Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-10-23
Efforts to Procure Pardon For
Burlington Negro Arouses
Ire of People
LAWYER SEVERELY cRlTIc'zEs
Say. Law Give. Criminal Too Many
Rights as Against the General Pub
Iic-sentiment Greatly Divided as to
the Merits of Now Law Recently
Adopted in Iowa.
snecia1 to rimes-Republlcan.

Special to Times-Repubiica1.
Burlington, Oct. o. A negro com
mitted one Of the foulest crimes in the
calendar In Burlington In the year
1902 against the person Of ten-year-
old colored girl. The man was arrest
ed and indicted by the grand jury. HIS
trial In the district court followed, ana
the man was sentenced on the charge
against him to fifteen years In the
penitentiary. The convict has served
Ave years Of that sentence, and now
has made an application for parole UNI
der the new law governing the parole
Of prisoners. The board of parole mas
the case under consideration, and mas
written. thru the secretary. B. w. Gar
rett, Of Des Moines. to the judge who
heard the case and to the county at
torney who prosecuted the criminal to
obtain detailed particulars Of the
crime.
This case is one Of many types that
are before the state board of parole
for consideration. The new law mas
aroused great interest turnout Iowa,
and it has its advocates and also It's
bitter critics. The following paragraph
was contained in letter written by
a resident of the northern part OF the
state and published in a Waterloo
newspaper. The writer, as may easily
he seen. is an enthusiastic supporter OF
the new parole law. The writer says:
"On several occasions 1 have seen II
stated that some Of the district judges
of your city had pronounced the mae
terminate sentences and reformafory
law passed by the last general assem-
bly as being q 'bad law.
But It appears plain to me that the
person who investigates chapter w IN
spirit OF kindness can not help pelng
astonished at the great breadth OF
craftsmanship and the comprehensive
grasp on the highest ethical though'
that must have been possessed py
those who originated that act.
when read it could hardly re-
strain myself from saying with Ivan
hoe: Z thought that there was but one
man in England might do such deed,
And in this case I did not and do not
now know where to look for the pro-
found student and criminalist whose
heart and brain gave birth to one OF
the nobIest enactments that ever 1llum-
mated the pages Of a penal CODE.
s member Of the Des Moines county
shar. than whom none ranks higher IN
the community In his knowledge of the
law. was shown the above paragraph
and the circumstances of the negro
convict, who, convicted Of heinous
crime, is now applying for parole, was
related to him. His opinion OF the pa
role law is expressed in lucid manner
in the following language:
.The fundamental difficulty OF the
parole law is that it deals altogether
with the rights Of the convict. While
the prisoner is entitled to any rights
that can be Justly given him, 999 out
of 1000 men are honest and indus
trious and the rights of the 999 men
must not be swallowed up in the sup
posed rights Of one man. 1t is SER
ious thing to turn a prisoner loose
merely upon his promise and hope of
reform. If the board Of parole exer-
cises very careful discretion they may
do good, but the tendency of board
Of this character is apt to be too
/ enthusiastic, a tendency to do too
much. The rights of the convict and
hope Of reform ought to be carefully
considered and guarded, he should re-
ceive every protection, which law and
human sympathy could provide, but
the rights of the community In gen.
eral should also be considered, and
they have the right to be protected
from the depredations and outrages
of the degenerate in the criminal class.
Mawkish sentiment is solicitous for the
criminal and not for the community.
The community should be protected
just as much from the criminals as
from the insane: