde Of the true legal
chin sof The United States, with guilty
kncwledge and intent to deffaud isa felon,
and shall on conviction be punished by
punishment IN the Penitentiary, and shall
pay a~pecnniary fine. 10 the Us. The
principal offence here. Denounced can
rarely be established BY satisfactory evil
denee. The fofger. or false coin, plies
his vileftrade III profound secrecy, and
tile law cannot often penetrate the thick
darkness which he so easily draws
arouna Himself. II s.Yocation therefore.
s . comparatively safe ono, but that q
his associate and confederate in crime,
tie circplAtor ofthe false coin, is ID emis
neatly hazardous one. 10 make the
crime Of tlie former profitable he oil his
eonfederates must steal forth from their
dens, and exhibit the fruits Of their il-
directed Ingenuity i the light of day Il.
They must come in contract with their
fellowtnren and, then. though they may
pass unwhipped Of justice fpr i time, the
] mems Or ultimate detection are certain
anassuIe. They carry on their swind-
Iirg operations and select their victims
with great caution, and are. quite TOO
shfewed To pay out large sums 70 any.
one Individual at any one time. They
dead ia d very small way, gehfally tender
Ing a single coin, and hence the operation
must be often repeated or THE enterprise
viii not pay. It necessarily results that
when the offenderis yindicaled 10 a court
Of justice, engaged though il may Pc in
circulating thousands ofhis spurious
coin the indictment charges only the of
fence Of passing i single coin, and ii tie
trial results in q conviction, the guilty
trade ofthe feloni broken up. Indeed
the benefit that society derives from The
conviction Of a single circqlator Of false
coli, Is not to be measured BY the extent
Of the mischief which that individual
would have inflicted If his career had not
been arrested. "A salutary panic SEXES
his associates iii crime, when the majesty
Eofthe law Is thus indicated, md many ,it
may be3hoped, are induced to abandon
THAR dishonest vocation ali hopeless
Every good citizen. therefore, if he may.
not rejoice at The fate that has 5befallen
The unhappy eulprit now at lhe bar, may.
AZ least feel asenseof addition security
from The result Of the trial.
The duty v hitch the law has devolyed up
h me on tile present occasion is a most
painful one. TO denounee Tie penalty Of
ggiolated law, and "a measure and gradu-
lie that penalty, aceordingtot lie cireum.
stances Of mitigation or aggraEation exist
;no ii any given case, are delicate func
t;nns. which the conscientious Judge,
Ewbifa lie performs Them with uDshrink-
mo frmness, can never perform without
MD oppressed with a profound sense5of
~ treat responsibility imposed upon|
lin The Inv, whose organ am on lid
nrasobt occasion, has madstit NV duty.
William washington Cllne to consign
van II the Penitentiary for i period naot
eyceeding ten years in each.eage mwhichl
VIM have been convicted, and If there ISL
odsa in which the extremelpenallty ofI
liz inv might appropriately be wished,
yours Il III st such 4 case. Your trial has
exhibited d dtfk picture, unreliesed bya
SINGLE ray flight. You have been pre-
senied to the fieW Of this community as
4 being uttsrly depfared. addicted
through long Years 70 the habituaI prae
tice oftha meanest and revolving vices.
Many similar caes have been infestiga-
ted before me, since T have occupied my
present position, but Ihave known none
lin which the proof Of guilt were soelear,
so varied, 50 overw fRelming as n yours.
Your career and fate teaches a lesson
which would anxiousfy impress not on
81 IN your mind but 8 the minds ofall
others, fIthere be- such in this eommu-
nifty, addicted TO like courses with your
self; il is the practical lesson that the
business of passing counterfeit money.
while ii IS an ineffably mean trade. IS one
that DOM pay. Many such Offenders
have been tried and convicted before me,
yet in The course Of eleven years expert
ence inIthe administration Of the criminal
law, ] have never known one of the
wretched beings who had made money
BY his calling. Theyhave without sol
itary exception been as utterly destitute
Of money, as of all he virtues that adornl
society Then why will men p~ersevere
i'll practices whiehmust work their uhi-l
mate. certain, and. it may be. speedy
ruin?
It1onlyy remains for me to ~propounce
tie sentence of the law. You have al
wife and children, and, for their sakes,
'I have, after much anxious de~Iiberation.
determined to mitigate the extreme rigor
lof the law. The sentence of TINT law Isl
that you be taken hence to the Penitenr
tiaryi in the District Of Columbia, and
there confined for the period Of Eve years
at hard labor. and pay a fine at one dollar
to- the United States, under the judgment
founded upon the first indictment, and
that precisely the same sentence be pro-
nounced against You in the second indict-
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