. =/
Attour To ntaauv A sec-
, - om) tjme.
Oh l keep the ring, one little year,
Keep poor Elizals ring,-
And shed _oii it the sileiu tear, ,
In secret sorrowing. .
Thy lips, on which her last, last kiss
, Yet lingers moist and warm,
.Dh l wipe them not for newer bliss,
’ Olil keep it as a charm.
‘Tliese liatirits are sacred to her love,
Here her loved presence dwellsl
Of her the grot, other the grove,
Ofher the garden tells.
Beneath these elms you sat and talked;
Besides the river’s brink, _
At evening arm-in-arm you walked;
Here stopt to gaze and tlfink.
‘re .1 _r‘_ttisan
Thoii’lt meet her when thy blood beets high
In converse with thy bride,
Meet the mild meaning of an eye,
That never learnt to cliide.
Ob, no,.my friend l another here
Thou canst not, uiust not bring;
No, keep it'—-but one little year,
Keep poor E.liza’s ring.
CAPITAL PUNISHMENTS.
The following is an abstract of. a debate
which took place in the House ol'Represent~
atives on the 20th ult. while that body was en-
gaged on the new Petial Code ofthe U. States,
introduced by Mr. Webster, chairman ofthe
Judiciary committee. It arose from a motion
made liy Mr. Livingston of Lou. to strike out
tll6'pl.ll'llSlllIl€l‘lt of death for the burning of
property belonging to the U. States, and in-
serting in lieu tliereoftlie punishment of fine
and imprisonment. As the subject is one of
no suiall importance, we believe our readers
willl excuse us fordevoting so much space to
a discussion of its merits.
Mr. Livingston co_mmenced with stating
that ever since the establishment of this gov-
ernment, there had been, perhaps, souie 192
or I4 Stat: s in which every crime short of
niiirder might be conimitted With irnpiiiiity.——
The House was certainly under great obliga-
tions to the Judiciary coimiiittce, and the
learned gentleman who was chairman of that
committee, for endeavouring to do away this
reproach upon our moral and judicial cliarac-
ter. He objected, however, to the extension
bfcapital punish merits, which was authorised
by this bill, being of opitiion that milder puri-
ishments were more likely to produce saluta-
ry effects than the extension of rigorous se-
verity. His motion went to strike out the
capital ptinisliiuent in this section of the hill.
The question is, whether punishment shall, in
any case, be iuflicted,for the mere destruction
of property. It was his solemn conviction [Ital
no crime should be punislied by fairing human
life. He was not prepared to say whether we
had, in any cases, a right to inflict it; he was
still less prepared to say, whether, if we pos-
sess the right, the exercise of it is necessary
for the welfare of society. Before atljtttlgiiig
capital p|lI‘llSllmf‘tll, it was therefore proper
to inquire, first, whether the evil to be reme-
died is snfliciently great to warrant it; and.
secondly, whether death be the most effectual
remedy. As to the crime of arson, he ac-
knowledged it to be ofsucli a niagnitiide that,
if nothing short ofthe punishment of death
would put a stop to it, even death must be in
flicted. But, he asked, might it not be pre-
vented by a tiiilder punisliineiit? Had the
experiment been tried ? Ifso, had it proved
ineffectual? Then, indeed, death must bi-
resorted to. But, ifnot, the House was bound
in conscience to iiialts the trial.
He then iuqtiired whether death was a bet-
ter remedy than the infliction of penalties
less severe. He referred to the gradual pro-
gress which had been made by all the States
ofthe Union,in softciiiug the features of their
penal code. The long black list of 160 capi
. tal offences had, by degrees, been reduced in
some cases to four or five. He lamented that,
- while this was the case,under the State Gov
jrnments, the code of the United States stilt
etained as many as 20 different olfeuces,pun-
fshable by death. He traced the progress of
,’a similar mitigation in the laws of European
A Governments, and particularly those ofEog-
land, and he expressed a hope that it inight
be continued until this country should uierii
the high eulogiuin bestowed upon the Roman
Republic, that, ofall nations, it had the iiiild-
est punishments. He referred to the doubts
expressed by many great and wise men ad
verse to the right oftakiug human life at all.
