Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1903-07-22

money on our courts is not the worst
corruption. The greatest evil is in
the fact that lawyers generally have
adopted the theory that they are
bound to do all they can 20 gain the
cause of their clients, irrespective of
justice. The most distinguished
criminal lawyers have gained their
distinction by defeating the law and
preventing the execution of justice
upon men whom they know to be
criminals"
OF course, every man--the guilty
as well as the innocent-has the
right to fair, honest, impartial trial.
This is guaranteed by all good law
and government, and rightly so.
But the laws and courts are not en-
acted and established for the pur-
pose of clearing the guilty. You
would think 80 sometimes by the
way certain cases are conducted.
Courts ought to be established for
the purpose of convicting and pun
ishing the guilty and for the purpose
of clearing the innocent.
Let me call your attention now to
the remedy for this fearful disease.
l. The slayer should be brought to
a speedy trial. The longer the mur-
derer can have his case put off, or
continued in the courts, the stronger
the probability is that he will be
cleared of his crime. If he has a
bad case, this is the usual course
that is pursued. How many guilty
men have gone free because their
cases have been postponed from time
to time till the people have practi-
cally lost all interest in them. /
have read of case in neighboring
State where man had advantage of
five trials. He had murdered a wo-
man and his case was bad one. 1t
took five years to finally adjudicate
the matter. At the first trial he
was sentenced to death; at the sec
ond to life Imprisonment; at the
third, to fifty years. Imprisonment ;
at the fourth to ten years. imprison-
ment, aud at the fifth he was cleared
altogether. This may be an extreme
case, but it illustrates what is going
on every day in our land.
When human being is killed the
matter ought to be settled just as
soon as it can be done consistently
with justice and righteousness. The
law ought to be so framed that an
extra term of court could be held in
such cases, and have the man who is
charged with such crime tried i'm
mediately. If the man is innocent
he ought to want this; and, if he is
guilty, the community and law
ought to demand this. If this could
be done it would exert a tremen.
dous Influence in the right direction
But how is it now? Everything
seems to be in favor of the murderer
The poor man who is dead has very
few rights, even before the law, as it
is administered now. And yet Gods
word says that the murdered mans
cause is so just and righteous as tc
demand nothing less than the blood
of the man who shed his blood and
to demand it as early as possible.
Suppose that murder case coulG
be settled, as rule, in ten days after
the crime had been committed anG
the guilty man hanged in fifteer
days after the murder! What al
impression this would make on the
entire community and what a terro
it would be to evil-doers !! But tn,
way things are conducted now, th'
time which frequently elapses be
tween the commission of the Grim,
and the final adjudication of tn,
case is so long that practically in tn,
minds of the people there is very
little connection between the two
events.
2. Again, IA large reward ought tt
be offered for the man who has done
the killing and not simply for hi
conviction. The mere fact that
man is fleeing from the authoritie
of the law is prima facie evidenc,
that he is guilty. 1t is so difficult t.
convict,men these days that rewart
for a mans conviction is not mucl
of an incentive to try to apprehen'
him. When one person takes th'
life of another and fees from tn
law, the State ought to offer very
Over-Work Weakens
Your Kidneys,