The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1896-04-30
DEATH PENALTY.
Periods When 1t Has Been Enforced In Maine
Said TO Have Had no Evident Effect In Subdu

In the history Of the death penalty for
murder in this State many interesting
features have been developed; none more
SO, perhaps, than the seemingly evident
deduction which is drawn that the i'm
position Of the death penalty has had no
apprecable influence upon the committing
of CRIME, either one way or the other.
In other words, at periods following the
imposition of the death penalty the
crime has, Notwithstanding, shown a mark
ed increase. And to further battle any
argument for its efficacy, it has been con
clusively shown that upon the death pen
alties being removed, the crime has shown
no increase; in point of fact it has been
followed by decrease.
1t is the opinion of the State librarian,
L. d. Carver, that crime in Maine, from
an exhaustive study which he has made,
is largely epidemic. From his study he
has kindly prepared the following upon
the subject
the abolition of the death penalty in this
State be written in full it would afford
the most valuable subject for the con
temptation of the philosopher and student
of human nature. The result of that
controversy vindcates the belief that the
human race is making some progress
towards a humane AID charitable view Of
the flailties and passions of men.
There has rarely been presented a more
striking example of the struggle between
the feeling OF vengeance that stirs the
heart at the recital of deadly and brutal
wrongs, and the feeling of humanity and
charity towards the perpetrator thereof
which will ultimately assert itself in every
enlightened Christian mind.
When the Legislature of Maine adopted
a code of laws in 1921, the crimes of trea-
son, murder rape, arson, burglary, and
robbery We're made punishable with death
by hanging. This penalty it was decreed
should be inflicted alike on principals and
accessories to these crimes. Very soon
after this year the question of capital
punishment was discussed and agitated
throughout the country. In 1929 the
laws of Maine We're modified, and the
penalty for burglary, rape, and robbery
was reduced to imprisonment for life.
The subject was again discussed and
numerous petitions We're presented to the
Legislature praying for the total abolition
OF the death penalty. In 1873, and again
in 1886, Legislative committees composed
of the most intelligent and progressive
men in the State recon- ended in eXhaus
tive reports upon the >ubject, the abolition
of the death penalty, yielding in part to
a strong and growing sentiment in the
minds of the people against capital pun
ishment. The legislature Of 1887 enacted
a law requiring that any one convicted Of a
capital crime should be confined in the
State prison for year and a day, and
should not be executed until certified
copy OF all the proceedings at the trial
had been forwarded to the executive, nor
until the Governor should issue his war
rant commanding the execution Of the
criminal BY chapter 101 of the laws of
1874, it WAS further provided that any
person convicted of a capital offence
should suffer solitary confinement and
hard labor in the State prison until the
penalty of death should be inflicted.
Thus it will be seen that the execution Of
the death penalty upon person duly
convicted OF murder, treason, or arson
was left entirely to the discretion of the
chief executive of the State.
SO great was this possibility, that only
once during thirty years did any Governor
of Maine issue warrant for the eXecu-
ton of criminal. The law had become
SO nearly obsolete from non-enforcement
that the Governor in his annual message
in 1864 felt constrained to call the atten-
ton of the legislature to the fact. He
stated the fact that there were at that
time confined in the State prison twelve
murderers under sentence of death, one of
whom had then been confined nearly
twenty years, and that to require the
chief magistrate to issue his warrant for
the execution of these criminals at that
late day would be monstrous. He urged
upon the Legislature the necessity Of re-
ii,i,1 no
for execution within a certain time or to
abolish capital punishment altogether.
In 1867 the executive in his annual mes
sage again called attention to the fact that
under the law the Governor was required
to fix the day of execution and issue his
warrant therefor, and that, with the ex-
ception of single instance, in thirty
years no governor had assumed the re-
sponsbility of ordering the execution of
a criminal.
In 1869 the attention Of the I4egsla ture
was called to the subject. During the
session OF that Legislature a law was en-
acted requiring the Governor and council,
after a review of the evidence and pro
ceedings of the court by which a person
was convicted and sentenced to the death
penalty, either to pardon or commute the
sentence or issue his warrant for eNecu-
ton OF the sentence OF the court. In 1870
the Governor suggested that the act of
1869 imposed judicial functions upon the
executive, and was at variance with the
constitutional form of our government.
In 1874 Governor Dingley in his message
entered vigorous protest against the
provisions of this act, which created the
Governor and Council court of review
and made the Governor judge, jury aud
executioner in each case of murder in the
first degree. He again called upon the
Legislature in 1875 to render the law GER
tain and consistent, and by the laws Of
that year it was enacted that it should be
the duty of the chief magistrate within -
months after conviction and sentence to
issue warrant for the execution of the
criminal.
In 1876, Governor Conner suggested
modification of the law. The continued
agitation of the subject, however, had so
strengthened the opponents of capital
! punishment that law was passed abol-
! isling death as a penalty for any crime.
Adverting to this change in the law in
his annual message Of 1877 the Governor
declared his pleasure that the change had
not been followed by any INCREASE in crime.
The struggle to abolish the death pen
/. atty in this State could it be fully writ
| ten, would form an interesting chapter i'm