, 1873-08-02
ERlGMAS OF DEATH.

Nocneilei All.I JHIy W. let3.
TO thc Editor af The Chicago Tribune:
SIN: Your correspondence. az. T. Artist
anil Equity" aro agreed tint " Crime is
griovous error Of mon," md yot both nro mis-
taFen. Crime is no error 1t Ia q dlacnBo. 1t Ia
not matter Of choice, but Of necessity. Mon
are OF necessity good or bad, as they arc of
necessity wltto or black. CauBos Of crime aro
always beyond tho control Of the criminal. This
may not alwaya bo apparent; yot, II wo tnvestl-
cato tho carocr OF any criminal, wo readily OBJ
tan abundance of proof.
There Ia no offeot without a cauBo. This
being Hc1f-ovidont, wo ask: Why doos M indi-
vidual commit murdor7 Murder is the effect;
what was tho catao? What caused tho cause,
aud tho preceding cause? And tl,cn, how long
before those inquiries lead ns to tho revelations
of tho first causos, entirely outside aud beyond
tho control Of the individual, md also forco us
to conclude that tho crime was q necessity, or
unavoidable, aud TINT tho snme ctrcumHtanco8
(cauaes) and aamo conditions (agoncics) would
again produce precsly tho same efroot7
Mon nre imperfect, II wo wore nn perfect,
thero would DO no crimo but We are ali inpor-
fcct, and therefore nil more or loss (what wo
torm) criminals. Thia physical condition Of our
bolios operated upon by other bodiea.--socioty,
home-fn1uences, c1imateB, education for good or
OWL, and circumstances in gonoral,-docides Of
what physical aud moral status wo shall bo dur
ing our life. II VIC aro good, beautiful intelli-
! gent, we nro fortunate indeed, but certainly
Hhould not tako credit ourselves, because, Ii
cauBos or circumstances had boon different, VIC
might havo boon entirely opposite in our nature.
1t our parents had boon negroes, wo would be
| black II idiots, foolH ; II born and brought up
| among thieves, tho probabilities nro TINT no
could not now discriminate betwcon right md
f.ts
marknblo dogroo Of moral excellence.
For this reason. 1t IL our duty to be charitable
towards those tlat arc roaly unfortunate. Wo
should punish crime only for tho protection and
our institutions Of 1oform aro inadequate to re-
form the criminal sufficiently for tho Bafoty Of
his fol1ow-men, it may becomo necessity to
imprison him for 1ifo, or, IN oxtremo caBes, in-
ifict capita puninhnhens; but tho latter barbar-
GUS power should only be resortod to III cases Of
absolute necessity.
| A murderer IL mai. 4 dog In n sinilar con-
dition VIC shoot on tho spot, but d human lfo ia
valuable. we have no right to t9he q human
| our own. solf-proscction is the first law Of na-
ture Tho lion doean't Z" orr" llo acts out his ma
turo; neither docs tho murtorer,--only wo aro
iukod to tho lattor by chains Of universal broth
| or11ood.
Oliver Wendoll Holmes aags: II suppose wo
must punish eyil-doors as we extsrpate yormin;
but 1 don't know That we have any more right to
judge. them than no haso to judge rats and
mice, whicl, aro just III good ns cats md
wgasolg, though 40 treat them as criminals. I
will toll you my rule in Ife and think you will
| flud it q good ono: Treat bad mon exactly as it
they wero insane. Thoy are inaano,-out of
llcnlth morally. Restrain them from injury,
| promptly, completely, and with loast possible
injury, Just aa in thecaso Of mnninca; and, when
you have got thom 30 they can do no mischief,
| Bit down and contemplate tlom clariably, ro-
nemboring that ninn-tonthB OF thoir peryersity
comos from influences entirely beyond thoir
| CONTROL" OTro WETrarE1N.
BATAVIA, ILL.,, July 80, 1873.
10 The Editor ef 7Ae Chicago tribune:
SIR notice in to-day's Tn1nuNE an attompt
at anaworing tho article wrote upon capital
/ punishment, and, as there soemB to bo eomo
mistaken viows entertained concerning II, I
] thought 1t might no vol tn mako q fow oueeos
tionR. I hopo thcro are not many WHO would
| judge mo az harshly as Equity" has in pro-
euming what would haye tho law to soy. This
Is his argument, not miue. do not argue that
thoro should be no punishment for crime. nor
that all arc insane that commit it. I considor
the penitentiary for life sevozo enough punish
| nlent, nnd tho death-pennlty too much 10. Dnt
what can NO gather from his argument? IL it
not that murdorors aro Vipera; that they nrc
actually yormin, mud aa such should be cxtcrmi-
natod? This Ii the opinion OF many; these
views arc dangerous to aocioty; they arc lin
/ drauce to progress can Hoe nothing but malice
in thcm; and the extreme Of this policy is mob
law itaoif, which, In my opinion is, not very
healthy outgrowtb.
But do not wish nor intend to ontor into a
controversy upon this subieot. I think We can
bettor occupy our time in tho further consdora.
ton OF tho cauaoH Of crime, and thus in time
bring about healthy state Of society. founded
upon truo principle. Fl. L. ARI1sT.