and then considering the subject on grounds
of policy merely, he proceeded to examine 5L
to contrast the advantages and disadvantages
attending the infliction of capital punish-
ments. The general object of punishment
1 was to prevent crimes : first, that ofthe crim-
inal hiniself,and st-condly, that ofoibers ——
Death effectually secured the first poitit. The
crimiiial capitally excciited, could not repeat
his offence. It also, in some degree, secured
the 92d object by presenting to others a striking
example, calculated io terrify the iin-agiuatiou
and deter froui crimes. The third and only
additional advantage attending it, was, that
it was not so expensive gs iiuprisoiinieiit. The
disadvantages were, in the first place, that, in
very iuany instances, it produced iufiriniiy.-—
Such was the reluctance of \\'llllt3SSeS,jll(l;E’S.
andjnrors, to cotivict when conviction was to
be followed by the death of the accused, that
lie was too often permitted to escape ; or,everr
if the evidence was such as to compel his cori-
viction, a pardon interposed to prevent his
piiiiislririent. On this head, Mr. L. remarked
.,upon the iiiultiplication of murders, and the
comparative rareness ol'executious,and insis-
_ted that, if the punishment were lighter, pun-
islitiient would be more certain. He applied
this remark to the crime_in question, and he
referred to a statement of the late lamented
1Vlr.Bradford, made in the year 1795, sliewing
tliat,altliough the burning of a dwelling house
was tnade a capital offence by the laws of
the public l'I1l'll(l'.
-_Peiuisylvaiiia',and the burning of other build-
ings was not so, yet,-ofall the buildings which
had been destroyed by inceudiaries, since the
uitroductiotr of that distitiction, by far the
greater parcwere dwelling houses. The 2nd
isadvarrtage was the effect of the exhibition
If frequently exhibited,
t bad one oftwo effects, either to give a fero-
cious character to our population in cherisliing
zanii strengthening those feelings which, in
‘flours, led to the exhibition of Glmlial,ors,and
in some Roinish countries ofthe Auto da Fe;
or else it produced a total indifference. , If
rarely exhibited,the sufferer was by sympathy
converted into a hero, his crime was forgotten
thouzli of the deepest dye. The clergy. in-
duced by the best of feelings.gail'iered around
him. The criminal was, or affected to be,
impressed by the truths of religion, and he
then became a saint——all eyes were fastened
upon'liiui—all hearts rejoiced iii tlietriuinphs
of piety over the most obdurate heart; even
the softer sex, forgetting their native horror
ofcrinie, flocked around him, adniiiiisteriiig
every couil'ort;aud the felon went forth to the
place ofexecutiou, as to atriuinpli, followed
by an escort that would not disgrace the uiost
distinguished citizen. He asked wliet-her
such punisliuient could be expected to pro-
duce the desired effect? Instead of rendering
the criiniual detesied, and his crime avoided,
his crime was softened or forgotten, and be
admired as it Cliristizin hero.
In order to show the effects which resnl.ed
froui the frequency oftliis dcscriptioii ofptin-
i-hment, he read some extracts from the evi-
dence which had been given on the Slllijvcl,
before the British House ofCoinmon.-:. A le-
galgeiitleinaii, of long professional experi-
ence antl high standing, had stated, that in
the whole course of his practice, he found
that amongst prisoners it produced any thing
rather than‘ a proper feeling.’ One individual
whom he had visited after his death had been
detcrniiued, replied to his expressions of sor-
row on seeing him in such a situation—‘ those
who play at bowls‘ ruiist expect rubbnrs ;’ and
again,—-‘ a kick and a struggle, and all’s over!’
Tlieyplay iucousiderately at ball, and their
custoinary amusenieuts; and the party, when
one is led to execution, is scarcely more sol-
cinn than the coiiiuion every-day party ofac
qua'iut:inces. During one scssioii, three per-
sons were takeii tip for circulating forged
notes. They had in their rooui the body ofa
confederate who had been executed, and the
woman who had coliabited with the deceased,
was the instruinent to circulate the forgeries.
Other extracts stated, that in an hour after
execiitioii, the prisoners in the press yard
would return to their old tiiuiisemeiiis turnar-
bles aud ball. Fioiii the rare itiflictious in
the United States, and the frequent execu-
tionsin England, pretty correct tlvductioiis
in iglil be tirade as to the effects produced.'——
The number of executions in England, at this
time, exceed any former period, excepting in
the reign of'Elizabetli, Wlli-‘ll they amounted
to 2000 a year. ‘ Is the crime of murder di-
iiiinislied in that country by this frequency ?
