Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1912-08-16
"NEVER HAD NO CHANCE"

"NEVER HAD NO CHANCE"
Capital punishment scored mas
terly triumph the other day in the
New York state penitentary at Sing
Sing when seven condemned murder
ers were shocked to death in the cleo
trio chair. The reading of the details
of that execution ought to bring de-
light to the advocates Of the death
penalty No one man murder here.
This was execution by the wholesale;
legalzed murder for seven in row
and as rapidly as the machinery of
death would permit. Five of the men
officially murdered died protesting
their innocence and the last words OF
two Of the victims were II never had
no chance" And possibly they didn't.
Ignorant, untutored foreigners, raised
in the slums, without money, and
with no friends who could speak the
English language, they were tried FOR
murder, convicted and sentenced to
death. They were hustled all the
way Their arrest was promptly
made, their trial was speedy, and the
death sentence was assured all OF
them from the first, for the police
must make n record. Small matter
whether or not they We're innocent.
They didn't amount to much anyway,
and the murder must be avenged.
The outraged law must kill somebody
and why not these ignorant foreign
ers. without friends and funds they
could not take advantage Of the many
technicalities which our wonderfully
constructed legal procedure permits
those who can pay If the men had
been wealthy they would probably
be alive today and every advantage
Of delay and postpOnemcnt would
have been theirs.
one of the victims was a mere boy
and his prayer Jesus Christ | hope
---" was forever stilled when the cur
rent of death shot through his body
Near by. i'm that death chamber, rel
atives of the woman killed, and 9th
ers who had oniciated at the trial
stood calmly and watched the snuff
ing out of seven lives. News dis
patches do not tell us how the sight
affected them, but the spectacle must
have been inspiring, and triumph
for those who declare that legal muir
der is the only way to treat the
criminal As each cringing human
wreck was strapped to the death
chair. the current was turned on and
the bodies stiffcned against the straps
untn they appeared to creak in ag-
ony the air was filled with the odor
Of burning human flesh!
Great spectacle for those who stood
near. wasn't it, Splendid commen-
tary upon our hoasted citizenship,
and our Twentieth century enlighten-
ment! But the legal killer made a
record. lie murdered seven men by
the laws decree in shorter time
than the job was ever done before
and he prides himself upon that fact,
He says that there are IL other muir
derers condemned to death In Sing
Sing and. while the dispatches do not
say so, II is probable that he will try
To kin these in less time per head,
than was used in the execution of the
seven.
But the thought that appeals is the
cry of the condemned. Il never had
no chance" We cannot avoid that
appeal we cannot escape responsible
ity for taking that human life. The
victim OF these men, IL they are guilty
is turning to dust I'm the tomb, and
because of that We send seven more
lives to the Great Beyond. The die
tates of an unjust and unreasonable
law summons into the presence of the
God who gave it. the souls uf these
men, and We Justify our action 10y
the authority of "a man-made statute.
Then there Is always the thought, no
matter how conclusive the circum-
stautial evidence may have been that
possibly these men were innocent
They never had mo- chance" because
they were poor. Ignorant without
friends Possibly they might have
been able to escape the chair BE- they
had "a chance" Possibly they could
have created reasonable doubt boz
the minds OF one ct the jurors DO they
had been of prvpossyssiuE appearance
and of some influence boo tho COM
munity such things go q Ions way
In "a murder trial however much wo
may deny &c. Who can say how of
ten thoughts of the effects of lyEal
murder. of the possible Sungring eft
"a dependent widow and family.
have Influenced the juror iu voting to
free tho accused from a leg8l death
but these mon were unknown thrir
miserable lives vi no value. ana there
fore they had no chance"
They have been i,saliy murdered
and thg law haas been upheld jus
tice" has been done tbe victim uf th,
crime and the men who have been
instrumutll iu the execution probably
imagine that they are shining exam
piles of the yHlightrngd laws under
which We Ntt while those who
managcd the kUIuE oT these seven
are blamCie=s in nHK. far abe law
makes it their duty tU kU when On.
law So directs. thg people who pUr.
INIT such measures to remain uu th.
statutes are the ONES who are mer-
ally responsible
4 never had un chance sfUufI h,
made the motto Uf abe opponents Hr
ieEal murder