The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1866-11-30

which person Of color is interested,
or to which he is party. The Civil
Rights Act, passed by the Cnngress
of the United States, which must be
respected and obcyed until pronounc-
cd unconstitutional by the Supreme
Court of the United States, gives the
person of color the same rights i'll all
the Courts, State as well as Federal,
as are enjoyed by the white race;
and so long as white persons are tn
able only in the Superior Courts for
felony, the same privilege must be
accorded to persons of color, not
withstanding the supposed prohibition
in the State Constitution, as the Con-
stitution Of the United States, and
the laws passed in conformity there
to, is the supreme law, Of the land.
If the Civil Rights Act should here
after be declared unconstitutional by
the Supeme Court, or should it be
repealed by Congress, the question
under the State Constitution might
then bc,full of embarrassment.
CRIMINAL LAW.
The establishment of a Pcnitentia-
Try requires material> changes in the
punislments imposed in the Criminal
Law. Murder, arson and rape,
should be punished by death, The
numerous catalogue Of felonies pun
ishable by death, some with and 9th
ers without the benefit of clergy,
should be abridged, and confinement
at hard labor in the Peniteutiary be
substituted, in most cases. The cx-
tremc penalty attaching to many Of
these felonies is revolving humanity,
and jurics not unfrcquently fail to
find real offenders guilty, because
the punishment is made, by its enor-
nifty, disproportionatc to the offence.
It should be left discretionary with
the Judges in the Superior and Dis
trict Courts to punish by imprison-
mcnt at hard laborin the Pcnitentiary,
or by whipping, in all cases of larce-
ny. Punishment by the lash is so
degrading, that it Should be imposed
upon the most incorligible offenders
alone. A convict, who serves out
his term Of imprisonment in the Pcni-
tertiary, even forani infamous offence,
may reform; but Que WHO has been
whipped at the whipping post, must
be overwhelmed with such a sense Of
shame and degradation, that he CAN
not command moral courage sufficient
to enable him even to make an effort
at reformation.
I feel it incumbent on me to call your
attention, specially, to the gross neglect
Of duty, on the part Of some OF the
s,lor1Gs ana Ja11ors III this State, in al
lowing prisoners to escape from their
custody. Unofficial information has
been received at this Office, that nearly
seventy prisoners have escaped from
the iails of this State since their custody
was turned over by the military to tho
civil authorities. Some Of these crimi-
nails were under sentence Of death, and
many were charged with tho highest
crimes against society. Every effort to
enforce the Criminal Law, and suppress
crime, must be unarailing, unless tho
custodians Of prisoners who have been
arrested and confined in Jail act with
more vigilance and fidelity. The exist
ing law pronounces the most rigorous
punishment against Sheritfs and Jailors
for voluntary OF negligent escapes, and
it is found wholly inadequate to arrest
tho growing evil tits difficult to sat-.
isfy Grand Jury that their friend,
whom they have aided to elect Sheriff,
or his agent, the Jailor, would permit
prisoner to escapo-their good will
toward the delinquent leading thom to
be readily satisfied that the escape re-
suited from the insecurity of the jail
It is even moro difficult to secure the
presentment of tho Commissioners of
Public Buildings for Their neglect Of
duty, in falling to make the jail secure,
and hence the'public suffer without a
remedy. When a bill Of Indictment is
found, it is traversed, and when the
defendent is finally brought to trial,
positive proof cannot be offered that the
escape was voluntary or negligent, and
the defendanti is acquitted The Gener-
al Assembly, since 1889, has been al
most annually passing laws, to enforce
the performance by Sheriffs Of their
duty in civil and criminal matters, and
the end is as fur as when legislation on
this subject commenced. There is but
one means of efecting cure for this
chronic disease-it is to provide law
for the summary removed of a Sheriff,
either through the judicial or executive
department of the Government, for will
full and persistent neglect OF duty, or
for misfeasance or maleasance in exc