Is the crime ofiuurder frequent there, or rare?
Extremely frequent. What makes it? The
uiicertainty ofpunisliuient : rigour ofpunisli
merit, wliicli has the effect ufmakiug it uncer-
tain. A dark cell, with the inscription-
' Wlioever ciiters here, leaves hope beliind’—
or lettered at its cntrance—‘ Wirucvci enters,
remains forever,’ would cause more solemn
terror in the mind ofa culprit, than any capi-
tal punishment; and if OliC(‘. tried, 'w()ttl(l
have a salutary effect in diuiiiiishintz crime.
Another objection to the piinishment of
.death was the unequal effect produced upon
the convict hiinself. It was a piinisliiuem
very different in its intensity, as iiiflictcif on
different persons. One condemned wretch
received it as .1 blessing; anotlier met it with
perfect indifference ; while auotlier was per-
fectly excrutiated by the sentence; and tho’
it was, in truth, the most unequal.
.There existed another disadvantage : this
punishment once inflicted, was irrevocable ;
and, ifinflicted wrongfully, admitted of no
redress. A mistake might be discovered, but
the sufferer was gone ; the justice of society
could not reach him. Mr. L. here dwelt up-
on the uncertaintv ofcircurnstautiafevidence,
the dangerous effect of public exciteinent,and
quoted instances in which the offender, after
being executed, was fotiud to have been iiiiio-
ceiit. He inferred the probability of many
other similar cases, which were not discover-
ed, because there was few who took any in-
terest in the investigation. Public justice
was satisfied, and all fart-her inquiries slept
with the convict in his grave. Had he been
punished by imprisonment, the discovery of
his innocence could have restored him to lib-
erty, and himselfand his family to their for-
mer standing. ‘The power ofthe state might
penetrate the dungeon ;it could not penetrate
the grave; it could not silence the npbraidings
ufconscience, or stop the widow’stears. In
reply to the argument that death had always
been awarded as the pnnishinent of murder,
he answered, first, that the precedent was not
biudiiig ; and in the second place, denied its
universality. During a great part ofthe lio-
ll1klllRQpUllllC, death was not inflicted as a
puuisliuicut for any offence. 'I‘liere was no
evidence, frotii history, that critiics were tlieu
universally nuinerous. But when capital pun-
islimeuts were afierw-.ii'tls revived, under the
l:lmperors, every body knew that criiiies were
uiiiltiplied beyond all example. He wutild
not say, however, that the effect find the pun-
ishment of death for its cause. He insisted
much upon the Pxpefllllelll made by Leopold,
Duke of Tuscany, under whose authority
iapital punishiiieiits had been abolished for
«:0 yea.s,during which tiuie crimes were corri-
pararively rare, and the prisniis, at some peri-
uds, were literally empty ; yet, at no greater
distance than Rome, there occurred 60 exe-
cutions in a period of 6 iuoiitiis.
Mr. L. insisted, with earnestiiess, that such
examples called upon this nation to make a
similar experiment. Mr. L. adverted to a
case in New Orleans where six fricudless
strangeis had been executed on charge of
piracy,oii the lt‘blllll0ll_Y ofa witness who was
afterwards proved to bepcrjured. The last
objection urged by Mr. L. was, tl'iat,ln evil
times, men disposed to oppress their cotiiitry
loiind, in the established use ofcapital pim-
isliinent, an iustruiricnt (ll‘dWll and sharpened
to their liaud. How oft:-.u, in pa;ty contests,
or civil wars, liastlie revolting spet-.ta-clelieeii
exhibited ofjndiciul inurders, (two terius, the
last that ought to be dSSOCldletl,) where the‘
murderer was clad in ermine, and the victiui
suffered at noon day ? Was it possible to loot.
npuri such a sight and be calm ? Yet he did
not seek to address the feelings of the House,
or toinvade that. serenity that ouglit ever to
accompany legislation. He again repeated
that be well knew the practice of nations Wils
against it, and that even our own exempli-
might be urged as a precedent. But we had
begun to mitigate our code, and be asked
‘whether we should’ go back,or should proceed
-in the work ofimprovement. He prayed the
House to excuse his warmth on the subject.
field to be the must equal of all puuisliuieiits, JU-Sl H5011! 10 be exefllled ?
