The evening times., 1899-04-17


the United States. women have been pub
licly whipped for petty thefts, and the lash
was applied to poor foiE who could not af-
ford to pay fines, while rich rascals went
free. No civilized State could exist where
such things were allowed to degrade aud
brutalize the minds Of the people. The ar
gument against the public whipping post
was mainly that it had bad effect on the
community at large. Sensitive children,
who had been shocked and horrifed at the
sight Of criminal being whipped. grew
into men and women who talked and
worked for the abolition of this form of
punishment. The lash had to go, and when
1t disappeared from the public square it
disappeared, In most communities. from
the Jail yard and other private places.
This reform was followed. as its advo-
Gates thought it would be, by general en-
lightenment which resulted in humane
treatment Of animals. children, and de-
pendents. When human beings were
whipped in public it was absurd to expect
man of small intelligence to see any rea-
son for not maltreating his horse, or to re-
frain from chastising his children, or even
his wife, in the privacy Of his own home.
But with the agitation on the former topic
came general feeling that whipping was
not SO very much Of a reformatory measure
after all, and that it was an agency which
decent men ought to be able to do without.
II the law could punish thieves without the
whip. surely man ought to be able to
maintain authority over his honest, il care
less, apprentice or servant without its aid.
People did not reason out all this; ii crept
into their minds as such humanizing ideas
usually do, without any definite effort or
thought on their part. The height of this
humanitarian movement was reached in
the declaration that all human beings no
matter how low. how degraded. or how
base, are worthy OF consideration, and
should be governed by methods which do
not deprive them Of the little self-respect
they have. This is absolutely true, but the
majority Of the people are not yet ready to
believe 1t. There Is still lively convic-
ton in the minds of most folk that some of
their neighbors are too vile to be consid-
cred at all, and can be managed only by
main force; that in dealing with the dregs
OF humanity 1t is much better to punish
them land relieve ones own feelings) by
lashing them soundly than by any other
means. Now, this theory is all wrong. al
though, in some cases. the treatment may
appear to have beneficial effect. There
are cases in which a ruffian soundly
thrashed appears to experience a change
Of heart; he understands that his castiga
tor is a better man than he, and with the
old brute. savage instinct is ready to fol-
low one who can conquer him. But it is
doubtful if any man. tied helpless in the
yard of Jail and iashed by an officer of
the law, is in the slightest degree bene
fitted by the process. Ten TO one he is filed
with a blind, maddening. furious sense of
wrong. He may not know that there is
such a thing as self-respect; but it is his
self-respect which is outraged when he is
thus punished, and after the punishment
he is about as ready to respect and love
the law as Delaware Indian, after escap-
ing from the torture of the Iroquois, would
be to respect and obey his torment0rs. The
habitual criminal regards the police as his
natural enemies. and when he falls into
'hei AdhuS hc - is phliosophi'di doout II
as II he were captured by savages. When
he gets away he deyotes. il possible more !
energy than ever TO making them trouble |
and getting out OF their way. The only
effective punishment is that which reforms,
which sends the former convict out into |
the world with a determination TO be de- |
cent man, or keeps him out of mischief for !
the rest of his life. The whipping post |
does neither II only intensifies his abror- |
renee Of law and order and adds a per- |
sonal malignity to his general tribal ha-
tired Of good society.