Newport weekly independent., 1901-07-26
the Ten Commandments.

the lives ot others unlawfully, not as executioners of the law, and they go scot free. You say they had their provocations. God gave life, and He also has right to take it, and He may take it by visitation of Providence or by an eXecutioner of the law, who is His messenger. But when man assumes that Divine prerogative he touches the lowest depth of crime.
 Society is alert for certain kinds of murder. If a citizen going along the road at night is wayiaid and slain by robber, we all want the villain ar rested and executed. For all garrot- ing, for all beating out of life by club or an aN or slungshot, the law has quick spring and heavy stroke; but you know that when men get af- fluent and high position and they avenge their wrongs by taking the lives of others, great sympathy is ex- cited, lawyers plead. ladies weep, judge halts, jury is bribed and the man goes free. If the verdict happen to be against him, new trial is called on through some technicality, and they adjourn for witnesses that never come, and adjourn and adjourn until the community has forgotten all about it, and then the prison door opens and ehe murderer goes free.
 Now. if capital punishment be right, l say let the life of the polished mur- derer go with the life of the vulgar assassin. Let us have no partality of gallows, no aristocracy of electrocu- ton chair. Do not let us float back to barbarism, when every man was his own judge, jury and eXecutioner, and that man had the supremacy who had the sharpest knife and the strongest arm and the quickest step and the stealthiest revenge. He who willfully and in hatred takes the life of another Is a murderer, I care not what the provocation or the circumstances. He may be cleared by an enthusiastic courtroom, he may be sent by the gov ernment of the United States as min- ister to some foreign court, or mod ern literature may polish the crime un- til it looks like heroism; but in the sight of God murder is murder, and the judgment day will so reveal it.
 
 who have good blood. Shall ask three or four plain questions? Are your habits as good as when you left your fathers house? Have you pool ticket in your pocket? Have you a fraudu- lent document? Have you been exper- imenting to see how accurate an imi. tation you could make of your em- ployer's signature? Oh, you have good blood. Remember your fathers prayers. Remember your mothers example. Turn not in an evil way Have you been going astray? Come back. Have you ventured out too far?
 At Brighton Beach or Long Branch you have seen men go down into the surf to bathe, and they waded out farther and farther, and you got anx. ious about them. You said: q won. der if they can swim?" And you then stood and shouted: Come back! Come back! You will be drowned!" They waved their hand back, saying: "No danger" They kept on waiting deeper down and farther out from shore, un4 til after awhile a great wave with strong undertow took them out, their | corpses the next day washed on the beach. So see men wading down into sin farther and farther, and I call to them. "Come back. Come back! You will be lost! You will be lost!" They | wave their hand back, saying: Nc | danger; no danger" Deeper down | and deeper down, until after awhile a wave sweeps them off forever. Oh, | come back! The one farthest away may come.
 "Oh," you say, "you don't know : where I came from; you don't know what my history has been; you don't | know what iniquity l have plotted. l | have gone through the whole cata- logue of sin." My brother, do not know the story, but I tell you this the door of mercy is wide open. your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as snow; though they be red | like crimson, they shall be as wool" Though you had been polluted with the worst of crimes, though you have