The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-04-05
MURDER AND THE DEATH PENALTY


A recent writer states as an argument
in favor OF the abolition of capital pun
ishment that Holland, Belgium, Switz-
erland, Portugal and Roumania have
purged their statutes from this stain of
blood and without any apparent increase
of homicides." The governments of
some of these countries, notably Portu-
gal and Roumania, are by no means at
the head of the march Of civilization,
and their example in this regard is not
entitled to much weight. AS to whether
hcmicides have increased or not since the
abolition of capital punishment reliable
statistics on the subject would be more
ton. In at least one or two of the can
tens of Switzerland capital punishment
has been restored on the ground that its
abolition had caused an increase of
crime. In Iowa 1t was restored in 1878
for the same reason after having been
abolished for several years. In the dis
cussion of the bill it was stated that
homicidal crimes had increased from
year to year, and were increasing more
and more rapidly each year. Possibly
there might have been other causes for
this, but it was charged to the abolition
OF capital punishment. 1t was also
stated that there had been a great in
crease Of mob law since the abolition of
the death penalty. The bill restoring the
death penalty as finally passed leaves it
optional with the jury to hang a con-
victed murderer or send him to the peni-
tertiary for life.
A stock argument in favor Of the aboli-
tendency, as civilization progresses,
towards milder punishment of crime.
There has unquestionabiy been a great
change in this regard in comparatively
recent times. At the beginning of this
century England had a very severe GRIM
inal code. According to the charge OF its
most eminent jurists and statesmen
there were at that date 16O offenses to
which the death penalty was annexed.
In 1908 bills were introduced in the
House Of Commons to abolish the
death penalty for stealing from a dwell
ing house to the value of forty shillings
and for stealing a sword to the value of
five shillings, and when these measures
finally reached the upper house they
were opposed by the leading lawyers Of
that body. Lord Chancellor E,ldon made
a speech against them, with whose views
all the judges concurred. In it he said:
IF the present bill be carried into effect
then may your lordships expect to see
the whole frame of our criminal law in
vaded and broken in upon. The public
OF this country, submit. ought to know
in what the criminal code Of this country
so that your lordships may not.
time after time, be distressed with such
as this" Nevertheless. the
continued until the death PEN
atty was abolished in England for all ex-
cept very few crimes. The movement
has been progressive one, but 1t has
stopped at murder, and 1t is doubtful If
the death penalty for that crime will
ever be abolished in England. There is
no mawkish sentimentalism there
against hanging murderers and no un-
necessary delay in convicting them.
There is no difficulty in getting an En-
glish jury that has no scruples against
capital punishment. nor are English
juries given the power to affix any other
but the death penalty for murder. In
short. criminal law is far better enforced
in that country than it is in the United
States t",.
In view OF the alarming increase OF
homicides in this country in recent years
one is almost moved to say that the
death penalty had better be abolished
than remain on the statute books and
never. or almost never, be enforced.
Where juries have the power to decide
hanging and Imprisonment for
life they almost invariably afiix the lat
ter penalty. Promptness and certainty
OF punishment. especially the latter, are
probably more deterrent of crime than
mere severity OF penalties. Sidney Smith
said: The efficient maximum OF pun
Is not what the Legislature
chooses to exact, but what the great
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