, 1869-02-11

AARoS ADorT.
CApi,nl f.lnlAnuneas.
To the Editor Of TIE Chicago Tribune:
Two years ago tho Legislature Of this State
passed a law proyding-"tn all eases Of !elo
mes, "hicl, by existing laws, nrc punishable
with death, 1t shall be competent for the
jury cmpaneticd to return With their v:raict
Of gully, aud as part OF the sumo, either
that tbe prisoner shall suffer death by hanS-
Ing. as now provided by law. or that he be
imprisoned in 1 Pen!lcnliary for the term
uf lis natnral life, or Tor 4 term Of not less
than fourteen years, as they may decide, and
no pcrsun shull be seutenced to death by any
Court, unless tho Jury shall have SO
found III their verdict upon trial."
rs the law now stands, 1t is argued by
somc that In cases where tho prisoucr pleads
guilty there Is no power In the Court Ia pro.
noHncc any sentence, and the aecns.d is thus
cunblcd to escape all punishment This no
doubt IL nlanifest defect Ia the law, and
should be amended so that iu such cases
Courts may have thc power to sentence the
prisoner to burd labor lior life Ut for 4 turn OF
years. But tue advocates OF capital punish
n.ett arc Trying to take advantage OF this
little detect IL the present law which,
could be easily cured by amendment,
and are exercising th:lr ingenuity in trying
to tptuencr members uf our State Legislature
to restore the old Law hy rcpcal1ng the new
tuc. We hoIH: our Representatives vii! meet
this issue kqnareiy In the lace las they ought
either Court Or jury to pronounce sentence
of death, in ahy case, upon human tfeins.
luz TN1RESE states, IN 4 late editorial, that
the general sentiment o! tbr State Is In taror
OF O :" return to the death penalty for mlr-
DER" This is s. mere assertion. without
any proof or foundation for support. The
people in alt reforms are Often In
ndvuncc Of tue press and the law-mabing
power. This relic of barbarian Is fast los
inE Its hold upon The people Of the Northern
Name commenced this returm BY c1actiag
that unc year should ciapse from thc date Of
the sentence of every convicted murderer be-
fore ufs execution, and then it could only be
carried iuto elect upon A warruut by the
Governor Issued ut h1s own option. Up to
20 execution, and only six murders had been
copluittcd In the Pine Trey State, which
fact Is Of Itself significant. -...-
Two years later 1s46l the State of Michi-
gan made u still greater advance. hy abolish
IN. capital punishment aitogether: Letters
have appeared iron, lime to time from her
public men aud secretaries, ftating most tn1'
lhalicaliy the good results IRON the ab331-
| tipn Of ,1i.s law. One wrote that it would he
| Impossible to assemble q Legislature that
! would sAke tue responsibility OF restoring the
| caIows. Statistics show that from 1S{7 to
1870 crimes Of violence had actually deere zsed
| after the abollshment OF the dc1th peualty.
Five years elapse anu hhudc 1slaud follows
the example OF Michigan, repeating her teath
| penalty in 1851. There has been no eSecn'
ton in this state from that time TO the pres
ent, aud in 1889 her secretary OF State ses.
| titled That there had been no Increase ln the
relative average OF deadly rsi'n- T" Wiseon'
| sin followed mkt, repeating the death pen
altr in 1863. 1n 1861 her Secretary wrote
Notwithstanding the increase OF population
and the change t.roduced By tue late war, il
| is sate TO say that tie people arc we'll salts
fed with the present law abolfshlnG capita
I punishment. Thsrc il Hre1ffr certainty Of con
rir:ien under HE present ltisC aHl no irersase Q
krinle." Not SO many murders have hee'
committed in any OF THESE states by fifty Pc
cent in ratio to the number Of population q
in tther States, where the sallows is still Ii
| vogue
7TAfn ,ri1 sor;e.y puni&s crime tr,thou: re
ptnsing itf IE New York strong Efforts ar
being made t, the total abolition Of capita
possible that the State Of Illinois will TAX
nny backward step? VIII she not profit b.
I the example and experience Of her susie
Statess Let It be remembered that Seyera
OF our rtates ab:.lishrd capital punishmen
1 IRtHI3 fC1T9 AAQ, Au4 VIII EuEu AL (\f-tA
erce not one OF hen, has seen fit TO restor
it. are Rot sue1 facts as these sui
, | tIcicut to convince aDy candid. .casoniog mal
that this relic of barbarism should be sTep
away. Il fosters crime, aud defeats 1.s owl
object. Therefore, As mers question OF e1
| peNitpcy, Il ought to he abolished,
; The New York Uor:d, Tribune, and othe
leading journals strongly urge IN that Stat
, its sboitior. The editnr OF tue New forl
. Tribune says in Gee Of It's Issues, q few week
, ago " We are confident that proper euor
viii place the sallows in all civilized couu
tries along with the rack, the boot, tb
| thumb screw and other devices OF med,
II pra1 barbarism.'' les, We do not hesitate I
say. that this Law would, be as mnch dl:
c,ace to the State Of Illinois a. the p,ltor
Msd s n spaee Stee ad til s stas
, tistics showing bcYond question thu
: capital punishment. has never bee
90 effective IN 1a.;u, pFe1sotq'S IT, ,1,da G5m
and mode ans OF
, ishmeni. All history demonstrates the fat
that, where the punishment Of desth has bee
the mare irclnent, crime has thereby il
creased. There are thousand instances
: prove that executions, instead Of preyentin
crime, fosters 1t, aud cfraEes propensity
!. others Tor murder.
!. In England, during tho reign Of Heury VIII
G the number Of yearly executions am 3unte
, 10 two thousand. $50 dreadful Htt
: crincs,'' says Justice Blackstone, ''ios:ead
!. diminishing, increases the number Of often
: ers.'' Every ,executiou," says D
i. additional candidate tor the lanysna7
n N he Rev. Mr.. Roberts, Of Bristol, Englau
n presents the astounding fact that he co
n yerst1 with lB7 cony1cts under sentence
Is death, ld4 OF whom had 1e.tHtxsed <Ircsat'ns
L. With little effort VIC might continue tn
d Illustrations, almost without limit. II
CHICAGO TRIBUNE tells It's rcaders, "ltn
- little confidence, tina: s. experience hoth !,
ID England and the Cnited statcsls Tint J
(, pr,snnment as penalty LOT clp:t
"a crime has lost al1 Its prev ntise Falue
d We deny this assertion. and snslss np
"a proof. On the other haul, wc teli LIE IT. IT.
,c nrSE and all Its co1npcers that n IS rue ~
N lsh1ncnt Of death by hapr'ngs M peaa'
- for capital CRIME, which has los! Us plGsc
n I've value" II there Is such virtue ~ hao
ID ing, how comes It TINT nnni,e e1Scue,o
i. huyc bccn abolished ia England anu many
=. The S1ates In tho tn.sca states nnJ ~
oi th !, ill., nunh hcr oi crimes capital ~ i.w
"a growing beautifully hess trom yen! 70 VIZ
this country and IN Esr and: ..1aa a. ass
i. penalty Is 30 cilrctual for tne pFeseut.on
,s. erunc, how docs II harpen taa1 l1e e. :,
II lions In England tor musaeI HscM a.n
1Mts M fy r,orc than one. half than Tho conviction
NJ, Not orlr Is this true os England, out II
10 1arre pt.r cent Of tho convictions aro oomu
I'D 10 Imprisonment, thoughout Europe
~, nrnrv rfyflifed country. The faSt u, cap