The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-07-10

constitution and the rights of British sub
jects, the clause was stricken out, and the
"wager of battle" became part of Amer
lean jurisprudence. In 1918, Peterborough
and the other judges of the highest court of
England, in case judicially be-
fore them. determined that an accused
person was entitled to be tried by the
"wager of battle" The effect of this de- |
cision was to cause the abolition of the |
judicial duel, by parliament, In the follow
Ing year, and 1t has been, thenceforward,
unknown save in history.
Following naturally from this came the
duel, as known at the present day, and
which, unfortunately, seems to be coming
into practice again. We are aware that 1t
is claimed by some that the duel preceded
the wager of battle, enforcing their argu-
ment or claim, by reference to the combat,
If we may so call it, between David and
Goliah, as recorded in Holy Writ. 1t seems
to us, however, that this partakcs more of
the nature of the wager than the duel,
although il was unattended by judicial sane
ton. All "combats between two" are de-
fined to be duel, and if the mere definition
is to determine the matter, it would cover
the judicial as well as the private combats.
As we understand ducls, nearly all histo-
rians agree that they date from the cele
brated cartel between Francis, the first of
that name, of France, and Charles ", En-
peror of Germany, in 1921; certain it is,
that the custom was thereafter more or less
sanctioned in ''high places of church and
state, took place upon the slightest provo
cation, and constantly increased in number.
Duels became, at last, so frequent and
alarming that repeated, but unavaling, eff
forts were made to suppress them. A his
torian says that "all France went mad
upon the duel" and the same was true
everywhere. The bulls of Popes, the pro-
CARNATIONS of rulers, and laws of parlia-
ment were alike unheeded. And why !?
Because public opinion sanctioned the prac-
ticc. The trouble was that if public man,
or even a private individual, was wronged
or insulted-and the community SO regard
ed it-hc was required to choose between a
violation of divine and human laws, or the
loss of his position in society, and of all
hopes of recognition or advancement in
either event he must, in measure, sacrifice
himself The former course was chosen,
because the living victim would be sus1
tanned by public sentiment, vitated to be
sure, but consoling and sustaining, after all.
Perhaps we, of New England, owe our
freedom from this terrible custom, to the
fact that an attempt was made to fight a
duel in the first year of the settlement and
that the custom was rendered ridiculous by
placing the participants, tied together by
the neck and heels, in public place, OBJ
jects of contempt and rdicule for the null
titude.
This custom is. as we have said, again
becoming alarmingly frequent. Only yes
terday, we recorded the result of duel in
France, in which both parties were wound
ed, one seriously so. Within the space of
a very few days we have, also, been called
upon to record three separate instances in
the United States, two of which resulted
fatally. The other combat took place very
near our own border, and was between two
prominent New York merchants. We
have referred to the history of duels and
dueling for the purpose of showing .by
have been, heretofore, for the custom and
practice, either in the law or public opinion
no such plea can now be urged. The day
when men could deliberately, and by agree
mcnt, settle their differences mt the mouth
of the pistol has passed by, and cannot re-
turn unless we, by our remissness, permit.
The law and public sentiment class duelsts
among the higher grades of criminals, and
there they should remain. This matter is
brought home to our very doors,-when
merchants from a neighboring city pass
through our village for the purpose of de-
liberately numbering one or the other and
no attention is paid thereto, here or else
where. Except in the case of the parties
to the Richmond affair, there seems to have
been no attempt on the part of the authori-
ties to bring the parties to justice. In
reference to all of these cases, there is an
apathy in the public mind, and on the part
of the press that is foreboding of danger.
Shall these things be so, is question for
us, one and all, to consider. The idea of
an "affair of honor between citizens of
Vermont would be no more strange than
one between staid New York merchants
We do not believe that one ever will occur
in this State, neither did we believe, two
weeks ago, that two murders would be
committed within our borders within the
next fourteen days, but so it was. We
cannot tell what our own danger, as a
State, may be, but we are equally interested
in the dangers that assail other portions of
the country. Public sentiment seems to
have been concentrated in one particular
direction, regardless of other, and, perhaps,
graver dangers. Eternal vigilance is the
price of an assured safety from lawless-
ness, as well as the price of liberty. The
revival of this terrible custom of duelng is
fraught, in our opinion, with more danger
to the country than is to be apprehended
from any other cause.
The Park Art Gallery.