The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1901-09-07


The almost complete Impotence Of torture
10 serve as an etfectual deterrent warnhnr
ruta Re ss@ aSsr shef2beptsSr Of ne Gs
clearly belongsi has certainly been shown
In history In those periods Of past E1.
tidn, oppression aud the Inevitable con
cninitnnt- sensua ity--wcrc rampant every
where the most heinous crimes ever con.
ceiyed bX man In his most vlllainous moods
were daily occurrences What about the
laws and their execution? Wcll they had
lion Torture was feature In nearly
every capital punishment. And tortures the
most terrible that could be invented by
tue demoni1c mlllgnity Of those dark ages
were Inflicted not only upon tile most
vicious feions. but on many nlscreants of
much milder type. How much did they
deter! u is notorious fact in the me
dieval history Of Italy, Spain. France. Aus
ma and Germany that almost Immediately
Ntter every case of Infamous torture for
TO seize numerous individuals for defiant
r rep it,s3 q tbnt particular ofcpse. Why
coutted the prospect OF torture? Not like
~ But there Is In the criminal character
2 peculiar impulse for impudent defiance.
bare stupid ana unarmed. which can not
PC dchned as anything but species OF
| monomania, or, In some cases, libihinons
no part whatever, and the chief symptoms
OF which are a hendlsh disposition tor
these are the impulses Of the average negro
ippist Is Abundantly demonstrated In the
circumstances of the many appalling eases
country IN the last few years
In the first place from all description
every one Of the lends was Of the lowest
type Of negro IN the county. ana this not
measured ly his capacity for the heinlus
crime merely. but by his general makeup
ant history 1t was found upon inspect on
into his preyious conduct thar he had nj.
,MsIaNs betrayed logged disposition Of pace
fhd m ana It Is erg common trait IF
his personal animoslties with desire TO
Thrust obscene aud lecherons insult o
degradation OF some sort npon his adver-
sarg, II It's easy TO conceive why the
negro of the hrutl order associates this
/ T1lienant, feeling with an insane craving
/ Tor carn1l know edge with white women,
! for he Is bcst!al sensualist 70 begin with,
| and the very fact of physical opposteness
/ In rs Intended victim seems to lnhame his
fancy with this absolutely, reckless passion
/ for the double OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
| gintidWtlon and racial revenge.
/ indeed true. MS Mr. DOYLE saws that ito
have carmel knowledge Of a white woman
fbgs rps en4 Rnf f PssrfeG5g %ilas t. gEe
Doyle's expressed In the eighth paragraph
| Of his article is not ~ all Sustained hy
| epoch-maklng Nnchng of the negro Smith
at Paris. Texas. for the rape Of little Mvr-
tie Vance: number Of years ago, the
number Of rape cases have been steadily
! increasing every year In North and East
Texas, the sections that should have ben
eitcd more than any other section OF the
Within the last ten years there have oc-
Cured in various parts of the South and
some of the most terrible lynchngs on
record in American history. Texas has
haq5 an ampite share in the experiment
watched by the world. for from no State
IN the linton have we had accounts OF
serorer fortunes inflicted on the criminal
than the pains inflicted on the culprits in
tho famous cases In Paris Tyler, CorsicHna
ana others. Have there been fewer per-
/ II nf n
Drastic executions took place than in any
d" experience Of Louisiana, Alabama.
Arkansas Georgia and South Carolina.
The rapst negro is very little concerned
ticinn, or any other kind of while all !.
And II Is entirely out of place to speak OF
sympathlzors,' for he has no sympath.2ers
among people on character anywhere, so
faai as he Is c99nsidGred as 4 rapi,st But
allies of the rnp st, in this controve sN,
contend merely thar 1t Is neither effect We,
ncr rational, nor humane to torture Win
criminal. as an animal. Mr.. Doyle seems
TO labor under the conception that TO in
Net eXluciatlne toroufeS upon beast is
rot "inhuman" He seeks TO euforcr his
argument by saying that "thrr Is no NOR
inhumanlty in burning the rape tegd IN I
Of precisely such notions that Thc p ST
protested in the name of tho tundami Mt 4
,
Doyle and Mr.. Endt and others, docs any
civilized country tolerate any law upon I
statute books which has tcr iits lounda
tion the purpose Of revenge; There have
hren statutes which prescribed blood curd
ling penalties, but even for these laws was
never assigned any other pu pos in s)ril
than the mission TO serve as sategna d Of
} lidual was ever positively dcnied any au
thoiity or share in the execution of same
Mhvl little rebectiol viii make Il
clear Despots have often abused seye I
bnt tb f4 Il paRGTS 81 m PHa.'
The law imposes the extreme penalty 81
death for certain crimes, hut no lursl
e commentator, OF ancient or modern times
: has ever defined the object of the dealt
; penalty as other than n measure TO remove
rom society the individual meuuce, OF
+ nuisance, and to serve as warning Il
i other individuals Of vicions or reckless
r disposition. Beyond this two-fold nurpos
4 no rational basis
: And indeed. the. hulk Of facts in tn
history Of, jurisprudence hid fair to pract
! Ter down to the simple purpose OF cur
ing public redress and safety by sum
marllv removing the criminal menace iron
. tho body social. And 1t does not require
D a sickenng process of torture 10 do his
: A. far as the cnlprt himself Is concerned
g there can be for him no disciplinary ylr
r upon him regarding his relation to tn
1 | public, for when he is put to death he Is
e % all intents and purposes, gone from
5 | the earth forever. No reformatory
g | comes to him from the suffering OF pun
5 tory torture, and those who intllct II upri
y him gain absolutely nothing except n say
i | age qualification Of revenge Mr.. End o.
L serves In course of his article that indeed
+ The genius of man up 10 this good dQ,
z mas utterly failed to originate nunish
g ment sufficiently terrible to in any mannr
g compensate for the diaholical crime. VIVA
G Mr.. Endt's conception of compensation
Q for any sort OF crime, anyway In tryin
: 10 grasp what possible significance tn
{ word might have in this application on
{ incidentally reminded, indeed. on IN
Q 1rclent idea of making a blood sacr'hc
2 o a supposedly irate demon for, the pui
Ii pose Of appcaslng his wrath and deman
!, VI revenge. but what affinity has such a
4 ldea with modern civilization? Does an
u '1vocate of burning At the stake nallev
Y hat hereby the slightest good Is achieve
,, D serve in any degree as an Offset for tn
4 | injury done by the wretch so executed!
But now as to the demoruzng enec
y produced upon the public MUD hG the dc
n 1berate torture of II culprlt whether r.
Z Rrded as man or brute, It Is, as tn
y t'ost suggested recently plunge Lack int
G arharism When man gives rein 10 hi
: impulses for cruelty. he can no more b
= | egarded as morally responsible chal
Y cter,- and his specific behavior while !
p he frcngy, mprCsses every one who W.
2 lCsses il as sufficient evidence hat he
q 70 moro intellectually accountable d.
| elimination In extremely uncertain In hi