Nay, he was ‘on the point of.'a¢3<lfl3§§ing ll"?
chair as ifit were it bourt, andthis House as
though iliey formed it grand jiIry'.'~T_hey were
indeed, a jury of the country, sitti_ii’g to t_r no
small or trifling ‘cause, but a question iv iicli
involved all the future accused at all the tri-
bunals of the country, a 'question- which de-
inaiided an appeal to the tieart aiid the con-
science, and he entreated geiitletiieh not to
persevere in any course which their con-
science condemned, because it might be sus-
tained by the opinion of this or that distin-
guislied iriari. Mr. L, closed by a quotatioii
from Lord Coke, in which even that severe
and liarslijiidge expresses the seiitiiiient that
ifaiiy person could see in a single field all the
victims who‘ have been executed in the course
ofa yearaindergoiug at one time the dreadful
punishment ofthe gallows, he could not, if he
possessed the smallest spark of biiinaiiity, but
mourn over the spectacle and regret the ne-
cessity ofsiicli an expenditure of liutnan life.
Mr. Diviou'i', of Massacliiisetts, expressed
the reluctance with whicli he said any thing
in opposition to a speech which had done so
much credit both to the head and the heart of
the gentleman froui Louisiana, but he could
not perceive, although the geiitleiuan had
spoken touch and eloquently against the in-
fliction of death as a puuisliiuciit for crime,
how his general reasoning had any special ap-
plication to the present bill. It might be
good reasoning against capital piiriisliirient
in general, but, while such pnnisliments were
retained in our Code, he could not see why
ilie horrible criuie ofairsun should be exempt-
ed from it. By the‘ act oft8'20, rubbery coin-
mitted on the .higli' seas, and, by the act of
1801. the burning ofa vessel on the high seas,
were both puiiislicd with death. So was for-
gery ofguverninent strciiriiies or ofthe Clll'-
rcut coin, and, while these offeiit-es are capi
tally puoislied, on what llll'cl=._1lllctlill§ ground
should a felon be spared who sets fire to a
dwelling lioiiscin the dead of night? He
did not expressly assert that death was, in any
case, iiidispeiisable as a pueiishineni; but, if
there W§lS»Zllly thing which warriiiited the ta-
king away the life of the offender, it wasa
crime which put in jeopardy the lives ofso
many of his fclloiv creatures. The gentle-
man was mistaken in supposing that the list
ofcapital crimes in England hail been so far
reduced ; I60 or'fcur:es were still pnuislied
with death by the English law. Nor were
lllt.’l'8 as inauy pardoiis as among us. He
cousideretl the aigtllllttllt ofthe gentleman fr.
Louisiana as applicable rather to the inztuiicr
in which capital puiiisliuients are conducted.
than to the punishnicnt itself. As to the dif-
ficulty of convicting, of wlucli the gentleman
‘had spoken, he did not know that it was any
greater in respect to arson, than to the other
critnes now capitally piiiiislietl. Nor was the.
crime so much more difficult to be proved.—-
Gentlcuieu had said, that the piiiiishineni of
death, once inflicted, was irreinediable. But
this was no more than might be said of all
ptiiiislinieiits. The act of pnnishineiit could
not be rec:illed——and the cirt-ntiistaiices were
often such as could not be chaugetl. He had
quoted the cxziiiiiniitions which took place. by
order ofthe House ofCoiiiuion~=, from ivliicli
it appeared that the convicts often exhibited
the tiiost brutal iiiseusibility. He thouglit for
his own part, that the lives of such men were
not worth preservirig to the state. What
hope was there of men who could engage in
playingbowls when they knew that they were
‘ With respect to
the instance he had quoted as having happen-‘
ed at New Orleans, where 6 pirates had been
contleniiied on the testiuioiiy of a perjured
iritiiess, he thought that the proper tloctririt:
to be raised from the case, was not that piracy
sliould tint be punished with death, but that
perjury should be.
