The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1904-03-11
pstratsd in the name and under form

petratsd in the name and under a form
| Of law.
| why not then observe fact which is
| 100 often Ignored, that a great aud ethi-
Cal principle underlies the popular de-
maud That death for rape shall lie in-
| stautaneous and sure. 1t involves the
safety and honor of American wnmau-
hood, and with it the safety aud honor
or the American commonwealth. Law
IL down as your m?jor PREMISE; lower
the standard of respect for American
women; destroy the manly reverence
which surrounds them like a palladium
and You sap the most vital strength of
the Republic. If the majesty of the
la"' is the crowning pinnacle, wo manly
honor is the chief corner StOue of our
political structure, and you cln not have
the top without the bJttom.
Let Us endeayor to preserve b ,Sh But
we must face the issue squarely. Oaca
again In our political history the cJnsri-
tutional rights of The individual are at
variance with the cause of humanity and
the higher civilization. In word, we
have reached the stage in our national
development where the rights of Ameri-
Can womanh0od rs viewed by the msi)r
ity, are in manifest couflic5 with the
''crn|ti. utiOnai rights" of The IN lst afro
cious class o. criminals.
The Constitution as the bulwdrk OF
our liberties, is a sacred instrument Yet
1t has not been altogether iuviolab'e in
the past. We all re member how, when
iSs pain edict came into collision with
free moral IDEAS and the progress of
humanity" as viewed by portion of the
population half century ago, it yield
ed-after much talk and some skirmish-
lDg-tO the moral pressure, and vindi-
Gated its elasticity in series of amend
ments.
We think the time is ripe for some
further amendatiOn. Shall the wrongs
and peri!s Of American women APPEAL
less potently to the American heart than
the wrongs, largely fauciful), of Attic IN
slavesP Write it in your statut4 books
as it is w;itten in the public conscience,
tn 1t the man who ruth!essly despoils II
woman Of life and honor, places him.
self beyond the protection even OF crm;-
nal law. lie forfeits his right to trial
by jury, as in the very nature Of The case
such a trial is a further humiliation of
his victim Horrible as is the fact h
crime places him beyond the plle of
humanity and puts him in the category
of wild b.astS. A legal enac.m mt which
would make death without triai'' the
penalty for rape, while it could not NIT
igate tha' fact, would eliminate the
most revolving features of mob execu
tiOns, aud would reduce the number of
such crimes to the minimum. For the
rapist, like every other criminal, trusts
to the delays, the uncertainties and
tricks of the law. Once make him un-
derstand that there is no law for him
excepj the rope and that without delay,
and his offence will become so rare that
his occasional execution will not excite
comment "But," some one Objects.
'if we permit such summary punish
msnt for one class of Grim inals, there
will be no danger Of extending it to all"
Will not this apply with equal force TO
our present penal code2 Since we per-
Ia;t hanging for murder, how do we
manage to prevent hanging for theft?
America stands foremost in the list of
enlightened, progressive nations. Let
her take the initiative and Set the chiv-
alrous example 10 the world of differ
entiating the lone terrible crims" fro III
all ott ers by making the written law
against it conform to the unpublished
statute. - ANNIE RILEY HALE in
January Number Life and Letters.