The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-05-31
WANTED: BETTER JURIEs.

dlStruSt or the administration OF law IN
| North Carolina, and that this distrust is
a growing one. Almost on every hand
you can hear men say, when any person
has committed a crime ooh well, he will
not be convicted if he has got enough
money to employ able attorneys to appear
for him." The writer was on a train in
North Carolina three days ago and, speak
| ing of a certain case, one of the first
preachers of the State, a wise and con-
sentative man, said: ''Well, these men
viii not be punished. BY some hook or
crook they viii escape punishment. l
have about lost my faith in North Caro-
lima justice. If things go on at the pres
ent rate it is only question of little time
when the people will lose all their faith
in the administration of justice when it
comes to Furnishing criminals.
Right or wrong, the sentiment tx
pressed by that minister of the gospel
prevails very largely in North Carolina.
If it is right and if justice is not admins
tered in this State without respect of
person, then the good men of the State
owe it to themselves to right the wrong
and to see to it that the laws are honest
ly and impartially enforced If the
preacher was wrong, then the fact should
be made known to the end that good
men should not doubt the justice of our
courts.
We publish below an article from the
pen of the venerable Gamalial of North
Carolina journalism, Col R. B. Creecy,
editor of the Elizabeth City Economist.
He feels about this matter of furnishing
men for crime very much like the preach
er quoted above. He writes:
MURDER! MURDER!
Did it ever occur to North CaroIinians
that the State is losing its old reputation
Tor conservatism, and to endeavor to find
cause for its decadence Our loved old
State IS surging rapidly to the front rank
IN lawlessness and crime It's so. We
have never known in the history of the
State such a plethora of homicides and
other outrageous crimes in times of peace
and not perhaps in times of war when the
laws are silent. Its alarming. It's con-
tagious. We are law abiding man and
we hate to carry e concealed weapon.
but pistol Is very convenient and safe
to carry with you in a State in which
every man carries his life in his hand
And although carry crutch and it is
good weapon IN close quarters, a Sax
shooter is our favorite weapon at long
range. Why is it that we are so rapidly
growing into a homicidal State? The CON
sideration of the subject has been forced
up US by the dangerous conditions, and
we have concluded that as a people from
Governor down we are too merciful Mer-
ey Is a divine and blessed quality. But
mercy in excess is license in disguise. We
need more hangings. We need less maud
lin sentiment about the death penalty
We should love a murdered man more
and "a murderer less. Thou shalt not
kill, sayeth the scriptures Thou shalt
do no MURDER" sayeth the decalogue. And
another says, whatsoever sheddeth mans
blood by man shall his blood be shed. =
The first murderer was cursed by God.
as AldhC du OutNdsb upOH tuC GdIIu, anu
might have been hung had there been or
gained society and laws and enough peo-
pie on earth to go to see the hanging
But there was a divine decree that has
followed a murderer through all time,
that he should be accursed, an outlaw,
a wretched, miserable man with Gods
curse stamped upon his troubled brow.
1t is perhaps true that we are too mer-
ciful in dealing with criminals. This ap-
plies to jurors, judges, private citizens,
legislators, executive, judicial and to all
other branches of government. 1t is ma
turaI, after the first flush of Indignation
upon the committing of the crime, for
the people to permit their sympathy for
the family of the criminal to outweigh
their sense of justice, and if the person
indicted is able to employ expert coun-
sci he may safely rely in many instances
upon the merclful side of the character
OF North Carolina people. 1t is true, how
ever, that the law is administered much
more impartially and justly than the
preacher above quoteu, and Col. Creecy
seem to think. In a great majority
OF cases there is no ground for complaint,
but there have been So many glaring
miscarriages of justice that the people
are in danger of losing faith in the ad-
ministration of law, and it behooves the
officers of the law to exert themselves to
the end that there may be no grounds
for the well founded complaints that are
heard on every hand.
One of the growing needs of the time
is the improvement, not in the jury sys-
tenn, but in its administration In many
instances the men who complain most
against the miscarriage of justice are
the most inveterate shirkers of their Jury
duty. Go into any court house during a
term of court and you will find the
leading lawyers doing everything within
their power to get judges to excuse the
most influential men who have been
summoned to serve upon the jury and
too often the judges grant these requests