Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1873-11-06
From the New York Herald.
Hanging Played Out for the Rich.


third degree. After three long and
wearying trials the dandy manslayer
is told by twelve good men and true"
that shooting down his enemy was a
deed barely escaping from being hon
orable by some miserable points Of
law, which involved, unfortunately,
four years in Sing Sing. A grand
vindication of the law. truly. Civillz-
alton has reached its acme when the
assassin and his friends must have con
sideration. TO the rope with the Rey-
nolds, to the moose with the NiXons,
to the aallows with the Fosters. They
were day laborers or loafers, bill-stick-
ers or car conductors, and they can
be spared from this civilized age,
where they neither adorn nor shine.
If they kill they are cold-blooded
murderers. but the "culled darlings of
orr nation who kill with the pistol,
must be preserved. even at the cost
of Il short imprisonment, that they
may dazzle on Broadway and lounge
about the porticoes Of the great hotels
Reynolds was wrong. Hanging is
not played out in New York--for day
laborers, bill-stickers and car conduc-
like himself and his successors under
the gallows beam.
What are we to say Of the conduct
Of this case for the people? How did
they SO present the facts that killing
became no murder? We bow, by a
time,honored custom, to the inyiola-
biiily OF the jmy-boX, until an offence
is brought home III Il particular case.
If we have amy blame to cast we will
not in charity lay it on the Stokes
Jury, or any Of them, unless forced 50
to do by the finding of another, 1t is
case like one of murder in which
nothing but innocence must be pre-
sumed The question with them we
leave altogether aside. The conduct
Of the case on behalf of the people
will be brought seyerly in question:
1t ia not merely did the prosecution
do their best, but did they do the very
best that could be done? The pro
cess has been costly enough in all
conscience to give the very best ser
vice to the people. The result tells
us whether they GOT it or not. \
man convicted Of murder in the first
degree on Il former rial is suddenly
found to be merely guilty of man
slaughter in the third degree. 1t is
pleasant transmutation for the curl
ed darlings, an apotheosis of homicide
for the jcuneSSe d0rce You may ir
future Judge the utmost degree OF
crime Il man commit by the cut OF bis
coat, by the mounting of his pisto'
and the curl of his hair. There must
be commiseration for the .gloved eX.
quisite who kills and for his friends
His cold-blooded killing Of another
must be allowed to be "done in the
heat Of passion, without design tC
effect death and without circumstances
to justify the killing" This is the
present stage; but why should W,
not advance step, and all murderer.
of the proper sacred. llama standard
be declared, like the british sovereign
incapable Of doing wrong? Passage,
like the following will then be rca6
with wonder, that Judge could have
spoken so tamely in such clement
direction. Said Judge Davis yester
day in his admirable charge 1.-THE
effect upon the accused and upon his
excellent friends of your verdict should
make you act with caution and care.
but without hesitation where the evi
dence constrains you so to act. We
cannot help feeling deeply-all will
feel deepl y-it' yon convict of the cap
ital offence; we shall sympathize with
the circle OF friends that surround
him." Foster had a wife and friends
and so had Nixon. God knows
whether they deserved any sympathy,
or whether the effect which a verdict
of capital offence would produce
upon them was instanced as inducing
to caution and care The shades of
the murdered seemed sufficiently neal
to the judicial bench in these cases to
hide the excellent friends" of the
prisoners at the bar. If the grass
grown mould upon Fisk's grave has
prevented his shadow from coming be
tween justice and the friends of its
victim, so much the better for the
victim. The excellent friends' Of
the murdered man must have taken 6
very airy form that they presented nc
object to the judicial vision. Is moi