The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-02-28
THE EprDEMtc OF VIOLENT CRIME.


Another lynching in Texas, another
disgrace to the United States. 1t took
place at Wichita Falls. 1t was just
an ordinary lynclling, the first Sener-
Gus impulse to burn the two prisoners
not having been acted upon; "calmer
counsel prevailed" the dispatches in
form us. The men lynched had at
tempted to rob bank and had killed
the cashier. Several thousand persons
went to the Jail where they We're con-
fined, and the authorities only made
a show of resistance. Only a show of
upholding the lawl What a commen-
tary! And what does it all portend?
Under the heading, 1.-THE Epidemic of
Violent Crime" Harper's Weekly of the
22nd inst, has a very able and thought
full article. It is brought forth by the
statement of United States District
Judge Ira c. Parker of Fort Smith,
Ark. He asserts that in the past year
in the United States the number of
homicides was not less than 1O,5O0; that
there have been 43,902 homicides in the
past five years, and in the same period
there have been 727 legal executions
and 1,11S lynchings. These figures
which are conceded to be correct, are
simply appalling Judge Parker's ex-
PLANTATION of them is that this violence
is chiefly due to the immunity extend
ed to murder by the courts, and es-
pecially to the obstruction of justice
in murder cases by the appellate courts.
That explanation accounts in part for
the great number of homicides commit
ted, but not entirely. The great ques-
tfon back of this is, How comes it that
the American people are so imbued
with homicidal instincts? Harper's
Weekly finds another, and, to it, more
satisfactory explanation of such a con-
ditfon of things. 1t is of the opinion
that one great contributing cause is
the connection between politics and
crime. 1t says that the criminal classes
are the first and the natural allies of
the political corruptionists, and the
natural price of their support is inn
munity from crime. This is true, but
1t is totally inadequate to explain the
prevalence of homicide in all parts of
the country. 1t says there is no the
DRY about this alliance being a perma-
nent and potent cause of the violent
crimes which disgrace our civilization;
that it is matter of convincing and
continuous evidence, "suoh as was fur
nished by the concerted and unpre-
cedented effort lately put forth in the
state of New York to save from death
the political murderer, Bat Shea of
Troy" True again, but Bat Shea was
not saved.
The explanations of Judge Parker
and the Weekly are totally inadequate
Neither offers any explanation of the
existence of feuds in some of the
southern states, notably in Kentucky
What of the many lynchings where the
courts are not given any opportunity,
not the smallest, to administer JUS
tice. as this case at Wichita Falls?
And of the burning and torturing men
at the stake in the presence of assem-
bled thousands? Where these things
are most numerous there is no connec-
tion between politics and the crime
while there is no question as to the
conviction of the criminals if given a
trial. These are the deplorable facts
so hard of explanation. Why are these
crimes of such frequent occurrence in
an enlightened, a civilized, a Christian
country? Somewhere we as a nation
are lacking in our devotion to law and
order. That this fact is being real
lied and the cause Of causes for it
sought, is one of the most encouraging
signs of the times. When people sense
their shortcomings they usually seek
to mend them.