Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1859-02-17
Gtnlperante mtatter;
From the Western Christian Advocate.
CAUSE AND EFFECT.

CAUSE AND EFFECT.
The Indiana penitentiary contains four
hundred and sixty inmates. This is hum
dred and sixty more than the institution can
accommodate" Itis full, and o7eraowing
to the extent of eight score-aud "still they
come" In view. of this lamentable fact,
the secular press is .strenuously urging the
propriety of enlarging the prison-some say
to the capacity of nine hundred or thou-
sand. The attention of Governor Willard
has been called to the subject, and in re-
cent message to a called session of the Le-
gislature, one of the three subjects which he
recommends to the consideration of that
body is "the enlargement of the state prison,
or the construction of new one in the north.
eru part of The State" In commenting on
Nthis clause of the message, the State Seni-
mel says:
eff the average number confined in the
state prison will not exceed five hundred,
the enlargement of the present prison would,
I in our view, be more economical and wiser,
policy than the erection Of another, It would
require no increase Of officers to manage the
enlarged institution its discipline would be
as we'll maintained, and the deleterious in
fuence of prison to its surrounding com.
munity, morally, and upon its industrial
pursuits, would be confined to-one locality"
If more prison room is necessary, let us
have it. Rogues must not run at large for
want of cells and workshops. But just here
grave question presents itself. What is
the cause of the great increase of crime in
Tndiana9, That there is such an increase no
intelligent citizen, whatever may be his poll
| tics, will deny.
In the fall of '54 the good citizens of In
diana rose up en- nsasse and elected Tenn
perance Legislature. That Legislature fra
med Temperance law. That law was Joy
fully hailed by the peopleas the iong-prayed
for messenger. of peace. Invent into effect
in April, 1856. Iiquorshops were closed.
Old dram-drinkers stood on the street corn
ers with hands in pockets, gazing vacantly
and mournfully around them. Young men
staid at home and betook themselves to work.
Sisters were more joyful, wives more>hope-
full, mothers more thankful. Christians prayed
with more earnestness, more yea, more graft
tude. Ministers were more encouragedj
more active, more devoted. A great enemy
had been subdued, we cannot say Vanqulsh-
ed; had been defeated, We cannot say con-
quered All nature wore a smile. Men
smiled. Women and children smiled -Busi-
ness smiled. Indiana had Temperance law.
Indiana was sober. But there were those who
frowned. There were units whose froWn
was destined to obscure the smile of thou
sands--units who should unfetter the de-
mon that the united strength of thousands
had bound. The constitutionality of the
Temperance law was questioned-was tested;
and we know the result. Fhus was the
Temperance cause choked down, and thus
was dram-selling and dram-drinking sane
toned by the highest authority. And low,
there are more liquor houses IN Indiana then
cvcr before and more convicts IN the penite'-
tiary. The prison is full and running
over; what is to be done? Editors hold a
friendly business ceBsultaion-editors whe
denounced Methodist preachers, and'Tem-
perance lecturers, and alLother 'whimpering
reformers' decide thata new prison must
be built, or the old enlarged: But on ac-'
count of the "deleterious Influence Of pris-
on to the surrounding community" it's
suggested that the nuisance ought to be
"co6fped to- one locality" Not aword of
regret that such necessity should EXISTS
expressed; not a word Of inquiry as to The
cause of the increase Of crime; or whether
there is a, remedy or what the remedy is;
or when, or where, or how it should be ap-
piled. The chief concern is to dispose Of
criminals They are to be found in everysl
city, and town, and village in the State
Youths of ten, twelve, fifteen, twenty years,
and gray-haired old siunersare getting drunk
and violating the laws of Ged and man. The
government must arrest them. The govern
nent must try, convict and sentence them.
The government must shut them up in pris-
On. 1t is not unconstitutional to shut big
iron, door upon a poor misguided: human
wretch, but it is unconstitutional to shut the
doors of the dram.shops where such wretch
es are made. How long shall these things
be so? Sweet hope answers-''not ARRAYS"
"Trutli crushed to earth, will rise again;
The eternal years of God are hers"
H. B. G,