Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1886-08-18

The injury done TO society by pardonihg haio
sped criminals out of prison before the eA pra-
ton of the full term for which they nave oeen
sentenced, was forcibly illustrated by the shoot
an. vh,ch took place in this city last Saturday |
night Here was a case where a mawkish sem |
tlmentality stepped in to defeat the ends OIL JUS
tice Executive ciemency interfereo, anu q
brutal ruffian was turned loose upon the com.
munity he had so long terrorized, ana value"
citizen narrowly escaped death AT MS nanus'
whereas had the law been allowed 10 taAe ~"
course he would still be in prison paying 'ns
penaIty of his old offence. There may De soihe
reason In showing mercy in the case OF young
offenders with q fair record up to the transgres-
.,on for which they are first on trial, and where
there is q reasonable hope of reform, out tnero
can be no excuse for shortening the Tune WHEN
sOciety may legally be freed from the dangerous
presence OF vicious and murderousiy oisposeo
bruisers whose wicked record, desperate char-
acter and criminal intentions are periectiy
well known. In every such case the severest
nopaltv known To the law should be imposed,
and IL should be imposed to the last day Oh the
tsrm allowed by law. This much both the Juol-
cial and executive branches of the government
owe to that part of society which pays the taxes
and obeys the laws of the country.
We ara now nearing the close of what has
been probably the most remarkable summer
ever known In Washington. Not more than
halt a dozen days in the whole season nave
been uncomfortably warm, and the thermom-
eter has exceeded ninety degrees only once or
twice. The weather, too, has been not only DE-
nghtfully cool, but generally clear and Dfacihg,
with fine fresh breexes and a noticeable absence
of violent storms. What emphasizes the iact
is the poor luck in weather which the rest OK
the country has had. All over the north ana
west there has been a succession of devastating
cyclones and waves of intense heat. Al Inc
present moment, while Washington Is luxuri-
atins in perfect summer weather, the western
states are wrthing under a temperature OF lOO
and ITO in the shade. One or two more seasons
of this sort would lead the public at large To
realize the fact that Washington Is one OF the
pleasantest summer resorts in the country.
The political situation In England mas
suffered little alteration during the pas'
week. The general opinion among care
ful observers in England seems TO be tna'
the prospects OF the conservatives have I'M
proved somewhat of late, owing in great part u
the reassuring tone of Lord Salisbury speech a
the lord mayor banquet, which has secured. 10
the tims being. the approval OF the unionist
liberals. The new administration appears Il
be inclined to depart from the traditional tory
policy OF cultivatlng a vigorous 'jingo' senti
msnt in order to divert attention from hom
troubles; and If the new ministry has sens
enough TO address itself earnestly and honestl,
to the pressing needs OF the nation In the lin
of domestic legislation, instead OF lsnorih
them, in the usual conservative fashion, it ma
prove a success after all. But this is almos
too much to hope for.