The tri-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1866-1868, 1866-06-21

| the poor mans friend, should be the most
ready to guarantee to him this right espe-
cially when it can be done without q sacr1-
| flee Of principle, and without impairing any
man. lust claims. "A am no agraTian in my
yiews-I belong to the conservative school;
but do say that if were a seeker after pop
ular favor (Which am not, know of no
measure In the advocacy of which would s
sooner risk my hopes of political success,
than of that am now urging. 1t is practl-
cal, it is seasonable, and above all, 1t IS right
England is returninge to her ancient prac-
tice and principle as regards this question,
for which, in an evil hour, and to the ,detri-.
ment of her people, she suffered departure.
Since the introduction of this amendment
paragraph in the public prints has arrested
my attention, which beg leave to bring to
the notice of the Convention. 1t is as fol-
| lows:
Imprisonnaeat for Debt en- England The
Bdnkruptcy bill noao pending in the English
Parliament procides for the abolition Of the
6arbarous lao Of imprisonment for debt, that
| ,.o,c disgraces the statute books Of England
This change IS dictated both By humanity and
common sense. Though not IN Parliament,
Charles Dickens mag be said to be the father
of this humanitarian measure, his writings
hnviag attracted public attention to the bar6dr-
Sty of tho present lao, and made 1t odious."
| Two of our sister States, Wisconsin and
Texas have Incorporated this identical pro-
vision in their Constitutions. I have copied
it verbatim from that of Texas. The princi-
pie it announces is no stranger to the laws OF
North Carolina; it has already been applied
to half of our population. refer to the
female portion. Ever since the year 1928
there has existed an enactment in these words.
&c No female shall be arrested or imprisoned
| for debt" 1t may still be found in our Re-
| vised Code. Let us now do justice to the
male portion of our population, also, by max
ing this principle of universal application
Has the law worked badly as far as tamales
are concerned? Who would desire to see it
changed as to them? Have fraud and
swindling, the alleged consequences, of ex
emption from liability to imprisonment for
debt, attended their exemption +? Yet single
women get credit, just like men, in proper
ton to their character and means; they buy
and sell, carry on trades, and incur debts, and
no body trusts them the less, because they
cannot be put in Jail for debt.
Sir, this old idea of the right of imprison-
ment for debt being necessary for the cred
itor's security is all mistake. Let him do,
like other people are required to do-use
circumspection is his business, take care with
whom he deals, and thus secure himself; and
not call on the law to practise cruelty in
order to remedy his want of care. Do not
men have business dealings every day with
corporations, and yet neither Cdpi0s nor Ca.
Sn.. can issue against them Is it not the
same case with Executors and Administers
tors Who would be the representative of
deceased person, if he were subject to arrest
for every claim brought against the estate
But, sir, have heard it objected that the
change proposed is radical one, and that
existing legislation is not adapted to it. Let
then the legislation he changed so as to con-
form to it. If the principle is q just one, the
laws can readily. be, adjusted to fit it; other
States have found no difficulty in doing so.
The very purpose in having General AS
sembly is to frame laws, in accordance with
the requirements of the Constitution, and
adapted to the wants of the people. The
argument too much trouble" is sometimes a
very selfish one, and one which representa-
tive, when the interests of his constituents
are concerned, should never use. For the
protection of personal liberty, we insert in
the Constitution just provision, let the
Legislature adapt the laws accordingly.
Nor, sir, is it any argument to urge in OPP
position to this measure, that the condition
of the debtor is already much improved over
what it was in former times: that the i'm
prisoned debtor should solace his lonely hours
with this reflection, and not seek restoration
to liberty, that is, to light and air and health
and home all that makes life happy. Until
it shall be clearly established, as I contend
it never has been and never can be, that a
human being should forfeit all these bless
ings, as penalty for neutrality-suspicious.
ment for such a cause is inhuman-and all
mere legislative efforts to improve the i'm
prisoned condition of the debtor, short of
his absolute release from Imprisonment, are
a tacit acknowledgment of the weakness of
the right to imprison him, and are arguments
in favor of the adoption of this amendment
Heretics, or those so called, were once burn
ed at the stake: religious persecution after
wards assumed milder form-but that was
deemed no sufficient reason why an express
clause should not be inserted in the Consti-
tuition, guaranteeing freedom of conscience
and religious worship. Insolvent debtors
were once Lut to death; afterwards sold into
slavery; they are now imprisoned. Wheth-
er this species of persecution shall be con-
tinued among us depends on the action of
this Convention Adopt this amendment
and it is abolished for ever.
1t is sometimes urged by the advocates of
his barbarous system, that the. debtor is not
Imprisoned for debt, but for ,fraud-fraud in
he contracting or fraud in concealment-
! Unfortunately for the argument, and still
more unfortunately for the honest insolvent,
he theory does not accord with the facts, as
IAN be readily shown by a reference to our
avs and to the practice of our Courts. 1t
s every days experience, was when the
:ivil courts werein full operation, for debtors
to be arrested and committed simply for
want of bail; the very first sentence of the
irst section of the boosted act for the relief
ofhonest insolvent debtors, Revised Code CHI
so authorizes the confinement of debtors in
Jail, where there is not the slightest sugges-
tion of fraud, but mere inability to give Sc
curity-and what is worse, this confinement
is to continue for twenty days before the
courts, justices. or judges are allowed to con-
slider petition for his release If ever there
was a relic of barbarism handed down and
preserved, here it is embodied in the logisla-
ton of North Carolina.
Rev. Code oh. SO, 31-enacts as follows:
" If any person shall be taken or charged on
rnesne process for any debt, or shall be taken
or charged on execution for any debt or dam
ages rendered in action whatever, or shall be
committed for failing to give bond for the
maintenance of any bastard child charged
upon him, or for failing to pay any sum of
money ordered to be paid by him for its
maintenance: or shall be committed for the
fine and costs of any criminal prosecution
and shall have remained in prison for TWEEN
ty days. the Court of Pleas and Quarter Ses-