Mr. Livr.mtoai~:, of New Hampshire, laid
it down as a universal rule, that piinisliuieiit
shouldnever be inflicted, when it. could as
safely be avoided ; and when it was lllflltile-”,
should never be greater than" was intlispeiisa-
bly necessary. Btit when we had gone thus
far, Mr. L. observed, we were tiiet by the
grand and fiindanieutal principle, that society
possesses the right to defend itself. Wittiout
this principle, all laws were but in vain, and
there could be no such tliiiig as social exist
encc in such a WOI‘lfl as this. In BXBICISIII-g
this right, enough ofseverity imist be employ-
ed toeffect the end, viz.~—the coiiiinou safety.
He bad been sorry to hear from the gentle-
man from Louisiana, arguiueuts which ad-
dres~ed theiiiselves rather to the feelings, than
totlie uiiderstaudirig--arguments, all ofwliicli
seemed to be in favour of the culprit, rather
than of those who suffered by him. Ought
not the gentleinau to look at the other side or
the picture? Ougnt he not to think ofwliole
f'ai»iiilies, leaping in the dead of night from a-
midst the flames oftbeir own dwelling ?——-
Ought he not to have favored the house with
this picture,as well as with those which he
liad described so eloquently ? Ought he not
to direct his compassion to those innocent
sufferers, as tnucli as to the culprit? The
gentleman had argued agaiiist the settled 0
pinion ofthe whole world. It was needless
to answer him, since he was already met by
the arguments of all writers, and the experi-
ence of all legislators. Mr. L. said he fclt
every respect for the tiaiiie of Bradford, and
(‘.()IlStlflt9le(l the opinions ofthiit excellent man
as furiniiig verv high authority. But it must
be remeniberetl, that Bradford wrote, when,
what might be called the Penitentiary ioaiiiu
was at its full liciglit in PO[lllSylV&llllil,all(.l
when that system was in the full title of'ex-
periinent. Experience hail, since that time,
every where sliewn, that that system did not
produce the expected results ; and the current
ofpublic opinion was now running fast the
other way. He must be per-initted to correct
an error of the gentleman from Luiiisiaiia, $1.
to defend the cause ofa virgin queen. It was
not true that capital piiiiisliiiients hail aboun-
ded so iuucli in the reign of Elizabeth. On
the contrary, her laws were far mildertliau
those oftlie preceding reign. It was under
Henry Eighth that human blood liad-strt-.am-
ed in such torrents, and it was computed that
72.000 capital puuisliinents had been inflicted
in 36 years, making an average of 2,000 exe-
cutions in a year. The argument after all
comes to a siiigle point. The question is not
whether we will now exact 21 new system of
penal law, but simply whether we will relax
the punishinent for arson. He asked whether
this was safe ; he iiisistetl on the necessity of
securing the public safety. He dwelt on the
dangerous nature united to the facility of the
criine, and the impossibility of giiarding a-
gaiust it, except by the terrors ofa severe
puiiisliinent. The bill, he insisted, created
k
as every country punished with death. It did
not enlarge, but diminish the previohs num-
ber. He repelled the idea of abolishing it out
of mercy to tlie,crimiiial—-insisted that the
iiistances of mistaken ‘condemnation were ex-
tremely feiv, and such as could not well be
giiartled against; that they did not happen
more freqneiitly with respect to this punish-
tnerit than others; and that, the argument
from the irremediable nature of the punish-
ment, if it proved any thing, proved too nincli.
No puriishment could be completely recalled,
and so none whatever rntist be inflicted l—
’l‘he disgrace ofa public whipping could not
be effectually re’moved, arid there were men
who would prefer death to the endurance of
that disgrace. A man may be whipped thro’
mistake, when innocent-—btit are we, there-
fore, to abstain from all piiiiisliinent?
Mr. VVEBs'i*em suggested to the gentleman
from Louisiana whether it would not be better
to introduce the principles wbicli’ lieliad laid
down, in some general measure, which might
be liroiiglit before the House in the form eith-
er 0'? a bill or a resolution. The introduction
of it now, and ilie application ofit to it single
point in this bill, would only consume time,
and lead to iiunecessary obstruction to the
Pfissatze ofthe bill. He would put this to the
consideration of that gentleman, and would
'liimse‘lf refraiti from any arguinent which
could lead to distraction of‘ opinion.
i\lr.Livt.\'ds'1'oNsaitl the opinion oftliegen-
tlernan from Mass. would have great weight
with him, iflie did not feel it necessary to
makeup his riiind on the general principle
lwfore he could vote for this section. He
could not compromise with his feelings on
the stibject of passing this section. lflie had
been rightly understood, it would have been
seen that he coiild not give tip his opposition
—that he could not give his consent to the
section. He would not vote for puizishing a
certain crime with death, wlieii he was in
principle,opposed to all punishment ofdcath.
