Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1883-02-28

mine. will repay saith the Lord" From
this was the conclusion to be draw that the
State had TO right to punish crime? Christ
said do good to them that hate you and love
your enemies" Must the State therefore
love its criminals and do good to them?
Christ said, Resist not evil and forgive until
20 times . times" Must the criminal law
of man therefore be abolished? Christ said.
III man smite thee on thy cheek. turn to
him the other also" Ii, therefore, man be
convicted of assault and battery, shall the in
jured one be held by the law to submit to
another assault: If these doctrines of Holy
Writ were to be applied to the subject under
consideration. they must be applied as they
are and the results be abided. Ii they were
arguments against the death penalty they
were equally strong against all the penalties
of statute law. The State in that case must
reward crime instead of Furnishing il. Divine
law is one thing and human law another
Christ was the messenger of Divine law aud
not of human law. Vengeance. As the word
is translated in these cases, belongs TO God
alone. Human law is not primarily to re-
form the morals of men or to prevent them
from desiring hurtful things. Ii is to prevent
the doing of a hurtful act by terrifying him
that has il in his heart to do it. Criminal
penalties do not contemplate revenge for the
past. They intend security for the future and
protection for society. Taking up the ques
ton of whether the death penalty is eitica-
cious he said if man fear death he is not
liable TO do the thing he has reason To
think will bring him 10 his death, The
question therefore was whether men di.liEe
to die. He had seen no statistics that con-
WINGED him that men in general are ready and
willing TO die. although gentlemen had tried
with statistics to prove that at times and
in places where murder is punished with
death, murder is more frequently committed
than at other places and times SO that
more murders are committed which would
not have been committed but for the pros
pect that the murderer had of being hung
The hope and desire to he hung induced
the commission of the crime of murder, not
once. but frequently--this was the conclu
sion to be proved by the statistics. He ap-
pretended that when the statistics were all
gathered they would not show that men desire
to die He thought enough statistics had
been given to show the contrary. He APP
pretended no great danger of innocent men
being executed. Ii might happen once in
century. and was greatly to be deprecated
But because of this should the protection of
the law be taken from society! He was
willing to take for himself the risk of being
hung i'll case the death penalty was restored
He believed il to be the duty of every good
citizen to incur his own share of the risk.
1t was danger far less than that which any
man incurred in entering a railroad train
If a physician should in one instance give
poison by mistake, would gentlemen put an
end to the practice of medicine! The gentle
man from Rockland Mr.. Hall had referred
to the gallows as being. by reason of its ter
rifying force, the guardian of the innocent.
The gentleman from Houlton Mr.. Powers
Ind appaxa1 IN hn word ssapualH N ,yiv
it a ridiculous appearance. 1t was a strange
idea of Il guardian angel to some gentlemen
He supposed those gentlemen would regard
the surgeons knife as necessary thing, as
protection against pain and DEATH being what
he MIR. Thompson claimed for the gallows,
preserver of lite; but no one enjoyed be-
ing cut with it or cared to see others cut
with it. Some things are necessary and
useful if they are disagreeable some neces
sarv and useful because they are disagreeabe
Mr. Moore of Thomaston, said in years
past he had been opposed to the death pen
atty. hut he had grown wiser. He desired to
treat the subject with the consideration which
its Importance demanded. lie knew it was a
solemn thing to hang man, but he regarded
it a. infinitely more solemn that a wretch
should be allowed to live after he had com.
mitted a crime for which he deserved death.
He did not understand this idea OF sentimen
talism. that we must have hearts large enough
for the murderer, but not large enough for
the family that may have been left to suffer
and starve on account of that murderer. He
had rather see the heart expand to take in
the innocent injured than the cold blooded
assassin. If the relative increase in murder
since 1876 was taken into consideration, the
legislature would soon be asked for an APP
preparation for an enlargement of the prison.
q rhaY hot urn a1 into linn,
for murderers. He admitted that there are
men whom the gallows would not deter
from murder But if one of those
men, having committed a murder, is hung,
there is one less of them. If the other one
could not be got until he had committed
murder, when he had committed it, hang him,
and there would be two out of the way This
might sound harsh; but it was his individual
opinion. He had no figures to give; but it
was embodied in his mind that it was time
that the murderer was considered a criminal
and punished, well other criminals,
instead of being honored. The only figure
he had in his mind at that moment was the
figure of the dastardlv scoundrel whose
Shiny form creeps through the darkness to
find an innocent victim to wreak his bloody
vengeance upon, and the figure of that limo
cent person slaughtered and a number of
orphans that follow in his wake. These last
were the figures that he had regard for.
Mr.. Heath of Augusta said he had
proposed some amendments yesterday
which he would explain. He would amend
so that the punishment for murder in the first
degree shall be death or Imprisonment for
life. as the jury may determine. Also so tina,
the condemned shall not be executed under ~
months from time of sentence nor later than
II months Also to provide that two judges
shall preside in the trial of capital cases
On motion OF Mr.. Talbot of East Machias
the House reconsidered its vote fixing |
O'Clock the time at which the vote on the
bill should be taken.
On motion of Mr.. Hall of Rockland, to
morrow at IL o'clock was fixed as the time
for taking the final vote.
On motion of Mr.. Thompson of Brunswick
the House voted that when it adjourned it
should be to meet at 9 o'clock A. NJ. to-
morrow