The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1866-05-19
THI Gate Cify saws "Jeff. Davis oueht I.

Is uimcult 10 see the logical connection be-
tween the two propositions, except upon the
theory that the occupation Of the Presidentia
chair carries with it q punishment second only
to that Of the gibbet.
But still more like "a fool or mad. man -
does the vaporing editor talk, when he asserts
that " if JEFF. Davis is not hung for treason,
then Abraham Lincoln should be exhumed
and gbbeted, and General Grant dismissed
with ignominy from the service, and Robert
h. Lee be made Lieutenant General of the
armies of the United States. in his place. -
1t is difficult to determine whether the man
whose infuriate thirst for blood impels him to
the utterance of such nonsense, is the more
to be pitied or despised. The ferocity of the
tiger is tameness in comparison with the spirit
manifested by this Christian () editor. Ac-
cording to his own confession, the richest
feast to which he could be invited, would be
to lap the blood Of JEFF. Davis.-Keohuk Con-
stitution.
We still insist that the Constitution and
laws OF the country, and the dignity and
honor of the Government demand the exc
eution of the penalty Of his crime upon the
greatest criminal in this country. The chief
of the great rebellion, the leading conspirator
of numerous band of traitors who levied
war against the Government of his country.
imperriled its existence, and consigned half
. million Of citizens to bloody graves, ought
to suffer for his crimes. He is guilty Of the
highest crime in the calendar, under circum
stances of great enormity and of great aggra j..
vation.
How can this Government have the face to
shoot down its loyal soldiers as it has done by
scores, for desertion (impelled by longing de-
sire to see wives and children) and then on
the heels of the inhictiou of the death penal.
ty, for so trihng an offence in comparison.
and his honors
Is it blood .thirstiness to seek the execution
of the law, the inhiction of the penalty of
crime upon the blackest ofcrimes, and against
the greatest Of criminals. Is public justice
forever to be defeated because the sympathi-
zers with the crime and the criminal have the
hardihood to denounce the upholders Of the
law, and charge them with infuria,e thirst for
blood? If any man of the guilty tn ousands
is to suffer for treason, JEFF. DAVIS is that
man. But if no man is to suffer the penalty
for the highest crime in the calendar, then
no man should be punished for any inferior
crime.
LINCOLN, and those who sustained the Gov.
ernnent Of which he was the head, we're
right. or else JEFF. DAVIS and his followers
and sympathizers were right. If LINCOLN was
right, JEFF. DAVIS was traitor, and ought
to be hung. If JEFF. DAVIS was right, LIN
coLN was :. usurper and tyrant,' as the
Constitution used to call him, and was the
guilty author of all the woes flowing from the
rebellion, and his memory should rot.
Now we want no slavering compromise of
this matter, nor Of the issues involved in the
war. We want one traitor, at least, to suffer
the penalty of the great crime perpetrated in
the face of the world against the life Of 4his
nation. And we think the palpabe demon
stration of the punishment of the chief Of the
rebellion by due process of law would have a
most salutary effect in the present and in the
future.
Men are required by the divine law to be
come like God, and human Governments are
declared to be the ministers Of His justice,
and Of course onght to conform their action
to the principles and examples He has fur.
nished in His word. He reveals that angels
under the lead of their chief rebelled against
His Government and that He executed the
penalty of the law upon them and christians
have approved the act without subjecting
themselves to the charge of blood thirstiness.
Jesus Christ, the Immaculate embodiment
of the love and mercy of God, proclaimed in
fearful terms the penalties of violated law
upon the unrepentant; and yet we never
heard Him denounced as blood-thirsty fa-
naiic.
1t is perfectly absurd in itself to charge 9
as simply for that reason, worse than the
criminal. Our contemporary is neither consti-
tutionally nor habitually SO tender hearted, SC
opposed to the punishment Of crimes in or.
dinary cases. What, then, arouses his sym
pathies and stirs the tender and compassion
ate feelings of his nature in behalf Of JEFF
DAVIS? Is it love for the criminal and sym
pathy with his cause, and hatred for the loya
" christian and the cause he supports? Bu
our sentiments on this subject are precisely
those Of President JOHNSON, as declared II
his speech to the Indiana delegation, Apri
18th, 1865, few days after the assassination
He said, and we desire our readers to note
it, every word, carefully:
"No one can say that, if the perpetrator o
this fendish deed be arrested, he should no
undergo the severest penalty the law know
for crime. None will say that mercy shoult
interpose. But is he alone guilty? Here
gentlemen, you perhaps expect me to presen
some indication of my future policy. On
thing will say. Every era teaches its lesson
The times we live in are not without instruc
ton. The American people must be taugh
If they do n 1t already feel-that treason j
q crime, and must be punished that tn
Government will not always bear with its en-
emies: that it is strong not only to protect
but to punish. When we turn to the crimina
code and examine the catalogue Of crime, W
there lind arson laid down as crime with it
appropriate penalty: we find there theft AM
robbery and murder given as crimes; AM
there, too, we find the last and highest @
erlmes-treasonl With other and inferio
onenses our people are familiar, but in ou
peaceful history treason has been almost un
known. The people must understand that
Is lhe oackest OF crimes, and will be sure
punished. MAKE this alusion not to excit
the already exasperatedfeelings ofthe public
but to point out the principles Of public jus
tice which should guide our action at IN;
particular juncture, and which accord viii
sound public morals. lie, it be engraven o
nvarv heart that trpason ia a crime and tro;