The Republican journal., 1873-12-11
From the Portland Advertiser
Shall Laws to Protect Human Life be
Reinvigorated?

The Sunday Star of this city has an ar
tcle against capital punishment, which
contains more argument, and comes more
directly to the point. than most that is said
upon that side
The attempt TO show that many who
favor severe punishment are sentimental
lists Is an ingenious and not wholly unsuc-
cessful one. 1t is not however an import
tant consideration. Personal feeling is
undoubtedly a large element m both opin-
ions upon the subject and it is not possible
or desirable that it should be otherwise
The Star however, unlike many of its
school, does not stop to express its horror
and repugnance at the gallows-the univer-
sal horror which is largely relied upon to
make crime itselfrepugnant-but proceeds
to give reasons against its continuance
Experience has shown that executions have
no tendency TO repreSs crime. When death was
the penalty for larceny in England both larceny
and mnrder We're more frequent than now,
Those states Of the Union where the gallov.S is
still III use do not enjoy an exceptional .,nmu-
nlty from murder"
In fine, the argument is that tFe appre-
hension Of the punishment of death does
not deter from the crime ot murder If
this be the fact then one reason upon
which capital punishment has been mann
tanned is untenable. To support this as
sertion We are told that men continue to
commit murder in spite Of the fear of
death at the hands of justice and that
men in England actually stole more fire.
quent!y, when the'- We're punished with
death, that they now do, when they are
punished with a few months imprison-
mcnt All this is undoubtedly true, and
vet the apprehension Of death may still
e, and may always have been Il strong
dcterment from the crimes of larceny and
murder The old sailor had never noticed
| the Goodwin sands until about the time of
| the erection of the Tenterdcn Stceple, but
| it does not follow that the Tenterden
steeplc was the cause Of the Goodwin
sands
| The miIdness Of manners, to which the
mitigation of all punishments is ascribable,
| has vastly lcSsencd crime. Neither fact Is
due to the other, but both are due to other
and obvious cause Civilization is the pro-
| duct ot the last three hundred years, and
centuries ago barbarOus and dishonest mel
We're not deferred from committing crime,
| by the punishment OF death. from which {
| brief imprisonment or public disgrace vii
| now deter them. 1t would not be dflicul
to show that the cruel laws, vigorously en-
| forced upon stubborn and savage peo
pie, stamped the national heart at last will
the sentiment of Justice, and beTOt tina
| general respect for human rights out o.
which the order of society has grown
Most of the advantages society now on
ioVs, ii owes to the Sufl'ern@4 and cruel
ties of earlier ages
1t was once capital offence in England
to steal sheep, When a man assures m
that that penalty has no influence to keel
men from stealing sheep, it Is an assertion
which not only do not believe but whicl
| cannot understand, because | cannot I'm
derstand the principle of human nature
which would exempt man from such a
influence | confess that it would operat
upon my own mind If the opportunlt
occurred 10 steal sheep, and had tar
brought myself to overcome slight mora
repugnancc to the crime, and to overlook
all regard for personal reputation, the con
sderation that ley probable detectlo
and conviction would lead tu my vlolen
death, Would surely come to the aid of IN
feeble conscience. and compel me to fore
90 the crime III another man in spite G
this consideration. should steal a sheep,
| doc not prove thot tn, a-,n,r mutiN" 't'"
not influence him, only that he was
~turder Or stupider criminal than |.
The trar of death. based upon uatura
instinct Of life, furnishes 4 natural an,
universal motive IL" conduct Chldre
lose their lives BY bathing in unsafe water
ov going to sea in sail boats, and by skat
ing IN thin ice Will any argue, becaus
boys continue all these practices, that tt
mere liability, not the certainty of deat
does not deter children from them and pa
rents from permitting thcm2 If the liabilit
We're increased to u probability, and trol
that to y certainty, would II not at ever
stage deter large and larger class? En-
cesSlYe lntempplaece and debalIrhcrE lea
to disease and premature death. Ih
careless use of steam and Of gunpoWde
produces mutilatlOn and death i'll more ter
rablc forms. Are not these results uniVeT
sally accepted as the strongest conceiNabl
motive to dissulde men from the course
thai terminate so iatally3 Nature puniShe
u, not only ton our offences but also 10
our mistakes, and ALWAYS in the same
summary. hard-heurtcd, cruel way. Sh
will not abolish her capital punishment
in spite of all our repugnance, nor viii
Providence adopt gentle coTectives anC
admonish Us with soothing suggestions
But in the long run Nature and Proyidenc
vindicatc their system, under the stern
teaching Of which mankind have learne,
prudence and skill, have made their live
safe in the midsts OF enemies and dangers
and will at last climb TO the heights o
power. over evils they have deticd aut
subducd
That the death penalty does deter from
F e. i,,, NAt
in the way Of conduct So ruins the eliiCi
ency of an army as desertion. So in tim,
Of war death is made the punishment o
descrtion by the practice Of the mildes
men and by the approval OF all men. The
reason is that in the eXigency Of war there
is no time tor tampering with eXpedientS
| Men chose once and only the most etfec
tive methods When criminals banded to
gether and dctied the government in Cali
tornia and Indiana the rough sense OF III,
mob chose the gallows for remedy, 1t
was lawless. it wa, cruel, bnl it was terri
bly, effective.
There is one result we are always SURE
of: the executed murderer will commit NJ
more murders; society is safe from HIM
Crimes repeat themselves by the law o
nature The man that maliciouslv kills
another, when the opportunity ana temp
tation occur together, kills again. When
| il is considered how small 4 fraction of 4
highly civilized community are morally
capable of committing this great crime
the result Of cNtinguishin9 from society,
say, one out Of hundred persons that SO
intest and en,anger it, is Il salutarv result
| When after Il series Of house-breakings Il
burglar is at last detected, arrested and
imprisoned, we attribute to him all future
ones, and think ourselves safe, while we
prolong his imprisonment. 50 we put the
murderer out ot life, not i'll vengeance OF
hate, but TO protect human life from his
murderous disposition, and hope beside,
to deter other evil men from following his
example, while we are keeping our word
with him in paying the penalty we had
| threatened
The madequacy and unsaiety Of any
other punishment is an additional reason
for maintaining the clean, summary and
effective one of execution. In the States
prison men are maintained more comfort
ably than sailors in merchant vessels, OF
Al. ,lN1n