Year: 1873

NEW oRh, Jan. 70.
New York has no special excitement at


this time. l mean at this moment for


what it may have within the next hour, is,


OF course, impossible to predict; but that


1t will have some one is altogether likely.
Scarcely day passes that does not chron-


icle some event of Importance which


would profoundly excite a smaller COM


munity for weeks and months; but here


IN this great busy, busting city, no one


event, however important or sensational,


can long hold the public's attention. The


last brutal murder is Immediately follow


ed by another more brutal; the last terri


Bile assassination by another more terri.


BILE; the last gigantic robbery or detalca-


ton by others more gigantic. At least it


seems that the newest great crime sur
passes all of its predecessors. Murders
have become most alarmingly frequent.


Scarcely day passes that some new one


is not committed Yesterday newspa-
per announced as remarkable thing that


no murder had been reported for the last
three days. and it is indeed remarkable
that so long time should elapse without
a murder Human life is held of but lit
tie account and is taken upon the slightest
preteXt, or no pretext at all. A few days
since, in a boarding house, man sat
conversing with a young lady, when


another man, fellow boarder, playfully
put a cushion in the young lady's face
The first young man says to the second


I'll shoot you for that tomorrow. And


he kept his word, for on the morrow he
crept into his fellow -boarder's room and
shot him down like dog When con-
fronted at the police station with his diving
victim he said, g told YOU I'd shoot YOU,
and have"


But day or two after this murder a
drayman was riding his horse along the
Bowerv when it was much thronged with
vehicles. A bill poster, riding in wagon,
because he did not move out of his way
soon enough to suit his convenience. de-
liberately rose and shot the man on horse
back through the head. So we might 90
on through long and fearful list of
bloody murders. Nearly every rough
and rowdy goes armed with pistol or dag
ger and uses them upon the slightest
provocation, until it has come to pass.
that in this great and first city on the
American continent, with its hundreds
and hundreds of churches, abounding in
benevolent and charitable institutions, as
does hardly any other city in the world IT,
here in the midst of all the pietv, and
learning, and eloquence, and fashion,
which this proud city can boast, to our
shame be it said human life is scarcely
more regarded than among the wild
Apaches. There are now, | believe, be-
tween forty and fifty murderers confined


III the IoombS; some of these have been
tried and convicted and are now awaiting
sentence or the decisions of their eases in
the higher courts; but the great majority
have not been tried at all. And it seems
as if there are ten murders where there
is one trial. But what shall be done to stem
this awful crime of murder? This is the
question now deeply pondered and ear
nestly discussed by the thoughtful, law
abiding people. With horror they have
witnessed this carnival of crime; they
have seen how feeble the courts have
been to check it; upon what miserable
and groundless pleas the hloodiest handed
murderer would be let off by some sym
pathetic and stupid jury; have felt the
utter insecurity of their lives as they went
about their daily avocations, and they
asked themselves, Is there no remedy
Shall we have no protection !? And thus
representation, the great controlling
motive of all animal as well as human
existence, has appealed to them to take
the law into their own hands and see that
justice was done. Vigilance Committees
have been freely talked of, not only
among the young and more impulsive,
but also among old and thoughtful men
lawyers, Judges, men of business and
wealth and position. May God in his
mercy save US from the awful necessity of
vigilance committee But the people
will not much longer hold their lives at
the mercy of the roughs of New York.
believe we shall have no vigilance COM
mittee. | believe the general interest
which has been excited among I'll classes
of the people will ensure a swlfter pun
ishment to criminals. The great power
of public opinion will be and is already
felt in our courts. This is seen in the
conviction of Stokes-in the final sentence
of Foster-in the announcement that 9TH
er noted criminals are to be brought to
speedy trial and punishment. SO mote it
be. C.