, 1884-02-07
A Grand Jury S Blunder.

0ssgontaa.I
Portland is getting a good many
notices" these days. some of them
the reverse of complimentary And.
if the truth must be told. she deserv-
es them. Thus the Alta California
says: Portland at least displays
some OF the characteristics of great
city. Her politics are as corrupt and
her morals as wicked as would be re
quired for the metropolis Of the
country. The latest evidence Is al
recommendation hy 4 grand jury
that the social evil be licensed. For
a body which is supposed to be pre-
eminently Il censor of morals, this is
Il most extraordinary suggestion"
Hitherto the Oregonidn has re-
Trained from taking notice of this
last manifestation of official stupid
ity and moral hebetude, hoping it
would pass without receiving atten-
ton from any quarter But so ex-
traordinary It lapse of moral iudg-
ment could not pass by unnoticed
Mention of it has been made by sev-
Pral journals besides the one above
quoted from.
1t is. indeed. an extraordinary sug-
gestion. The object of lie nsing
this evil is Il simple one, namely, that
it may lie made safe 10 the men who
support it. It is proposed to do away
with as fHT as possible the terrible
penalties that nature has pronounced
against those who plant death in the
source Of hfe; 1t Is proposed TO en-
courage lust by giving the assurance
of the law. supported Ivy medical au-
thOr'ty, to those who otherwise would
be deferred from lustful indulgence.
that the penalties provided by nature
to check great moral and social evil
need to be dreaded no longer This
is one of the rrtinemenis of sensuali-
ty which Sodom failed to reach.
Nature furnishes a check to the in
diligence Of every lawlesI appetite.
AS this is one of the most reFOlting,
her penalties for it are the most Sc
we're. Men can't get drunk without
incurring headaches, can't eat glutin
0uslv without dyspe ptic or aplo-
plectlc consequences. can't indulgein
that worse than beastly promiscuity
involved in the SO-called social evil
without running dreadful risk of
loathsone disease These peualiips
nature has fixed rs bars to sensuality
and beastiless. To the multitude
whose control over their appetites is
governed very little by moral consid-
erations. prudence is thus supplied
by an auxiliary force Tire doom to
suffer physical pain for a violated
physical law makes itself heard by
those to whom even Sinai would
thunder in vain.
Man, as an animal" says George
Combe, could not exist in society
unless some check Were in
atituted against abuse of his animal
propensities. The pain attending an
acute disease is obviously instituted
to warn the sufferer, by the most for
chile of all admonitions, to return to
obedience of the law he has infringed.
The intlic'ion is approved by the
moral sentiments and 10y the intellect.
hecause in its operation 1t is altogeth-
er for the advantage OF the subject.
and because the punishment has no
object hut to bring him back to obe-
dience for his own welfare, or to ter
| inmate his snfferings when he has
arred too widely to return"
Then. too, the moral obliquitv III
the suggestion of our grand jury
that the baguio shall be advertised 10y
our laws to men, and to boys. too, as
place whic has lawful right 10
exist and 10 send out its invitations
to them. coupled with the assurance
that no harm can come from their
going. is really monstrous. Are there
not already enough allurements to
"the Young nun VOID of understand
ing" witht ut an attempt to annul
that old declaration that ''her house
is the WHY to hell; going down to the
chambers of de iih'?
Again, since the thing called the
social evil exists because it is created
and supported by men, if it is to be
protected by law, let police inspec-
ton be provided, and let policeman,
stationed at the door which the city
has designated as proper place for
men to visit, be empowered and re-
quired to cause each visitor to show
his license or permit" which he
must get from the office of the audit
or of the city, having paid therefor
the fee required by law and entering
his name upon the license book,
which shall be open as other records
to public inspection Why brand
the woman and let taa man go free? !?
1t would be very proper thing for
the members of the last grand jury
to address Il letter to the court re
questing that their suggestion br
erased from the records. There will |
never be time when it will not he a |
reproaeh to their morality and in
telligence to have it seen standing
there