The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-02-05
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BY HON. W. W. QUARLEs, Solicitor for the Fourth Judicial Cir

rarely punished, and that there should pc something done to make human life more precious in our great State, and asking my views along this line, to hand, ana contents noted
 I have no desire to exploit my private views publicly on this. or any other sub ject; but l am in hearty sympathy Wltn the suggestion, and the necessity or It. And if, giving to the public the ideas that have come to me from ten years or ear nest. untiring effort to enforce the law, and thereby make human life no less precious, but more secure. will even tend to make one less homicide in my beloved State in the future. then shall most cheerfuliy give them for what they may be worth.
 The solution of the problem. if there be one, can only be found in the law and its administration. Not that homieides can be wholly prevented by either the law or its enforcement: but they can thus. and thus alone, be reduced to the minimum number,
 The sacred pen which records for us the creation before the ink dried on it, also inscribed the history of Cain. his jeal- ousy. hate and slaughter of his brother. The tracing of Thou shalt not Kill by tine finger of the Almighty on the tables of stone amid the thunders and light nings of Sinai. Is impotent to stay the hand of the murderer, up to the present time. And 1t requires the foresight of no prophet to tell that the carnival of the man-slayer will, more or less. be prolong- ed throughout the land, until the end of time shall come.
 Still, so long as We have crime in our midst the criminal must be dealt with and how? How can organized society be best and most effectively protected rom the outlaw? There are but two main- springs to the sane commission of crime: ID The desire for personal gain; and, @ the gra titiea ton uf desire, arising from the cluster of evil human passions for revenge All crimes may be explained by taking their bearings from the one, or the other of these two viewpoints
 There exist but two efficient. restrain ing influences which can he brought to bear on the individual to prevent him from becoming a criminal, to wit: CD His own influence upon himself from within. as eXempIiied by his normal pow CT of seif-restraint; and @ the exercise of some power upon him from without. as the force of the law applied to him by organized society, as exemplhed by {he State. And unless this external power commands the respect or enforces the fear of the individual, it wields no re- straining influence over him, and is d dead letter in the prevention of the com mission of crime.
 This power of self-restraint can he planted in the heart of every individual from infancy to death; and should he. on the mothers knee around the hearth stone of every home in the land; in the Sunday Schools; from the pulpits; in ev- cry SCHOOL EOpHl III tHt ot1tt' anu tHt State. by suitable legislation should pro- vide for such teaching especially in every public school in Alabama. Moral ethics, and civic duties should systematically and legally have the first place, the seat of honor, in every public school room throughout the entire State. Else, the question pertnentiy arises as to whether CT not our millions of dollars, raised by taxing the citizens. are largely misspent and applied in vain. Unless our school is ma heftpr cittZanS halter men and better women. as a direct re- suit and not as a mere indirect incident, is the investment good or bad, from the States point of view? l do not believe that this important object is sufficiently safeguarded and secured by existing laws.
 Individual rectitude and conscience in the heart Is the best possible preventive for crime. 4 growing number Of people in this country think that this should be the only reliance of society against crime, but such recourse would undoubtedly prove a vain hope and, false security. It would make us liable to run up against a man eater, not from Bengal, at every corner, day or night, in some of our pop ulous cities of today; and force every man to become at once d walking ar senal.
 Where the individual is cut loose from all moral moorings, has no conception of anothers right. even to the precious pos session of life itself, and is deterred by no consider ltionS of right or wrong, as some undoubtedly are. the strong arm of the law and even its halter should he at once called into requisition to save from him the lives of unoffending persons. And none too quickly can it be done The object of punishing murder is not u compensate the slain, nor to Wreak re- Venge upon the culprit; but its sole purpose is to prevent the recurrence of the crime in order that society may be protected and other lives saved Te this end, the way of the criminal snouid not he strewn with rose5, as many seem to think these days; but it should be made as unnviting and as thorny as a just regard for the unfortunate, and the dictates of humanity, will permit 1t to be made. The way of the transgressor should be made hard to travel. if pedes- trians would be deterred from that route. In this philosophy, and in human neces- sity, is grounded the system of the cFim- inal law of our State. l call It system, because it is system. It is a whole. hardly diVsble into parts. It is. as q chain, no stronger than its weakest link. The way to stop murder approximately, is to punish consistently all crimes. The individual Who violates one part of the law. Woud as readily violate any other part of il, If it suited his desire and purpose to do so. If he has neither re- spect nor fear for one part of 1t, he has neither fear nor respect for any part of 1t. Law Is our King. our only King, other than ourselves. If an individual, a iliht'I' Np'4" Sp'A hPpiA Vtl NNihST ny i'7 guilty of the unpardonablc sin against good citizenship Hence, l now see clear iy. the force and justice of what used to perpiex me no little: For whosoeyer shall keep the whole law. and yet offend in one part. he is guilty of an.'
 The criminal law, as administered, is a difficult and complex thing. It is con- bination of q number of agencies. at best,
 and requires: l. Perfect laws; CO wit nesses before the grand juries to speak the whole truth (S grand jurors with the fearless. impartial and conscientious manhood to indict (D clerks to keep the records and papers properly, and to is- sue all necessary summonses punctually and properly; (5l sheriffs to serve all pa pers rightly and in time and to bring witnesses and parties to the bar of the courts; (6l witnesses to tell the honest truth to petit juries; @ petit jurors with the honesty and courage to find true and fearless Verdicts; CN judges to impartially and fearlcssly do their full duty; (9l so- licitors to honestly, impartially and fear lessly perform their full duty, O0l and above and beyond all. both as witnesses and jurors, good. honest, consistent citi- zens, who make up public opinion and honest citiZenship. It takes all these
 agencies combined in one harmonious whole to enforce any law in any com munity.
 The criminal law system of Ala ba ma is by no means perfect thing. Indeed. it Is honeycomhed with imperfections, While to lN dpSioua1 fo- ha nro