The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1858-03-23

and nothing long 20 slippery customer" "a
frospero OF printing plunderers, 6c, DC. Very
well. gentlemen. let us know all about il. Keep
it up, and we shall soon have plenty of workfc
the Congressional Committee of Inquiry On
Printing. Pray, do keep it up.
MISPLACED CLEMENcY-TuE GOVERNOR AGAIN
IN FAULT-We zee that the sentence of death
passed on O'Connell, the murderer Of Teresa
Spitzlin, has been committed by the Governor
into imprisonment for life. We think the exer.
cise Of his prerogative on the part of the
Governor, in this Case rs uadiscrimipstiug and
undeserved az was the recommendation of tia
jury ON which 1t was based. In the annals q
crime there never was, perhaps an offence
which called for q more severe punishment than
that Of O'Connell. He superadded guilt 70
guilt in the violence committed upon the peg
son Of his unfortunate victim. For the rape 10
was entitled to the full measure Of puuishmA0k
which, under the Governors committed sea-
tence, he is about to receive for the murder be
escapes the capital penalty which the law
awarded to it. His associates In this double
crime have got off with comparatively light
punishments; SO that the moral to be deduec6
from their sentences is that the most desperate
offences are those which are likely 10 be at
tended with the most complete immunity.
We need hardly point out the dangerous In
auence of such an example upon a population
amongst whom human life Is already estimated
go cheaply. Scarcely day passes without the
occurrence of some fearful deed Of blood bV
which the public nerves are shocked and W.
strung and a general sense ofinsecurity created
Within the last ten days there have been No
less than FIVE cases of assassination by the knife
and two by the pistol Most of these have ter
minated or will terminate fatally, and their
! authors will as certainly escape punishment
Between reluctant jurors and a tender hearted
executive the criminal law or the State has
ceased to be anything but . dead letter on the
| statute book. We are In fact fast drifting to
the same condition Of things which compelled
the citizens of San Francisco to set aside the
constituted authorities and to administer to
felons and murderers the penalties due to their
| crimes.
We implore of the juries of New York not to
/ impose upon the public such . dreadful neces-
slty. If their responsibility be collective it is
not the less solemn one, and they owe it to
their own consciepces, as well as to society, that
they shall no longer triHe with it. In transfer
ring to the shoulders of the Governor the obi
cations that devolve upon themselves, they ere
guilty of a cowardly and unmanly act, which
will bring with it its own punishment They
know not the moment when they themselves,
their wives or daughters, may be made the VIC
tins Of the unchecked ferocity of the despers-
does to whom they accord this license But II
orr jurors are not equal in honesty and intclii-
gence to the task imposed upon them, 1t is not
for the Executive to assist in weakening the
small degree of force left to the administration
OF the criminal laws in their hands If it be
not in the Governors power to pass over the
recommendations Of jurics i. is at least within
his province to denounce their yerdicts where
they appear to him erroneous Such case
was that of OConnell, and we cannot but de-
plore the faeile disposition with which Governor
King in this. as well as in other instances, has
given effect to recommendations which were az
much opposed to the evidence as they were -
the policy of the law and the exigencies of the
! times.