The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1903-08-14

Men who have been guilty of a
crime like rape or murder, should be
visited with swift and certain punish
ment, and the just effort made by the
courts to protect them in their rights
should under no circumstances be
perverted into permitting any mere
technicality to avert or delay their
punishment. The substantial rights
of the prisoner to a fair trial must of
course be guaranteed, as you have so
justly insisted that they should be;
but, subject to this guarantee, the
law must work swiftly and surely and
all the agents of the law should real
ize the wrong they do when they per-
NIT justice to be delayed or thwarted
for technical or insufficient reasons.
We must show that the law is ade-
quate to deal with crime by freeing
it from every vestige of technicality
and delay.
"But the fullest recognition of the
horror of the crime and the most
complete lack of sympathy with the
criminal cannot in the least diminish
our horror at the way in which it has
become customary to avenge these
crimes, and at the consequences that
are already proceeding therefrom. 1t
| is, of course, inevitable that where
vengeance is taken by mob it should
frequently light on innocent people;
and the wrong done in such a case to
the individual is one for which there
] is no remedy. But even where the
real criminal Is reached, the wrong
done by the mob to the community
itself is well-nigh as great. Especial
ly is this true where the lynching is
accompanied with torture. There
are certain hideous sights which
when once seen can never be wholly
i erased from the mental retina. The
mere fact of having seen them i'm
plies degradation. This is thou
sand-fold stronger when, instead of
merely seeing the deed, the man has
participated in 1t. Whoever in any
part of our country has ever taken
part in lawlessness-putting to death
a criminal by the dreadful torture OF
fire-must forever after have the
awful spectacle of his own handwork
scared into his brain and soul. He
can never again be the same man.
"This matter of lynching would be
a terrible thing even If it stopped
with the lynching of men guilty OF
the inhuman and hideous crime OF
lrape; but as a matter of fact, lawless
ness of this type never does stop and
never can stop in such fashion. Ev-
cry violent man in the community i,
encouraged by every case of lynchine
in which the lynchers 60 unpunished
to himself take the law into his owl
hands whenever It suits his own con
venience. In the same way the ust
of torture by the mob in certain case.
is sure to spread until 1t is applied
!: more or less Unfortunately in othel
cases. The spirit of lawlessness grow
with what 1t feeds on, and when mob
with impunity lynch criminals for on,
Icrime, they are certain to begin t.
Lynch real or alleged criminals fol
other causes. In the recen
|. cases of lynching, over three
fourths were not for rape at all
but for murder, attempted murder
J and even less heinous offenses. More
|. over. the history of these recent ca
ses shows the awful fact that whel
, the minds of men are habituated t
the use of torture by lawless bodie
Ito avenge crimes of "A peculiarly re
. voting description, other lawles
bodies will use torture in order t
. punish crimes of an ordinary type.
"surely no patriot can fail to Sc
: the fearful brutalism and debase
ment which the indulgence of sue
. practices inevitably portend. Sure
: lily all public men, all writers for tn
press, all clergymen, all teachers. a
} who in any way have a right to ad
dress the public, should with ever
: energy unite to denounce such crime
= and to support those engaged in put
: ting them down. As a people W
: claim the right to speak with pc
. culiar emphasis for freedom and fc
: fair treatment of all men without r,
gard to differences of race, fortune
2 creed or color. We forfeit the righ
a so to speak when we commit or col
a done such crimes as these of whic
t we speak.
y "The nation, like the individual
e cannot commit a crime with impun
:, ty. If we are guilty of lawlessne'
f and brutal violence, whether OF
II guilt consists in active participate
= therein or in mere connivance an
o encouragement, we shall assured
3 suffer later on because of what "
r have done. The cornerstone of tn
e republic, as of all free government
e is respect for and obedience to Il
law. Where we permit the law to
e defied or evaded, whether by ric
e men or poor men. by black man
h white, we are, by just so much, wea
e ening the bonds of our civilizatio
Is and increasing the chances of /
/ overthrow, and of the substitute
n therefor of system in which the
II shall be violent alterations of ana
b. chy and tyranny.
s. "Sincerely yours,
If "THEoDoRE ROOSEVELT.
;e Hon. Winfield 7. Durbin, Govern
Id of Indiana, indianapolis, Indiana