New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-12-27
THE GALLONS.
A DEFENSE OF LEGAL KILLING.
RaiLar AZ The ihMne.


Sir: Yours of the 18th of August Is before
III health and a pressure Of other matters has COCA
saed delay in my reply satisfied with your sug'
eestIons and In part at least, will follow tnem' Twin
not give my communication much or personal ype
as had thought OF Doing. AS in my life nave written
very little for the public eye, am embarrassed WIN o
feeling Of selfdstrust while encounterihR ONO Va W"
LIONS" Of the age; but the candor, and even generosity
OF THE n Y TRIBUNE toward antagonists ana tue 80
lemnity and Importance OF the subject help to nerve me
70 the duty of saying something The magnitude OF the
subject will require space and time for anything hke
full development ask therefore, for indulgence AZ
both without further preliminaries proceed 10 tue
presentation OF Of the reasons have FOR DeeVhg
In capital punishment Co. the governmental destrue
ton OF the life Of the wiful and fairly convicted muir
derer nv violence OF the mode OF dong IT, say noun
ing only that that left for each government TO deter
mine for itself ..
FIRST Jesus Christ the originator and rightfu sover
eign regulator OF all government In the intellectual al"
moral universe has established the principle ana
In the purely spiritual part OF his government ana pro-
mueated IL In his revelation to men. The angels VINO
made insurrection in heaven, and human beings VINO
leave this world In state OF enmity to him. shall suner
all their natures arc capable Of enduring eterhaiy
Jude "And the angels who kept not ther hrst co
tate but left their own habitation, he hath reserved III
everlasting chains under darkness unto the
the great day. Even SodOm and GomOrrah. ana tuo
TO forncaon and going strange esh are set forth
for an example, suffering the vengeance OF eternal nre
Jonn w. "a "For the Father Judgeth no man. but hatn
committed alljudgment unto the SON 2Jd ": ,ths az
men should honor the they honor me
26th w For the Father hathe 10 himself so hatn Re
given to the Son to have life in himself gun vi c aas
given him authority to execute Judgment also
he Is the Son Of man. 2Shy Marvel not az nls LoI guy
shall hear his voice and 10Th Vi shal come forth they
that have done good unto the resurrection oi e, anu
w.. v
small and great stand before God and the DOCKS we're
az Ife And the dead we're Judged out of those things
which written In the books aecordug 70 tnet
were in IL: and death and hell delivered up the dead
which IN them and they were judged, every na,
cast into the lake Of fire. THIS second death And
18th V. whosoeyer was not fond written IN tue DUN eh u
But the fearful and unbelievinR and abomna3e. ana
murderers and whoremongers and sorcerers anu h
burneth with fire and birthstone, which is the second
DEATH Ps TX II: "The wicked shall be turned INTO
hell and ali the nations that forget God" In view OF
This awful fact Jesus Christ exorts TO practice all
manner Of selfdenal In this life 70 aySo and r
"And II thy hand offend thee, e. rs tne occasion VI VI
enter nuo life maimed than having hands be
into he'll. into tho fire that never s are l. n Ce
duenched And OF the foot and Of the eye sentl,
nen or inclination or practice as sv aear eopar s
dxing our happiness In eternity, or exposing us
to s capital punishment he eXhorts yea commands U.S.
"what shall il profit man. il he shall gain the whole
world and lose his own soulp This awfully sublime
ae1 Gn hs @ for t the terrible crime Of murder
Second 1t IS universal law written by tue nnger OF
God upon every unsophisticated natural human con-
science and heart All nations destitute OF the Scrip
lures Well as those who possess thein IN al ayes 81
the world have held 20 t. and stl do IL Is as truly ana
universally natural law as that OF gTaVltaton' Al.
murderers believe 1t Is Just See Luke xNin a. -
ana H All hranehs Of the Christian church. and ali
law OF Jesus Christ as promulgated IN the Od and New
The Sc anu amoIp OF harmonious
opinion and Judgment ought 20 have great weight on any
question and specially of such vital Importance to
at all times and the Law accors with almost the uhver
sal experience OF mankind The experience Of years
has proved that about in proportion the general con-
yictoD that In any State or nation The aprehenaeu ana
VIII the crime rarely occur within its limts And about
proportion the uncertainty Of the exception OF the
deathpenaly is human life unsafe any where ana every
where. The young man In Mansfield, Ohio, who mall
cously stabbed his brothernaw on Ihe p10e square,
this State for years past when I've saa 70 ms @
fellow. yon will have to swing Tor mat Pshaw, 30
viii you have TO swing as MUCH He had no Tear OIL ~
Knocked, till 1t had lost its restraining nilnence on
his mind IL turned ont as he expected lie was wealthy
case and aggravated and the law explicit
that he could not but be convicted Of murder IN the @
and he accordingly sentenced 10 be hung on
u specified day, but by communication first and then
OF the sentence he was California godganber. II 10
probable that that Instance Otrng with the nuinaD
and Divine has cost the Innocent inhabitants OF this State
many yansbeI ana precious lives Similar cases might
be multiplied indefinitely, but they cannot constitute
fourty to the main. and II alone, the sufficient argu
and reason for believing and adopting the law w.;
revealed In the Holy Scriptures; first In plain language.
and secondly by historical illustrations And first the
plain language great Revelation or God 10 man,
The Lord Jesus Christ established, beyond reasonable
doubt the doctrine that the life OF human being who
wlfuy destroys the life OF another human being except
as an exeeuoner OF properly constituted government
shall be violently destroyed directly or indirectly by the
government within whose jurisdiction the crime Is com
mitted Gen. ix g. Whose sheddeth mans blood" lie.
murders human being ~ man gnar Rs eIS o Pe
the image OF God made He man" Here Jesus Christ
on whose shoulder rests the government OF Tue
Is H. the creator OF man N his own Image having
breathed into him the breath OF life Cen H. y assumes
that no other being but himself shall destroy that lie,
but by his authority and arrangement; and that the h
man being who presnmes TO do IT, thereby ioTi.hs MS
is lie includes in the Ten Commandments he wrote
upon stone with his own finger on Mount SINAI, THIS
3Sh chapt 30S4 lie caused the law to be written III
expounded form plainly that ne that runs may
put TO death by the mouth OF the witnesses But
witness shall not testify against any person 10 cause Nun
witnesses shall he that is worthy of death BIO put to
death" Moreover " We shall take no satisfacti1n -
DEATH but he shall surely be put 70 death ? for blood
murder" IL deleth the land fastens guilt upon the
The cannot be- cleansed the blood that ia
shed therein but by the blood Of him that shed It," e.
Of ie guilt Of the murder 2nly by using JIG best ability
TO destroy or be destroyer ny violence the life
OF the fairly convicted wilful murderer The great Law
gyer has not designated any particular mode OF destroy
Ing the life OF the murderer Each government there
fore left 10 determine that question by Information
delivered from other but the fact must be &C
complained Now In view OF eueh clear ana ini pro,
mitigation OF the opinion and viii OF the omniscient aud
Infinitely benevolent Redeemcr Of men on the subject
how unbecomDR arrogant, shall say impious are all
those vain specuatons Of tte shortsghted. Ignorant
worms OF dust, proposing TO anDul or improve great
fundamental law OF the infinite God our savior estao-
shed for the safety and welfare OF human society Let
ihe Mhna rnce OF and all created integences bow