The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1873-02-08
NUMBER %.
Cause and Prevention Of Crime,

Cause and Prevention Of Crime.
lFrom the N. @. Repablican.l
The Hon. Horatio Semour has made
an address before the National Prison
| Association at Baltimore which il
worthy Of consideration by all who
value the prosperity and liberties of
/ society. He thinks that crime is the
moral disease Of society, and that the
duty Of the statesman is, like that of
the physician, to make the diagnosis
Of the disease and analyze all the
causes OF its existence, This is true
Liberty is the reward Of virtue. It is
the highest premium Of order. Order
is the first point of self-government.
Nothing il more common, yet nothing
can be more absurd, than to expect
the reform Of manhood by punishment.
We agree with Mr.. Seymour tilat
punishment should be swift and Ger
tain, but has society performed its
duty when it provides che prison
house and the gibbet9 So ety pur-
sues its pleasure and its bna hess. It
takes no concern of the idle and tho
needy. The poor boy without food or
clothes yields to necessity and relieves
the opportunities Of nature. The poor
woman, working often through cold
and rain at pittanoe which viii not
maintain food, fire and clothing, is
driven by desperation to vice. and
from vice to crime. Vanity passes her
each day, it notes her pale checks,
thin figure and scanty dress; by and
by society sees her at the bar for an
evil act, and is next invited to the
private rehearsal Of her execution for
infantieide. Very well, society in
stantly yindicates itself by exclaiming,
"Vicious and abandoned creature!
Let her be put to death, to ayenge
the violated law, and as on example
to others" But this death yindicates
no law. The poor creature at first
wished only to sustain life, not to
violate law. She thought onlysof food,
warmth, raiment; they made an inn
perious demand fer satisfaction. She
obeyed nature, she did not think to
violate law. So society goes on its
wicked and thoughtless way, abs0lHte-
ly justified to itself that it has slain
one whom it has seducel. It has CONF.
mitted crime, it has not vipdicated
law. Mr.. Seymour explains the duty
of educating the poor. But he we'll
adds, education may also improve the
powers Of evil. He. will pardon us.
The first duty of the, country is to
employ the people. You can not ed
ucate child without sufficient food
or comfortable clbthing. The body
demands its necessities to be supplied
first, then the mind will act willingly
and inquiringly. Let it be admitted
that11ie two datiea can sbe eombiued;
that the child may eat and read at the
same time. Very well. But merely
intellectual pabulum is not attractive.
Indeed, it might almost be affirmed
that the large majority of those who
learn to read do so to improve their
physical condition. Few love. learn
ing in the abstract. If society has
then employed and instructed its
members, those who violate the law
are worthily and properly punished.
They can not turn upon society, as
Paul Clifford the convict, and say: q
was your ignorant paupcr; you passed
me daily III the streets without regard
ing my need or my ignorance; when
l yielded to that which you had never
troubled yourself to teach me was
wrong, or to the necessity Of the hour,
you committed a crilne-what have
done was the consequence of your
criminal neglect OF duty 1t was then
he, Bulwer, uttered that great truth
which might have emanated from q
statesman "The very worst use you
can make of man is to hang him.
The capital punishment Of q man land
we believe in capital punishnent) is
the atonement of society for its own
criminal neglect of duty. A parent
rears child in ignorance and bad
associations. What does society say !
That the parent is responsible for the
otfense committed by the child. Very
well: How has .society treated its
children? They are the poor and ig-
nOrant.
Mr.. Seymour traces all the. crimes
of Tweed aud Amesand Stokes, though
he does not name them, to the same
laws, and con,mends to statesmen the
study of social condition rs the best
means Of criminal cure. We commend
his sentiments heartily.
ExpL1c1r.-A Yankee riding up to
a DutchmaE exclaimed -
''Well, stranger, for acquaintance
sake, what might be your name1"
IVY, my name ish Haunce H0llen-
boffenhetfenstemme
"By Cape Cod! if that aint as long
as pumpkin vine! Well, l haint no
time to lose, Fm on speculatin! Tell
me the way to Tamaqua?u