The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1865-09-22

l>tIatloii 'heH pecoHleS eIllpO~efeu siHu W
ligated to do whatever is necessary for the
guardianship of the individual, even to
defend his person and goods if need be by
the shedding of blood. And this at once
and by the consent of the governed, arm:
the hand of the magistrate with the sword
of the executioner.
But the argument under review refutes
itself. No man has Il right to take Lis
own life, therefore government, deriving
its power from the concession of individu-
al rights, can not take life. Well, we ad-
nit that no man has right to take his
own life and by the same reasoning q
man has no right to immure himself in a
penitentlary for life, Or for any portion OF
his life: he has no right to wall himself
up from the laborious activities by which
he is bound to serve his God and his race.
OF course he can not concedc such right,
and consequently government cannot pos
sesS the right. 1t can no more imprison
than it can behead Ii is the misfortune
of this argument that ii proves too much.
uut the premise of this argument is all
wrong. Human government is of divine
origin- The powers that be are orl,,in-
ed of God" and God gives the sword and
commissioned the ruler as "a revenger to
execute wrath upon him that doeth evil"
ii. Again. ii is alleged against capital
punishment that Is inhuman and crucl-a
relic oi the dark ages-or,iaincd for a
barbarous people, and essentially barbar-
Gus in itself
AgalIet whom Is this accusation hurl-
ed! who made this law which is 90 quar-
relied with! Was it the production of a
human mind 1t Is called law of Mo
ses-wa> he the author! What malevo-
lent being must confess its paternity
Did he whose foot rested upon the mount
of the wilderness enact law essentially
lnhuman and barharous This Is ap-
preaching with an impeachment too near
the terror of its power. Let those veil
turc with 1t who are not afraid. | re-
member the thick cloud and the lishtning>
and the dread blast of the unearthly
trumpet and the angry thundcrs. And
whom WAS this barbarous people for whom
God lcglsiatcd ? The most refined and
enlightened nation Of antiquity-whosc
monuments are the wonder of the ages
whose laws Institutes the grand models Of
all government down through the annals
OF time among whom laws were honored
H. never laws have been before or since ::
with whom there was less OF public crime
than were in our own land, in this latest
century of civilization. and on the shores
were progress has planted its foremost
banncrs-a nation, a part of whose bar
harity il was. TO decree that :'hc that
stcalcth a nltn and -yllcth him, sllall >,,rt-
ly be put to DEATH
But If we could grant AL that Is cl:;in-
cd for TIC rudenesS and darkness OF this
ancient people, the difficulty is lot ii all
relieved. How does the divine lawgiver
provide ior the education OF this barbar-
our people How vii! lie have them
emerge from barbarity into social and civ
ii order TO know AMI practice the hum;;ni-
ties OF life Why he or,i,ins Il most bar
barouS statute to keep forever awake their
thirst for blood, their sariguinarv ttrocity
Is barbarou> low full of inconsistency
;l> well IL llnpicty is such Il plea, And
this boa>tcd humanity OF the rctormer- ui
Gods laws what Is ii but morbid pity for
the criminal. The si ght Of murdered i'll
noccncc OF the wife and mother cold Oh
her own threshold, of young manhood
frozen III his own blood, TO the wintry
turf, OF honored aye stabbed i'll sleep.
"His silver skin laced with his golden blood"
these awake no compassion in them. Tht
tears gre shed over the assassin. he mus
be tendcrly treated his life Is sacred: tn,
inhumanity of executing Justly deserved
punishment upon him excitcs their full
volumncd Indignation. We know thai
justice must he kind to It's victim. kmt
when it strikes. like fathers cha>tcninm
then Is ii seen most clearly as justice. whel
in tones that melt with humanity for tin,
dread doom it DEGREES, it passes sentence
but we must have Il humanity for thoS,
exposed to mur'lerous violence. Il human
ity that shall watch for the interests o
the whole community. and throw the stcrl
detcnceS of law around the path of ever,
| fellow creature
iii. Again it Is alleged that the intll
ence of capital punishment is to e,iucate
nation to the practice OF revenge. Th
law takes vengeance and so the hand O
the injured, copying the pattern of law
strikes in retaliation of wrongs. But tn
punishment of the law is not revenge.
is the vindication of justice. Crime
not misfortune but guilt. There is i
it dcmerit, an ill-desert 1t is the test
mony of the universal human conscienc
when it contemplatcs wrong. So doing
does not educate Il nation to take rcveng,
but to reverence the majesty of iurtic,
And this justice is exercised, this punisl
; ment inflicted, not for the sake of the pal
it causes, not loving and desiring the pal
as an end, but from an expansive benevc
lence which would arrest such wrongs
protect other defenceless ones, scourge tn
undertaking evil, and hold an a.gis
f safety before the temple. This is not II
venge, but justice, and justice is only al
other name for bencvolence.
". Again, capital punishment is COZ
demned on the ground that human cour
, are liable to mistake, and that after sue