The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1905-12-14

Naturally, the class most bitterly
opposed to socialism in this country Is
composed of men like Morgan, Rock
efeller and all the long list of trust
magnates. We proudly denominate
men of this kind "our captains of
finance" They argue with great
frankncss, and frequently, with great
truth about the evils of socialism and
the necessity of guarding the nation
from the folly of the socialistic prop
aganda.
And yet these are the men who are
doing more than all others to hasten
the spread of the ideas they so much
abhor. The most radical socialist
agitator could argue himself and all
hearers into nervous prostrations, and
yet in his whole life and in the life of
all his ilk, not tithe of the good for
the cause they espouse could be ac-
complished by talk that has actually
been accomplished in the last two
decades by these selfsame captains
of finance
The tightening of the grip of mon
opoly on the industrial resources OF
the country should rejoice the heart
of the socialist. Fewer and fewer each
year are the men who control the
finances of the country. And as was
said at recent meeting of the policy
holders in Boston by one of the speak
ers, "when all industry and fnance
shall have been brought underla single
head, as the cutting of single neck,
as Nero vainly wished for his Christ
ian subjects, will the destruction be
accomplished. ."-Springfeld Sun.
CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.
"Are you not in favor of stopping
the putting to death of human be-
ings 2" a famous French novelist was
asked.
Certainly" he replied, "but let
the murderers be the gentlemen to
begin"
1t is this phrase of capital punish
ment which Is lost sight of by many
persons when the extreme penalty OF
the law is inflicted In its most repel'
liant form. The fate of the murderer
seems hard and cruel. The death OF
the murdered victim is almost forgot
ten. In the United States many law
abiding persons are slain for every
criminal put to death by the civil au
thorities. In the aggregate the suf
fering and bloodshed inflicted by as
sassins far outweighs the vengence OF
the state.
But the crux of the capital punish
ment question is neither vengence mol
mercy. 1t is not the fate of the muir
derer or the slain. The factor In th'
problem which far Outweighs all othel
considerations is the safety and vel
fare of society-the great multitude
of men, women and children whit
neither kill nor are killed.
The real question Is whether th'
number of murders Is decreased b,
putting murderers to death-o
threatening TO do so and OCCASIONAL.
carrying the threat into effect. II l
whether the crime of murder Is NOR,
or less abhorred, more or lessiresiste'
and summed, when and where there /
capital punishment.
BY comparison with such factors II
he question the fate of a few indl
vidual murderers, even If one is
woman, now and then, is of small
consequence So far, the balance o
opinion leans strongly to the belle
that capital punishment makes mul
der less common than II would other
wise be and stiffens the moral back
bone of society in repressinP tha
crime. If so, then it matters iittl
what happens to any convicted assa'
sin Cleveland Leader.
TWO KINDS OF HONESTY.
Law honesty" Is the term whic
President Roosevelt uses TO descrlb
the kird of morality which has go'
erned some of the men at the head Q
the large insurance companies. La
honesty Is the kind Of honesty whic
was well summed up by Plunkitt
his phrase, "There is no monkeyin
with the penal code"
In other words, some of the insu
ance men took but small notice of th