The Hartford herald., 1880-01-28
THE STATE CAPITOL.
Our Correspondents Views About the
Whipping Post and the Pardon.
ing of COnvicts.

On last Saturday Governor Black
burn pardoned rs men out of the peni-
tentiary at Frankfort. We presume
that the rural roOsters throughout the
State will shake their wings and pounce
upon the Governor. Ii Is true that this
wholesale pardoning is an extraordina-
ry procedure, but the circumstances
Were such as TO fully justify the act.
Nay, had the number been 300 instead
of s., still ii would have been but a lust
thing. We happened to be in Frank
fort at the time Of the erOdus of the
liberated men. And while our ewes
have been schooled to look upon
wretchedness in its deepest form, and
while tears upon our face have long
been an unknown accomplishment, or
weakness, if such it be, yet we must
say that we never had a deeper pity ex-
cited, than when we beheld the ema-
ciated figures, the wan, pale faces and
sunken, sullen spirits of those poor I'M
fortunates. Men who had been incar-
cerated i'm a prison more cruel than the
bastile, men who, under the inspiration
of an evil thought or passion, or i'm a
moment Of anger, had committed some
transgressiOn against the majesty Of
Kentucky's laws, for which they had
been sentenced to terms i'm the States
prison, and who, shut away from the
gaze and sympathies of n thOughtless
and cruel world, had been subjected to
the most barbarous cruelties and inhu-
man treatment. Our heart sickened at
the sight. We endeavored to interview
some of the manumitted victims, but
had to give ii up in anger. One gentle
man, newspaper reporter, told us that
after spending three hours i'm the prison,
he came out with such a feeling of dis
gust, that he would have Joined a mob
TO demolish that whole internal hole.
Said he, "If the citizens of Kentucky
realized the half of what is true, i'm re-
gard to this affair, they would rise en-
B,dsse and destroy the whole d--n
thing" Many of the SIS will reach
their homes only to die, and others will
linger on i'm wretchedness and disgrace,
being disabled for life. The horrors Of
the case, beggars of all description, and
We save the readers of the HERALD the
pain of detailed account. Luke p.
Blackburn has gained the increased re-
spect of all fair-minded men who know
of the facts, and he has won
the affections of the large class Of suf-
ferers liberated from the death hole. II
is disgrace and dark blot on Ken
tucky's fair fame. Ii is contradiction
to our high boast of chivalry and civili-
zation to foster such an institution In
our midst. In the very echo of our
halls Of Justice, under the very shadow
Of our Capital, and within the sound of
music and mirth of gay and festive
city, there have been men murdered by
inches, starved in land of plenty,
rotting with scurvy for want of the |
most common chemical elements which |
nature has given to man i'm so cheap |
and abundant form, as Irish potatoes |
and cabbage, suffocating i'm damp,
filthy hospital with $50 cubic feet of air, |
has filled the earth with plen-
ty, and when the laws of nature re-
luire from 500 to 900 cubic feet of air. |
We are glad that the Legislature has
at last awakened to the crisis. We
hope that they will spare time enough |
from dancing and gassing with the fair |
ladies' who fit about the Capitol as
moths fit before a lighted candle, to
settle this question by wise provisions |
against the possibility Of recurrence
IF such a state of affairs.
THE WHIPPING POST.
Again the bill to establish whip
ping post penalty in Kentucky has
come up at Frankfort and the lower
House passed the bill. Our representa-
i've, to his credit be it said, opposed the
bill. While i'm Frankfort we heard sew
aral members of the Senate express
in favor of the bill, SO that |
i really looks as if we were to 90 back
20 the days of semi-barbarism-to place
on level with Russia and
china with respect to this law, which,
unlike gifts of mercy, bless both the Civ
er and as well as the receiver, curses
both the giver and receiver. No man,
be he high sheriff or anybody else, can
AXE a lash and lay on blows upon
helpless fellowman without being bru-
talized by the act. No one can witness
he operation much less receive il with
out being degraded and injured. Every
man who votes for that law ought to be
and given black eye by
MS constituents
We have not room to argue the case,
nor answer the arguments offered i'm
support of the bill. 1t is not an answer
% say that the expense incident
20 Furnishing petty offenders is SO great,
and that it would be avoided by whip
and yet it would cost less
70 shoot them than it would to whip
hem, and upon the economical idea, let
Is shoot all worthless and petty Offend
,rs. 1t costs a vast deal to the State to
AXE care of cripples and invalids. In
stead of hospitals and asylums, let's do
ike the Fiji Islanders and Australians,
put to death all cripples and aged per.
sons as useless incumbrances. How
will this harmOniZe with civilization.
We opine the real motive of that law to
De for the benefit of the negroes. II we
enact class legislation, let us have the
moral courage to do as they do in Cali
ornia anti-Chinese laws, say plainly
hat we mean it chiefly for negroes, and
hus get up speedy erodus Of that
lass from our State.
While i'm Frankfort we called on
Major Stanton of the YcOn,dn office
We found him to be genial, courteous
gentleman. We also looked i'm on the
and last, but not least, we
,eeped into the sanctum of the irrepres-
ible Ben Deering, in the Office Of the
Gazette, which is to appear next week.
Frankfort has lot of handsome
aides, and they have lots of "lace, pearls
md diamonds ct ceterd' for balls and
ich like. But if we meant business we
would not pass by the young ladies of
Hartford for the whole posse of Frank
ort girls-iace and all.
The confiding wives who remain at
lome with the children, have no idea
what risk they run while their hus-
,ands are i'm Frankfort during the Leg
stature. Oh! the folly and damphoolery
# some women!
Elm Lick Lisptngs.