Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1912-07-29
WHAT SHALL
We DO WITH
CRIMINALS?
SALEM CITIZEN DISCUSSES HANG.
ING AND SUGGESTS OTHER
METHODS-THINKS STERILIZA.
TION THE CORRECT THING

To hang or not TO hang criminals, to
continue to breed or not to breed
criminals, or other undesirable citi-
zens, these are the questions before
the people of Oregon For not all of
the undesirable citizens have the
goodness to go hang themselves, or to
stop the transmission Of their sins to
future generations Very few of the
unfit will voluntarily admit that the
world would be better had they never
lived in 1t, or that conditions would
be improved were they to cease to live
in 1t. This being the case, 1t is up to
the voter to say whether we shall
abolish capital punishment and sub
stitute sane and humane method of
aholishing and preventing crime In
place Of legalized murder. From my
childhood | have honestly doubted the
existence Of material hell favored
with sulphur fumes through Eternity
as q Just punishment for the sinful
ness Of this life. Though l have at
times thought when some heinous
crime like the murder and rape of the
aged Mrs. Griffith, Of Benton county,
by the notorious Humphrey brothers,
occurred, that II must have been an
oversight that some such hell had not
been provided for such as they, This
question is one that should be prayer
fully considered by each individual
voter. Some Of the states | believe,
Nevada, has substituted compulsory
suicide for hanging, which to me
seems more inhuman than our legal
lied murder. | believe the intent of
the punishment OF criminals should
have but one purpose-the betterment
of society. To make this better
world in which to live. MAY Thy
kingdom come on Earth as 1t Is In
heaven" should be the prayer of each
voter on these questions. The be-
whiskered saying that 1t takes all
kinds of people to make a world
simply expresses condition that has
no excuse for existence In this day
ard age. Our grandfathers should
have given us a better world up to
date by preventing the undesirable
citizens of this generation from being
born. Let us not further repeat their
error. No sane person Of today will
deny the fact that II the world Is to
become better that we must eliminate
the cause or source Of the undesirable
citizen. The only question is how?
And are we willing to adopt the only
means by which It can be accom-
plished. We are progressing In almost
everything else, why not progress In
the betterment of society. The farm
er uses common sense in his scientific
agriculture, he prepares his ground by
getting rid of all the undesirable
weeds and bacteria that infect the
soil from some previous crop. He
sees to 1t that all undesirable ele-
ments of the soil are rendered sterile,
then he plants only the best and
oieanest of seed. The result Is, nor
nal clean crop; with no undesirable
element in 1t. A sane and prosperous
stock raiser selects only the best and
purest bred of his herd to be the par
enfs of his future herds, that are to
' be the prize winners of the stock
shows. If by chance from heredity
j or by accident, some Of this offspring
should not be up to the standard of
perfection, he promptly sterilizes the
defective animal to prevent further
j. propagation of the unfit to future gen.
= erations. Then why do we continual
S y refuse to use both common sense
4 and scientific methods in the breed
e ing of human beings, thus eliminating
a the mentally, morally and physically
4 unfit (or mis-fits) in society. Hon
h estly now, what do you think Of any
n sane parent who knowingly would
T. propagate a mental, moral or physical
4 defect of his or her own, II in their
o power to prevent, or permit one OF
q their children to do SO; thus inflicting
q future generations with undesirable
citizens Of the criminal insane, or In
digent, variety. Every child has an
lnalienable right to be we'll born, or
Il not TO be born at all. A parent who
I knowingly and willingly becomes a
party to the production Of mental,
moral or physical, derelict Of future
generation has the greatest Of all sins
TO answer for. These are question Of
prevention rather than cure. II is
time we were awaking to the fact that
It we owe a duty TO humanity in show
3 ing our willingness to progress on this
, most important subject Of the better
ment Of the human race. Let us nc