self-governing power, and render it a matter of necessity that they should be separated from society, are many and various, though the power affected is in all cases the same; and that it is a mistake to suppose that they can be described in a single definition, or with accuracy included under one

name.

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34

CHAPTER III.

PUNISHMENT IN REFERENCE TO CRIME AND

LUNACY.

TRACING the history of nations from the earliest epochs, we find in all countries and amongst every people, be they civilized or barbarous, institutions for conferring rewards upon the virtuous, and for inflicting punishment on those who have committed crimes. Man, the creature living in a state of nature, owes obedience to none but his Maker's laws; but his constitution and his habits being eminently social, lead him to band with his fellows, and as the price of this mutual intercourse, he cedes a portion of his natural liberty for so valuable a purchase. Locke well observes, "Where there is no law there is no freedom;" and so it is that the law which restrains a man from doing mischief to his fellows, though it diminishes the natural, increases the civil liberty of mankind. For the rude and early stages of society, where the temptations to the perpetration of crime are strong, and the facilities for detecting the criminal few, a harsh

and repressive lynch-law system may constitute the only effective safeguard to person and property. We may learn, however, from the experience of the ancients, that the equitable distribution of justice bears a close relationship to the durability of the institutions; wanton injustice, or severity rarely failing to rectify itself, or revenge, as the tyranny committing it became insupportable or open to attack; for example, contrast the sanguinary but ephemeral laws of Draco, who made death the punishment of most offences, from the stealing of a cabbage to the commission of murder, with the just, equitable, and enduring laws of Solon; the former quickly passing away, the latter, though exposed to many modifications and alterations as circumstances showed necessity, leaving traces of its grand fundamental principles up to the latest epochs. On the broad basis of justice and equity to all, alone can the hearty co-operation of all parties be for permanency commanded; and the majesty of the law in reality depends, upon the universal assent that is accorded to the principles which regulate the proceedings of society. If then we desire to see our institutions flourish, it behoves us to provide for the due apportionment of justice; to let the punishment meted out be proportioned to the nature and enormity of the crime. Reflecting upon the subject of crime, the outrage against the laws of God will be conceded on the outset, for which the being owes atonement to an offended Maker; but viewing it as

an infraction of the laws of fallible fellow-men we do not conceive ourselves justified in demanding expiation for the past, but deem it incumbent upon us to provide security against the repetition of the offence, by such means as shall be found effective. Believing then that the tenour of human justice should be preventive rather than punishing, we object to the system of retributive penalties, "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth," and submit that the end to be held in view in awarding punishment should be of a threefold character:

1st. To promote the moral improvement of the offender.

2ndly. To deter him from committing mischief in future or else to render him powerless to do so.

3rdly. To set an example for others to take warning by his fate.

It has been wisely and truly said, that "it is easier to extirpate than amend mankind;" and thus it is that notwithstanding all the checks and obstacles to its progress, furnished by the wisest and most approved system of legislation, crime still continues stalking with giant strides throughout the length and breadth of the land. That needless severity in punishment defeats its own ends, however, is, we think, proved by the following tables, which give the number of the commitments for trial, and the numbers sentenced in England and Wales during the three last quintennial periods.

Total number sentenced 81,091 102,928 101,019

So that between the first and last of the above periods, the increase of the convictions was 24.5 per cent., while the decrease in the number sentenced to death, was from one in fifty to one in three hundred and fifty-eight; attributable, of course, to the repeal of capital punishment. Of the number sentenced to transportation for life, the proportion in the first period is one in thirty; in the last, one in two hundred and eighty-six. Now, from these facts we are entitled to draw the inference, that, as our laws become more equitable and mild, so do they become more certain in their application. From our original constitution and that of