The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1904-11-24
ARTHUR ROPES. General Edito r
Thursday, November 24,loO4.
THE DEATH PENALTY.

Once again has the Vermont Legis
lature refused to do away with capt.
tai punishment for murder and sub
stitute therefor Imprisonment in the
States prison for life. The vote in
the House was decisive. It puts be-
yond question the fact that large
majority of the citizens of Vermont
believe in capital punishment. This
action should result in the elimination
from the consideration of future Leg.
islatures, for some time to come, this
question which has taken up so much
time at every biennial session in the
past, but it will not. So long as there
are murderers convicted and sentenced
to death, just 80 long will they resort
to every means to cheat the gallows,
even to attempting to secure change
in the law through the Legislature
The whole question has been fully
considered time after time, but every
year it is brought up anew only to
thresh over the same old straw, only
to give hearing to the same old argu-
ments pro and con, and only to reach
the same conclusion. 1t is an import
ant matter, of course, but it Is folly
to so repeatedly bring it to the front
when 1T has no reasonable chance of
amounting to anything.
Vermont's stand on capital punish
ment is in accord with that of almost
the whole world. While that does
not necessarily prove that it is right,
it does go to show that if it is wrong,
nearly the whole world is wrong.
Capital punishment has been abol-
ished in few States in this country
but it by no means has been shown
that the action has been bene fetal to
the interests of good government in
those States. In spite of all claims to
the contrary it remains an established
truth that death is the punishment
most feared by the criminal or the
would-be criminal. If death were
not the dreaded punishment, every
condemned murderer in Vermont
would not petition the Legislature for
communication of sentence to life i'm
prisonment. The execution of the
death sentence has deterrent effect
upon the criminal classes. Were the
law providing a death penalty re-
pealed, the worst murder imaginable
would be put on nearly the same grade
with several lesser crimes for which
the maximum penalty is Imprisonment
for life.
The Journal says "the execution"
of the death sentence, it is to be
noted. This does not mean the impos-
ing of the sentence only to be changed
by the Legislature to Imprisonment
for life in each particular case. The
Legislature should not infringe upon
the proper domain of the courts. 1t
should content itself with making
the laws and should leave to the off
Gals elected or appointed for that pur-
pose the administering of those laws.
The administration of all laws should
be consistent. II the State has a capt.
tai punishment law, it should adhere
to it and carry it into effect, else it
will be as bad as though it had only
life Imprisonment as penalty for
murder.
The Legislature has acted wisely in
standing by the capital punishment
statute. 1t will do better now If it
gives warning to future murderers
by refusing to commute the death sem
tence of Mrs. Rogers 1t is the only
consistent course that is open to the
Legislature. 1t is hard duty to per-
form to vote so as to condemn a
woman or a man to death, but it is
a duty and it is to be hoped no man
will shirk it, If any murderer shonld
suffer death, it seems that Mrs. Rogers
should, and no plea for pity should
prevail,