The McCook tribune., 1891-03-27
THE USURY LAW.

The following is the usury bill il
full as it finally passed the house:
Section l. 1t shall be unlawful for
any person, corporation Or association,
TO charge, contract for, or receive,
either directly or Indirectly, whether
in person or by agent any greater rate
of interest than $40 per year upon
500 upon any loan, or forbearance OF
money, goods or things in action; or
if any person, firm, corporation or
association, for the purpose of evad-
ing the provisions of this act shall dis
count any notes. or other negotiable
paper, for the purpose OF securing u
greater rate of interest than hereinb be-
fore provided for, all such transactions
shall be, and they are hereby declared
unlawful and i'll violation of the pro-
visions of this act, but the note shall
not be declared void. Every person,
firm, corporation, or association vio-
lating any of the provisions of this
act shall be deemed guilty OF d misde-
meanor, and upon conviction thereof
500 and not more than 81, 600.
Sec. 2. Every person. firm, corpor-
alton or association, that charges, con :
tracts for or receives Il greater rate OF
interest than SO per year upon 500.
shall be liable to the borrower or party
aggrieved, in civil action. commenced
ut any time within five years after the
payment Of such interest for five times
the amount OF the whole interest.
charged, contracted for, or received,
and the costs of suit.
Sec 8. That said section and all
other acts or parts OF acts in conflict
with the provisions Of this act are
hereby repealed.
AS TO CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.
The judiciary committee reported
Capek's bill to abolish capital punish
ment back with the recommendation
that it be postponed. Attached to the
report was minority report by Mr..
Capek, as follows:
Your committee on judiciary beg
leave to make the following minority
report on house rolls 407 ana 4O6. and
ask that the report of the majority be
not concurred in and the bills be placed
on general file. Believing that the gov
erning principle OF the IDEA OF punish
ment ought to be that of Improvement,
we deny the state the right of attack
ing the transcendcnt life OF man and
destroying that principle of improve
ment. \ man commits theft or ROB-
berry, or murder because his nature is
depraved, ana the transgression OF the
law is the natural result OF his cor
ruptness; and considerations of future
punishment have very little weight
except in the earlier stages OF vice and
crime. And. accordingly, the true
remedy for crime is to be found, not
in substitution of one form OF punish
ment for another. but in the education
and enlightenment of the people.
Crimes are not lessened by the severi-
ty of punishments. but by the moral
and social relations, the education ard
the prosperity of society.
In conclusion. the committee desires
to refer to the most potent argument
against capital punishment-that Of
destroying the life of an innocent hu-
man teiag. In such cases. which are
not infrequent, the state commits an
irreparaole wrong. The argument that
the maintenance Of criminal in the
penitentiary for life would entail
great expense on the state is untena-
bic, since it was a well-known fact that
the expenses of an execution are some
times larger than those in the first in
stance.