The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-02-20
THERE IS NO ESCAPE.
Chinese Parricide or Matricide Must
Suffer the Extreme Penalty.

SOAcI the Extreme fGll1lIV.
North China Herald: In China, when
a parent has met with death at the
hands Of u son or daughter, no cir
cumstances Of intention or age are per-
mitted 10 interfere with the inhiction
/ OF the penalty, which is that of the
lingchf followed by decapitation. Any
mitigation of this cruel sentence would
{ be considered b. the Chinese as aiming
! blow at the fundamental principle
Of fiiial duty. which is supposed TO be
the groundwork OF their code. Time
and again has the penalty Of lingchi
! been recorded against parricides or
matricides, even when they happened
10 be idiots or lunaticS, and, therefore,
not accountable for their actions.
The corruption and venanIy OF the
great mass of officials in this empire
mas become a by-word, and it is not
] strange, therefore, that justice can
q wealthy man who has been guilty Of
Killing q fellow creature, whether by
cancellation or accident, can escape
ali serious consequences and receive
q sentence of three years Punishment
10 a spot LOCO miles distant instead OF
me death penalty. Or, on the other
hand, when the relatives of the muir
make themselves heard by the officials.
and to demand the strict observance
Of the lex talionis, the rich criminal
may purchase a substitute from among
The beggar class, or perhaps an old,
faithful servant of the family may be
permitted to forfeit his lie in his
masters stead. But never has it hap
pened since China had history that
enc who occasioned the death of his
parent or parents has contrived to buy
himself off and escape the lingci'i, or
oA-eared knife, and the executioner's
heavy. two-handed sword. SO deeply
has the doctrine Of the ancient sages
IN the observance of filial piety become
rooted in the hearts of the people of
China that no magistrate would dare
TO exercise leniency by taking into
consideration the circumstances that
led to Il case of parricide or matricide
with the view OF mitigating the doom
fixed by law. Not only would the
magistrate incur thereby the danger
of violence from the mob, but he would
subvert the obedience due from his own
family.
a parricide not only brings certain
death ON himself. but disgrace on the
district in which he resides. In the case
where both parents are victims, Chi
nese law ordains that a corner OF the
district city walls shall be pulled down
as a lasting chronicle Of the shame
and disgrace of the district in having
sheltered such a monster. The magis-
trate and local officials are cashiered
and debarred forever from public en-
rloyment as punishment for not haV-
ing taught, more effectively, the doc
trine of filial piety, while the governor
Of the province. with his colleagues,
the treasurer and judge. together with
the taotai and project of the district.
are all degraded several steps in rank
In the case of the murder of both par
ents, the murderer is not only SEN
fenced to undergo lingch'i and decapi-
tation, but his body is nailed on the
top of the coffin OF one CT his victims.
So far-reaching and immutable is
this law that ii is plainly laid down
that even the infant in arms who acct
dentaily causes the death of its mother
must suffer the extreme penalty, pro-
Nded the infant has grown its teeth.
For instance, an infant borne in the
arms of its nurse and carrying in its
tiny hand some sharp instrument. may
let the same fall. and thereby acct
dentally cause the death of its mother:
and if it should happen that the infant
has one tooth in its head at the time.
II viii be doomed to the extreme pen
atty of lingch'i and decapitation; but
If il has no teeth il will escape all con-
Sequences. Such is the barbarous law
Of China. 1t is the only law that Of
fers no loophole for the escape of the
perpetrator, whether the death was
premeditated or the result of accident. |
All other laws and penalties have been
and can be evaded-for the usual con-
sideration.