Evening journal., 1912-07-11
DEFENDS WHIPPING
BY THE STATE
lcontinued from Flrst Paeel

ilOuA IlItl IdktI.
in keping out Of the community such
characters or deter those already IN
his community from exercising their
evil propensities, receives their appro-
baton
The whipping post was for many
years upheld by many eminent authori-
ties in the different States as being a
perfectly proper, measure of punish
ment for a certain class OF offenders
and even today do not know how any
one can even criticise this mode Of
punishment when Il is inflicted upon
that lowest Kind of brute creation, the
wife beater.
1T Is the opinion Of myself.-and
am sure / do not misrepresent the
facts when / say that this opinion Is
shared by a large portion OF our best
thinking people,-that the whipping
post as now established under the
Laws of the State OF Delaware. has
done and is doing much toward keep
ing a certain criminal class out OF our
midst II has been many years since
our City has been visited by any of
the class known as the expert crimin-
al class and | believe that It is the
fear OF the whipping post that keeps
them away. Our City is located within
twenty-eight miles Of Philadelphia,
seventy miles of Baltimore and 1l5
miles from New York, very easy OF APP
proach from these several large cent
ers. not fully and sufficiently pollced.
yet Notwithstanding these facts we
have been able, as ! just said, TO keep
from our midst this most dangerous
class Of criminals. The Prison or the
Workhouse does not frighten away the
expert criminal but the spectre Of
the whipping post is ever before his
eyes when he contemplates pulling on
Job in our community. The great
disgrace OF being publicly whipped has
more terrors for a wrongdocr than any
long jail sentence even il il is a sent
ence az hard labor
Il would not, however, want to be
understood as saying that this was the
only cause that keeps this class Of
criminals away from our midst, for IN
SAYING that ] would be doing the men
under me a grievious wrong, for al
though our force is small in number
comparatively speaking, yet it is com
posed Of thoroughly alert, brave and
conscientious officers.
MANY misleading statements have
been sent out broadcast throughout
our Country in regard to the severity
Of the punishment at the whipping post
and | have no doubt these reports
have caused a great misunderstanding
In regard to the law in relation to the
whipping post as administered In our
State. Only a few months ago a re-
port was spread far and near that
great cruelty had been perpetrated by
one of our Wardens In carrying the
law into effect. THE report was abso-
luteiy false in every particular ana
was niece Of sensational yellow
ioursalism pure and simple. In no
Instance since / have occupied the
nosition of Chief of Police have
known of any brutal whipping that
has ever taken place in our state
The present Warden who now admin
listers the lashes In my County Is
most humane man, and under no CIT
cumstances would he or could he IN
aict the kind OF punishment as repre-
sented by these false and wicked re-
ports. ,,.
"The great object OF the law in our
state which imposes lashes upon
certain class of criminals, Is not so
much to innict physical pain and sur
fering as IL Is to remind those bent
on michief that II they commit crime
thew are liable 20 be disgraced by pc
Ing publicly whipped. All our whlp-
pines are open TO the public and ~ Is
The fear Of this disgrace rather tnah
the physical suffering that causes
even the hardened criminal, and more
Fespeclally the expert criminal, to con-
slider we'll before taking chances OF
having punishment inflicted upon him.
81 have heard It repeatedly stated
at come OF the public whippings that
have taken place in our County, by
prosecuting officers who we're present
| from other cities, that In their opinion
/ the imposition Of lashes would pro-
duce more good In their community
! than a sentence carrying with it years
of imprisonment The people OF the
: state OF Delaware are a God-fearing
people and honestly Jealous of the
good opinion OF their neighbors. They
can always depended upon not to en-
courage anything that would in any
wise tend to further degrade and
I demoralize even those in our midst
who are criminally inclined, but they
can be depended upon to enact and
| enforce any law or means that viii
be instrumental In acting as a deter
ment to the weak and evilly disposed y