The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-01-11
The Political Murder Bill.

We are surprised and sorry to see that
bill has been introduced into the lower
house of the General Assembly "to provide
ssfOr the widows aud orphans of men muir
"dered for their political opinions" by Civ
ing them pension of 5000, to be collected
by assessment upon the county where the
murder was committed.
We have always condemned violence and
intemperance, and have denounced every
act of violence, whatever its provocation.
The feeling Of the people is opposed to mob
law upon any prete1t, and as it is our doc
trine that every man has the right to his
own opinion, we have steadily discounte-
nanced persecution and prescription for
political or party reasons. But it is use
less for the people in general to be peacea-
BILE and law abiding, if the whole Of one
county in the State is to be held RESPONSE
BILE for the lawless deeds of any one man
in it. In every large body of people, there
must be individual cases of disorder and
wrong; but we say that it is shamefully
rojust to impose tax upon a whole cem-
munity Lecause some one man in it is not
gentle as a sucking dove.
OF course, if the General Assembly of
the State is nothing more than an organi-
cation for the dissemination of Radical
opinions, for the encouragement of party
hate, and for rewarding party disciples, the
bill will pass, whether we like it or not
But this we are loath to believe. We know
that there are men in the Legislature who
feel that it is to their interest to work for
the good of the whole State, and that we
can have neither prosperity nor peace
while any question is decided in the affirm
ative or negative, according to the manner
in which it affects "the party" And we
would ask these members whether they can
expect to be thought of as representatives
of the State, or Of any part of it; whether
they can expect to be treated as represen-
tatives of the people at large, when they
tax the State and the people to support the
heirs of man who has been killed, not for
the State, not in the execution of the laws,
not in the service Of the Commonwealth,
but, to use the words Of the bill, son ac-
sscount of his political opinions"
If any man be murdered, and should be
deemed martyr to the cause, his widow
and children might properly be supported
by the party to which he belonged. The
Union League should take care of his fam
lily, and if there is no money in the treas
ury of the League, it can be contributed by
the surviving members of the party.
On the floor of the General Assembly
there should be no manifestation of politi-
cal hatred, and no raking of the shoulder
ing party fires. The Legislature is on trial,
and we who must bear the brunt wait to
learn whether it means war upon all that
is not Radical, or peace and good will to all
leal and honest men. We desire to do
nothing that shall cause anger or ill feel
ing. We desire that the General Assembly
may have fair and full opportunity of vim
dicating itself from aspersion, or of damn
ing itself in public esteem; but we cannot
be silent when it is proposed to make the
Legislature huge Radical caucus, means
of rewarding the fallen faithful, and of tax
ing the State because this man or that man
has been wantonly and brutally killed.
We speak somewhat warmly, because we
feel that this political martyrdom bill is q
scandal and shame. Even Congressional
psrtisanship never went as far as this bill
proposes to 60, and we sincerely hope that
when the bill comes up for action it will be
promptly and decisively rejected.