Backbone. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. ;) 1897-1906, 1903-05-01

lowing editorial:
The strength of the sin is the law
Unfortunately that statement is as true
to-day as it was in the days of Paul.
statute, shall the strength, the enorm-
ity, of the sin be reckoned. If the law
calls an act sin, 1T is sin. If an act
be beyond the law, 50 subtly iniauitous
thing, the law, cannot. touch it, then
the act, however terrible in its conse-
quence, however subtly penetrating
and far-reaching, cannot be considered
by the court, cannot be meted with
punishm ent.
Joseph -Kohler shot down John Carr.
Kohler took Carr's life. The Mosaic
statute, thou shalt not kill" is as ap-
years ago. The Christian measure of
exchange, AN eye for an eye, tooth
for TOOTH is as operative now as it
was eighteen centuries ago. Kohler's
to compensate for Carrs life.
Yet the entire community knows that
back of the act of Kohler was the act
. Of Lfcha, and the entire community by
a law that is higher than any common
or statute law, by an inherent sense of
justice, condemns Licha for the death
of Carr. For it was Licha who fur
nrime ana 5ne who
the gun which@Was the instrument of
the crime. Responsibility could not be
more accurately placed. Kohler him
self recognizes this. II wish that Lii
cha's saloon had never been opened,
was his despairing moan when the
morning after the murder brought it's
of unwritten law the. guilt is not on
the head of the man whose hand pulled
the trigger, but on the head of the man
whose hand held out the drink and the
gun.
Yet by the written law the only pun
ishment which can fall on Licha is not
the surrender of life or liberty, which
must be Kohler's fate, but the surren-
der of his license, the surrender of his
business for short five years. The
statute reads: 1T shall be unlawful
for any person to sell, give barter,
furnish or dispose Of in any manner
either directly or Indirectly, or by
agent, employe, or otherwise, any spir-
ituous, vinous or malt or fermented
liquors in any quantity or for any pur-
Gated person.
That Kohler was intoxicated is in the
evidence. Just what is the border line
between intoxication and not intoxica-
ton may be difficult of establishment,
but Licha must take the risks of his
trade and this is one of them. AS a
consequence, the court before which he
may be tried and convicted of offense
against the law, may. send to the city
council certificate of the fact and the
city council may revoke the license.
Formerly the conviction Of the court
was in itself revOcatlve.
The makers of our statutes have not
yet risen to a comprehension Of sins
which are without the law. Still "the
strength of the sin is the law" the
measure of offense is statute measure
It is probably beyond human power to
formulate laws governing responsible
ity for acts not of ones direct COM
hitting. To trust any court to sem
tence for such crime would be impos-
sible, unless judge and jury were ma
hatmas," beings of greater insight than
others, readers Of "acashilx" records
But until greater power is given to
courts than expressed laws hold out
criminals will go free and irresponsi-
bles will be convicted.
The strength Of the sin is the law
The Prohibition Party stands for the
enactment of a law that would make
the manufacture or sale Of alcoholic
liquors for beverage purposes crime
Continued on page 8, COL u
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