As to the divine law which had been qiioted-—
.‘ Whosoever sbeddetli nian’s blood, by man
shall his blood be slit=.d”—lie would ask, did
God tell us this? No: He told it to his cho-
sen people, the Jews. lt was no doubt per-
fectly proper for them, but we may as well
consider ourselves obliged to keep the Passo-
ver. as to take to ourselves the laws addressed
to them. Besides, the very law was contra-
dicted in the scriptures. Vlfas Cain put to
death for the murder ofAbel? No: on the
contrary a mark was put upon him, not that
he might be put to death, but that he might
be preserved. He had been cliarged with iii-
ti-ndiiciiig arguments in favour of ciilprits.-—
llow strangely he must have been inistiii'der-
stood. His argument was, that the proposed
punishment would have the effect to multiply.
instead of diininisliine: crimes. God knows
he had no power over the feelings of the
House. Thev would plivays take reason for
their guide. Tlie getitleiniin fro ii N. H. had
said that all writers were opposed to liim,lMr.
L.) He‘ lS‘t‘tllSl2ll(8l1. Some ofthe most em-
inent writers went beyond him. Maiiy tlio’t
death ought not to be inflicted in any case-
oibr-rs only in few cases. One refers to the
riglit--anotlier to the expediency ofthe thing.
Does the gentleman deny the statements with
regard to,‘ Tuscany, where the. abolition of
capital ptiiiisliment had the effect of prevent-
ing: crimes? That gentleman had said, that
the instriiices ofiiien siifi'ei'ing innocently were
few. On the coiitrary, there were manyin-,
stances to be found. As to iniprisonmeiit, it
is not irremediable like death. Ifyon put a
man in prison, you can take him out again.
It ought to be shown that the punishment of
tleatli was retaiiietl, because no other punish-
ment would be found efficieiit. Then he would
he answered, but not till then. Although ar-
son was a dangerous crime, there were cir-
cnmstances \\'lllt.‘l'l ought to prevent the pitti-
ishmem or (lentil. It is t"0flll'lllllEfl in the
niglit, secretly, very easy of pcrpetratioti. and
very hard to be (lPlP('l’e(l, except by confes-
sion, and this is difficult to be obtained.
Mr. Kl-IRMER. of Pennsylvania, observed,
that as to the question of policy there could
be no doubt. The case was perfectly clear.
The experience ofevery country and every
age had decidetl it, and should we tint profit
by that experience P The gentleman himself
says there was a time when the capital pun-
ishments in other countries were as few as
they now are in our own. Why then have
they been increased ? Because they have
been found unavoidable. As to the riE.lll"l'
society it is tuost clear. The ll’l(llVl(llI'.tlln2ll{E\‘
war against the community, and the cotintry
treats him as they would treat any other eu-
rauiy. As to the objection fin. persons some-
times siiffszriiig innocently, it might as Wt‘-‘l be
said yoii must not have a razor to cut your
l)8ill‘(l,b8C3tlS6, forsootli, you might by chance
cut your throat. VVliat does the penitentiary
system after all ariioiiiit to ? Exp».-rience had
demoiistrated that it produced_ a school for
crime. Proflig-.iies were collected from every
cortier of the country, and shut up inonejail,
and thus came out greater villains than they
went in—-they scarcely got home, lit-fore tliey
committed new crimes. He quoted the iii-
.-mnce of ;i man in Peiitisylvauin who had
liven pardoned out of the State Prison, who
€Xllll)llt‘.(l his pardon in triumph all alongtlie
road, and, before he rea(:l_ied his home, coni-
iiiitted the same crime for which he was put
in. He believed the system to be founded
in a in.-stakeu fer-lingoflmnianitv townrcls the
wrong-doer. The gentleman frouiLouisia—
nalias,indeed, told us that, as the thing is
coutluctetl in this country, hanging is quite a
frolic, and that the criuiinzil goos offlike a
saint. This surely was a strong argoinent for
multiplying capital punislinients, because we
have none too many saints.
The question was then taken on Mr. Liv-
ingston’s amendment and lost.
