The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-06-17

The murder of Mcclellan has developed {
curious kind of sentiment among the peo
pie of Ohio, and the career of the desperate
and the comments made on the killing o.
him illustrate condition of society which
has hitherto been supposed to be peculiar
70 the South and the border states
Here was man who had lived a life OF
crime for years with impunity. He had
stolen horses, been guilty of robbery, and
committed several murders. The lesser
misdemeanors were acts of every day pas.
time with him. And yet, in a civ
ilized community, he was secure
from punishment. Had such a
fellow fourished in Arkansas
or Louisiana, what wonderful lessons in
politics and morals would have been drawn
from his continued prosperity and security.
How Charles Nordhoff or DIR. Redfield
would have pictured his adventurous career.
and preached OF Southern barbarisn as they
told the tale. If he had dwelt in lately
reconstructed state and killed negroes in
stead OF white people, his crimes would have
been deemed sufficient to justifya force bill.
Either the murdered man is sorely belied.
or else Ohio had better look TO the admins
tration OF its laws and cease critics.
ing Tennessee aud Alabama. Still
more disgraceful is the tone in
which the community speak of the muir
der. 1t is openly intimated that the people
of Hamilton do not care to make any very
search for the murderer, and although
it is pretty plain who the guilty party is,
there will probably be no attempt made to
convict, much less hang him. Such
a paper as the Cincinnati CONNER
rial coolly remarks in an editorial,
The job of killing him appears to have
Teen carefully planned, and as the assassin |
seems to have left no tracks, and the search
will probably not be very exacting, the
chances are that this is the end" The whole
flair Is treated as a rather clever and praise
worthy piece of work. The Commercial
Gems to consider the death of Mcclellan a
-ery fortunaLsnate occurrence, and since he
ould not be hanged. as he would have
een long ago in any well regu-
ated community, that paper assumes it
D be just as well and triae less expensive
hat he should be murdered. An execution {
Thich is the last act of human justice seems ;
be confounded with an ordinary homicide t
ociety assuming to itself, in vindication O. j
10 sanctity OF lire, the awful prerogative of 1
'ficting death is not distinguished from I
le brutal ruffian who kills from private Z
alice, striking not only at the life of q a
How man, but at the safety of the COM a
unity. The killing of Mcclellan is evil =
,ntly a cold-blooded and premeditated e
urder, and no matter what the character q
the dead man may have been, !.
community is safe which allows v
10 murderer to go unpublished. q
'ciety becomes, as it were a partaker in ;,
q crime. The man who has done one deed 4
this kind, will not hesitate about COM 4
itting another when his passions drive il
m to it, and perhaps he may not select his +
'xt victim with such nice discrimination. Il
le Commercial remarks, "the chances are CT
at this is the end" but the chances are al II
gether the other way. The chances are that n =
is is merely the beginning. Where So m
sty ceases to punish murderers, men are tn
ry apt to take the law in their own hands. u
me one who was wronged by Mcclellan, h,
d was not avenged by the law, has n,
dicted his own wild justice on his re
envy. The brother of the murdered man -
5 already sworn to pursue the same course, ra
in community which looks upon a hs
alicious and brutal murder as " carefully IA
AIMED job," and congrstulates itself on "a
} fact that the assassins have left no clue br
which they may be traced, IN
} resolution of Court Mcclellan ~.
take the war path can only be pronounced to
natural one. The old German Faust WI
chit seems to be coming in fashion in
10. 1t is every man for himself and the tt
I'll for us all. ha
alb