The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-01-29

0
cases. the majority OF which show thai.
I after patiently submitting TO almost every
form Of brutality and abuse. the wpman is
compelled by fear fer her life Il. appeal
TO the lower criminal courts for protec-
tion. Only last week the news dispatches
, contained case in point. a New Hayer
Connecticut. woman. the wife OF a cabinet
maker, died in local hospital having
been brutality beaten with q chair. She
iett four small children. Upon being urged
10 make an ante-mOrtem statement so
that the rufjisn who caused her fatal in
juries might De prosecuted she refused
She was only one Of hundreds Of her sex
who have becn faithful TO thc tyran, 90
the last and whose devotion even in rhs
hour OF death and despite eScruciatins
suffering has been absolutely pathetic
u is fortunate FOR this New Haven brute
that Magistrate Pool is not in q position
/ 10 putin force his system Of penalties for
the wife-heater. We're the Harlem police
magistrate the Mikado OF japan. oaJ had
The Ncw Raven offence been committed ia
Toxic. there would doubtless Pc Q c9aspic-
ucus illustration Of summary Justice and
/ OF making the punishment 81 thc crime.
And there are times when the most con
servsive individual In the most conserve
tive community has his ire aroused 5y
such fragrant impositions en- the veal, that
the slereotyped penalties seem to be dis
tressingly mild and unfit
There may have been decrease duria-
the past few years ia tha vicious practice
OF physically nl-tre1,i1g wives by ,aoa-
who have sworn to honor and protect theu
from the buurtiEgs OF the world but ssa-
tstiCs concerning this kind of crime s-e
not easily oht7iuslle. Judging from the
frequency with which accounts Of such
brutal conduct appear ia the newspapers
there has not been a decrease counen-
suratc with tEe progress OF eHiisAJen-
nCut am the activity OF the law.
Il nan should step up 20 st-snse
woman ca The public thoreuslfare nd
! strike her En- the face with his lon .lel
fist there is little room Tor PEE Z. 5ou q
to What .vouid happen 10 him. pefh ps ..-
fore a bluecc5t could take hiu n T. c..t.-
dy. Yet men Who have 70 more provoCa-
tiOn for beating their wives app "a Ieies.
edly 10 thc loser criminal Co1rts 4 ;ls
cities and dosse5ly listen TO tales OF long
continued ard aggravated bIuai.y lal By
their victims. mile the general pablc
takes the matter calmly and ph.czopLi-
ally sometimes with a ha'f-belrtsI no
{ test and ofjcrtimes without a word q. crit
icsm. This may be due 10 the survival Of
/ that unfit heritage OF dark ana barb rols
! ages when the woman was regarded as ne
I .Fm 90
I rights and not one-teuth as dear Or va.ua-
/ Die as his horse or any one Of his otter
/ good cattle. Whether il is TO be rib tai
/ TO the Influence of heredisy or not. the
/ equanimity with which communities proud
/ Of their hish civilization tolerate .uch
/ things is Incompatible with their profes-
I sions.
! OF course. Magistrate Pool knows that
/ in this day wife heaters cannot be covered
/ with boiling oil. or hanged, CT .reafed in
| any other purely brutal fsshio7e but Re
merely intended to illustrate. We take IT,
I that more persistent prosecution. il roc
more drastic measures, are needed to rem
/ der obsolete such inhumsn and utterly in
/ defensible practices as beating women with
chairs or otherwise mslJrelting them. Bru-
/ tally in individuals can never be checked
| by brutality dealt out by the State under
| the forms OF law. but there is always an
| opportunity for the adoption OF haisher
i corrective measures When the penalties
/ in vogue are discovered 20 be inadequate
/ which is the only inference when the spe-
/ cial variety Of crime under consideration
I fails to become less conspicuous some
\ thing must be done to reach the offenders
/ in a fashion that viii act as a res rsint
/ upon would-be imitajOrs. The integrity OF
| the community depends upon the suppress
sion Of all forms OF iniquity, ard nothing
impedes the progress OF a race more than
that indifference 10 offences which inevita-
/ bly, results in The increase OF offenders
There is one grain OF comfort Tor the
British Lion in the otherwise dolefuI de-