Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1869-02-02

WIS Uh1 OeiIEta III Lltil65 VI CAClIt
ment utter their hackneyed denun.
citation of courts and juries, and sep
arate them from the people, whose
views they reflect; for they are O.
the people. No law can be contrvec
TO force people in free country tC
enforce the law. This will depend
upon their individual and public mo-
rality and intelligence. Bnt no one
that the widest theorist would not
consign to lunatic asylum, will deny
that penal law of some sort if enforc-
ed, has tendency to repress mur-
der. The penitentiary, if certain to
incarcerate the criminal, has that
tendency, and it is an insult TO com
mon sense, to insist that tue gallows
| It certain to end the murderer's cas-
reer, has no such tendency. And a
jury that would enforce the former
punishment would in a case clearly
Justitying it, enforce the latter. But
neither law not enforced is worth a
Quaker gun. The instinct of the mob
that executes the murderer, and
the reason IF the law abiding citizen
that waits for the action Of the Leg,
islatare, equally agree upon the eff
cacy and justice Of capital punish-
ment in cases where the blacklist Of
all crimes, murder, originates from
the worst Of all possible motives, the
love Of gain. fit DO objected that q
punishment 50 terrible will cause q
jury to shrink from duty, may it not
be replied that such terror will be
sanitary and efficacions in arresting
the assassin's hand ? | may add that
most, if not all men, come at last to
Judge of criminality from the charac-
ter Of the penalty usually visited up.
on it and it cannot be denied that
murder has become less revolving and
repugnant TO the public conscience in
proportion to the growth of the dog
ma that it does not deserve, and
should not be punished with death.
could hardly address q mob in
the affectionate words of Gov. Seys
mour and call them "my friends"
To quell their fury for the moment,
| would not promise them to use my
efforts to have the Legislature restore
capital punishment, if | thought it
ought not to be restored Bat when
worthy citizen is murdered in cold
blood for his money and an outraged
community seize the murderer and
hang him on the spot, if public opin,
ion will not allow courts and juries
to treat these citizens as murderers,
how am | to interpret public opinion,
where 1t has had time TO reach q cool
deliberate judgement? Ii clearly
means this, that the death Of the
murderer in such case was justifi-
able and necessary by the law Of self
preservation. And to this extent
and fo. sue. 3 case ouly, | think cap
ital punishment ought to be restored !;
and the law could AID would be en-,
forced, and the lives of peaceable cit.
liens would be far more secure than
at present. The law inficting CAPT
tai punishment as it existed in this
State anterior to 1857, and as it exists
In most States at present, is wrong in
principle. Criminality within the
meaning,of these laws, consists whol>
~ in what is called "malice aforc
thought" or reconciliation. Now all
premeditated murders are not equal
" criminal In the year 1864, a man
named Lloyd killed Or. fancy in
this county. fancy had run away
from Ohio with Lloyd's wfe-the
parties all resided there Lloyd
searched after fancy several months,
with the avowed intention of killing
him whenever he found him. No
man will pretend that his guilt was
equ..l to that Of the highway robber,
who kills his victim for money with.
out personal malice. A statute in
tiicting the extreme punishment
should limit it to cases where no pals
liation is spossible. TO murder for
gain (aud most murders are for gain
admits Of no paliation in any in>
stance, i the perpetrator is of sound
mind. The motive also is capable Of
clear definition. Promoditated MUIR
ders, with no pecuniary advantage in
view, are sometimes caused by deep
and objectionable wrongs. PARTED
lar instances Of murder may be pre-
serted, as revolving in their charac-
ter as where lucre was the motive ;
but they are infrequent, anomalous
and capable Of no legislative classif
cation distinguishing the passions
that caused them; and all attempts
to make mere reconciliation the cri-
terion Of criminality, will in many
cases conflict with our ideas of justice.
| will, therefore, having written
you fully, sign a petition to the Leg
isature asking for u restoration of
capital punishment with the limita-
tons | have mentioned. Capital
punishment should take place within
the confines of the State Prison, and
not sooner than n year after convic-
ton the Governor having power to
commute the sentence into inn
prisonment for life. | have referred
to the terrible tragedy that / under
stand has occurred in Prairie du
Chen, forsllustration. The position
| occupy, of course precludes me
from expressing any opinion in ref
e-ence to the guilt of the party &C
cused until | hear the evidence in the
case. Your Friend,
Lancaster, Jan. 20, 1869. j. T. MILLS.
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The New TESTAMENT IN THE SEN