New-York tribune., 1896-05-04
DEATH PENALTY FOR CRIME.
COMPARATIVE RARITY OF THE INFLIC-
TION OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.

| 1T MAY IN PART BE DUE TO SENTIMENT
AGAINST THE TAKING OF HUMAN ILFE-pI-
VERSE VIEWS AS TO WHETHER THE
PRESENT LAW IS A DETERRENT.
The apparent infrequency OF the inhction OF the
death penalty for the offence OF taking another
life has been noted from time to time and many
explanations have been offered OF the lagsard' ul-
certain movement of the court machinery Yet
many questions arise for answer when the thing IS
narrowed down to the issue OF life for a iife A
Tribune reporter had this forclbly brought to his
mind a few days ago when, CHANGING into the Court
OF General Sessions in the big building In Centre-st
! he watched the process OF selecting jury In
murder case The case was one or the many that
have Increased in the courts OF the country as the
foreign population here has grown. and the chance
observer would have thought there would be no
display OF conscience the part Of alesmen for the
iury-box Yet man after man was excused The
whole Issue rested upon one interrogatory; Are you
opposed 20 capital punishment" The answer was
in the affirmative SO often that the reporter won
dered and iell 10 studying the class OF men who
were so excused The conviction was forced upon
him that many were evadng the obligation and
that the rest were probably sincere Assistant Dis
| trict-Attorney John +. Mcintyre was conducting
| the case for the State and he was asked later
| about II.
work into an analysis OF motives. he was satisfied
| I'm his own mind that the majority OF those de-
| caring themselves opposed TO the death penalty
| were doing 1t solely to escape jury duty. he had
| also found, he thought. that a good many simply
| answered as they heard others do seeing that II
| opened UP an easy avenue OF escape and possibly
| not realizing that they were under oath. Mr.. Nc
Intyre remarked that he thought the imposition OF
the death penalty deterrent: but that 1t was
| getting more and more difficult 10 reach convic-
ton in New-York State because OF the change from
hanging to death by electricity. "A nameless dread
Possesses the minds OF nearly all men as they ap-
proach death by the OF the mysterious electric
current" he went on. Hanging In its effect they
think they understand: but the amount OF suffering
experienced by the victim OF the electric chair has
never been determined with the exactness that con-
st,utes conviction In the general mind SO. just as
the possible murderer pauses on the threshold OF
| crime the juryman has reservation that may
| prevent conviction Mr. Mcintyre expressed his
belief that the number OF executions for the capital
offence was not on the decrease In New-York State
VIEW OF A POLICE OFFICIAL
In view OF this It matter for surprise to find
| distinctly opposite view held by prominent police
| official. who said:
while do not care to be quoted upon this sub
| iect for publication as my position forbils yet
am free to declare to you that am unaterably OPP
| posed TO capital punishment. II is relic OF the
Middle Ages barbarous In the extreme. and not a
deterrent OF crime in the slightest degree Tho idea
| Of keeping a murderer for months, fattenng him
| on the best that be furnished la the way OF
| food for that is tho custom. anticipating his every
| wish watching him constantly to see that he does
not commit sef-murdcr. and then of hanging him at
| the lastl This call civilization. or course COM
prchend the situation and as an officer am bound
under the law to do everything that can to bring
| every murderer to justice as that term Is inter-
| pretcd but 1t is revo,ting just tho same
| Here is wide divergence OF opinion between ex-
! pert minds and therefore IL Is not 10 he wondered
| that the layman sometimes shoots wide of the
! mark People however, are prone to lose sight OF
| the logical definitions In cases OF life-taking. and
| cry "Murder!' once the victim falls. certain
class of journals. too. have been ignoranty busy In
| building up this deception and increasing its hold
| upon the common mind by the same violation OF
meanings. and In consequence popular misconcep-
| tIon has grown up a. to what constitutes hanging
| offence A prominent criminal lawyer speaking OF
| this, said
| ''It should be understood that there is only one
| degree for which capital punishment can be in
| ficted That is murder in the arst degree, which
| and malicious wrongful taking OF the life Of an:
other. This form Of crime is fortunately rare; and
a form Of crime is very apt to be manifested by
the conviction OF the parties guilty of It, The law
in It's justice does not require the conviction OF
persons persons Who are believed by the Jury to be guilty
many guilty persons who are indicted and tried es-
| cape conviction. The probabilities favor conVctlon
| For Instance two men engage In n quarrel. One Is
killed and the survivor is put on trial. The state
or The People have the last word to the jury. The
killing appear especially revolving. The dead body
Of the slain is kept metaphoricaly before the jury
| from the opening to the c,ose OF tho tragedy and
| thus II comes about that. In my Judgment quite as
| many men innocent OF the crimo OF murder in the
| first degree convicted there are guilty ones
| acquitted.
GRADES OF THE CRIME OF HOMICIDE.
| 1T must always be borne in mind that 1t Is not
| the taking OF every human life which the law
| means to punish should punish with death.
| There many grades OF homicide which for con-
venlence may be classed under murder In the first
| degree, murder In the second degree and man.
| slaughter II human life Is taken by the careless
discharge OF firearms in the city limits the Offend
| ing person can be properly convicted OF man.
| Slaughter If two men quarrel and fight with their
| fists. and one strikes the other and kills him, you
| certainly would not expect the execution Of the
| survivor. The offence could only be manslaughter.
| IT, however. two should quarrel and begin
| firing each other. and the one who began the
quarrel and first drew weapon should Kill his
antagonist. there would be case OF murder In the
second degree. Many people might be disappointed
that the survivor not put 10 death. but you
can readily discern that the element Of premedita-
\ as DR.. buchanan, who divorced wife, married
= again and took the life of wife No In order to
secure her money. There was certainly case Of
premedtated. malicious murder, and properly
enough his execution followed. Bat Shea's Is an
other In point"
| Speaking OF this. Colonel T. c. Campbell who has
had wide experience in criminal law. said: