The Portland daily press., 1890-02-17
Those neonla, a part of them moved

Those neonlae "a part of them moved by
-S Gss ent, part by money, who were instru-
mental in securing the pardon of I-aac Saw.
telle are today probably feeling very sober.
The executive who yielded to their petition
has. too, within few days past frequently
asked himself. no doubt if he is not partly
responsible for the terrible tragedy in the
New Hampshire woods. Isaac Saw telle,
who nobody doubts now is a murderer of
the most cruel and cold-bloodrd character.
appears TO have been thoroughly bad from
his youth up. Fifteen years ago he was con
vlcted OF the crime of rape and sentenced to
thirty years imprisonment. Several other
indictments for a similar offence were not
pressed because it was supposed his SEN
tence was long enough to keep him from do
Ing any more mischief for the remainder of
his life. But he had served but half his SEN
tence when, with the money he had accumu :
lated by prison labor, he began to scheme for
pardon. He hired able lawyers he en-
ployed people to circulate petitions in his be-
hall. No great difficulty was experienced in
gettng people, many of them influential, to
sign the petition, on the representations which
were made that he had behaved well in pris.
on, that he had reformed and that he had
already been punished severely. Nobody
appeared to oppose his pardon, and with
some reluctance apparently and with some
misgivings the executive let him
out on probation. Six weeks from the
day of his liberation he entlced his
brother into lonely place on the
ew hampshire border, shot him to death,
- 70 prevent discovery, mutilAted the
body and partly buried it In the woods.
There is lesson in this story which it
would be well, not only for per-
sons in whom the pardoning power
is lodged, but also for those peo-
pie who are so ready to pettia II for its ex-
ercise. to take to heart. The power to turn
loOSe upon the community man who by due
course of law has been restrained of his
liberty for the protection of the community,
Is great power. One of the conditions of
lis grant, implied If not expressed, is that it
shall never be exercised to the detriment Of
the community, and the first question an ex-
ecutive Is bound to ask when he is applied to
TO pardon criminal is whether such pardon
will be prejudcial to the public
While any doubt remains on that point the
exc cutive ought to refrain from acting
MosI os tho anueals made to the pardOnng
power nowadays largely or entirely ignore
this condition. They proceed from the
Standpoint OF what will be good, or it is
assumed will be good, for the culprit, and
the interests of the community are too often
almost entirely lost sight Of The attention
of the pardoning power is fixed upon the
prisoner. Frequently the latter is des.
scribed as suffering from confinement, and it
is urged that to restore him TO health free
dom is necessary 1t is represented that he
has suffered enough that he has behaved
well in prison, and that he has frequently
professed penitence and expressed desire
10 lead better life. The programme is to
concentrate the attention of the pardoning
power on the prisoner and turn it away as
much as possible from the community. In
short. to enlist its sympathies. Too often
the plan succeeds, and sympathy turns loose
prisoner which judgment would have re-
tanned in confinement.