The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1914-06-04

were in the matter. The chairman of the COM
mittee replied that while no action had been taken
in the report, he himself was of the opinion that
no government or man has the right to take hui
man life. Il do not believe" said Chairman
Irwin, in killing man to reform him." Mr..
Sterling expressed himself in favor of capital
punishment and added that his understanding of
the Bible justified this view. This brought out an
amendment to the committees report disclaiming
any intention of condemning the Bible punish
ment for murder
ssWhat is the Biblical punishment for murder?'
shouted one of the ministers. Cain was not exc
cuted for the murder of Abel!' The amendment
was voted down and the report of the committee
was adopted as read.
We mention this action of the Presbyterian
General Assembly for two reasons The first, to
show the deep rooted sentiment that has been
aroused in the minds of all right thinking Chris
tians, looking toward criminal reformation; and
second, to show, also, the narrow mndedness of
some few men holding POSITIONS the very nature
of which, demand charitable dispositions and the
reflection of Christ-like forgiveness
Taken as whole, the Presbyterian clergy is
made up of great big, brainy men, who have
been in most instances born to their calling; some
of them in fact being of the third and fourth gen.
GRAFTON in ministerial work. AS rule, they are
not carried away with every upstart reform move
ment that presents itself; and it is only once in
long time you will find one who will go to any ex-
treme to get his name or picture in the papers, or
occupy space on the first page. They conser-
vative, evenly balanced and sound; and for this
reason, their action at Chicago will carry great
weight and 60 far in advancing the cause of re-
form methods in dealing with first offenders.
But in every such gathering you will find few
fanatics; and among the clergy of every denomina-
ton you are sure to find few men undeserving
of their reverend title, and whose utterances and
actions tend to bring discredit upon the higher and
purer members. But they never amount to much.
They may flourish like green bay tree for little
while; until their calibre is shown, then they are
cast aside or reduced to their natural level. The
minds-the progressive, alert minds of thinking
men never have and never will fail to predomi-
nate.
Compare, for instance, what the scholarly
Reverend Mackenzie Cleland, of Chicago, said in
support of the committees report, with the words
of the Eureka preacher. Describing the report as
the most progressive document on the subject ever
presented to a deliberative body, Reverend Clel-
and said:
The present penal system is colossal failure,
and the best proof u.s. that crime is on the increase
everywhere. If man commits murder we kill
him. If he steals, we steal his freedom and labor
If he robs we rob his wife and children of his sup
port. We pay him back in his own coin, but we
no not reform him. The reform suggested in the
committees report contains the true solution of
the problem. Instead of bounding men and lend
ing our aid in sending them to prison, we should
be demanding that they be saved from prison. We
owe it not only to them; we owe it to their fami-
lies mot only to their families, but to ourselves;
we owe it to our God"