The editor ofthe National Gazette contro-
vcrts some ofthe assertions advanced by hlr.
[,iu‘ingqion’sopponents. He says—‘ Many of
the best iniuds in Europe are ' employed In
rccouiinending the abolition ofcapital pim-
i.-hment. The theme is niucb handled in G-
Britain, France, and Gerinany. It may be
confidently denied also that the Pciiiiensiary
svsteiii has no where produced the exp-ectctl
results. Wherever it has produced disap
pointinent, it has been but iiiiperfecflv trifui
or perhaps grossly perverted. The general
g..overnnieiit in this country may iiiake acorn-
plete experiiueot, and if, in undertalting this ,
-it should renounce executions altogetlier. ll
:W0|ll(l not, in all likelihood, cause the least
detriuient trrtlie couiuion weal,wliilst it iiiigtri
but a few capital blfeiices,and these were such '
- /
Biauiit.-—--At 5 iiécefif sessiiihs _at Roclicsfil
ter, Monroe county, Norman, Ward was con-‘
victed of the crime ofbigamy; and_sentence
to the state prison for ten years. The facts,
of this case exhibited an unusual degree of
depravity. He was married sortie years ago
in the State of Connecticut,wliere he became
acquainted with a respectable family who re-
moved frotn thence and settled in Rochester,‘
and to whom it was known that he had been
married. He came to Rochester a year ago"
last fall, and visited the family, pretending
iliat his wife was dead, and paid his addresses’
to a young lady (at tlaiigliter) of the family
was married-to her, and shortly after starte
with her under the‘ pretence oftaklng her to’.
his place of resitlence, some where west of
Utica. He left her at it tavern,.under the pre-
tence that he had some business to transact ti
few miles distant. He then abandoned lief
among strangers, and was not heart! of by lief
or the fauiily until last fall, wliei A it wasdis-3
coyered that he had reiuovedt the town o
Phelps, Ontario courity, where he was found
with his foruier wife and six clrildren, and
brought to Rocliester for tria'l.—.N‘. Y. flnief;
Printers of .N'etvsp_upers, says the N. H. Ga‘-3
ziette, are not unfrequéutly troubled with let‘-'
ters oftlie following import, although not all
ways clothed in such hu'morous langiiage.
_ I’os"t"-On-‘ictii, S-“-1:
Drtstt Sm, , _
.'l——- S-——-', a subscriber
For your paper,
t Has cut a caper,‘ ‘_ , r
And has become uoiuo LIBER.
In plain parlance, has runaway‘
And left nothing his debts to pay,
Not c’eii a pig,or cliick,by way ofliostage 3.
So you have losttlie papcr,&z.l the postage.
A house having fallen down one day during
a gale of wind a wit most provokingly cori-
gratulated the owner on his windfall.
Capillary Steam Engine.--Tlie su ccess of
this engine in navigation is conclusively as-
certained. It has lately been applied, under‘
the stiperinteiidence ofthe inventor‘, to a boat
at Louisville, 85 feet keel, and 18 feet beam,
which it has propelled in a niimnerthat leaves
no doubt ofits complete success. When the’
whole engine is made equal in its structure,
to what the iiivetitor intended it to be, and
uliicli good workmen can easily make it. the’
boat will run, as he originally calculated, £20
or 30 per cent faster than the best running
boats on the present plan. He is preparing
also to apply the Capillary Engine to a car-
tinge, which he believes he will be able to do
without its being any greater incuinbrance to
the carriage, than horses used in drawing it,_
and without much better roads being required
for its use. In economy and speed, it will
greatly excel any thing that can be done by
tiorses.—Lexr'ngion Reporter. '
4—‘
LAND AT AUCTION.
T‘ HE following pieces of Land, belonging’
to the estate of Samuel Cannon, dec’d,_
will be offered for sale at Public Auction on
Saturday, the lflth inst. at Z o’cloclt, P. M. at
the ltonse of Mr. Hezekiah Wliitlock. About
4 Acres, lying west, and adjoining the dwell-
ing house of Mr. Noah S. Bailey; tlie House
and about one acre of Land, lying south and
in front ofthe dwelling house of Mr. Noah S. .
Bailey; about 5 acres of Wood Land, called
Liipton’s Boggs,lying about one mile west of”
the dwelling house of Mr. Ebenezer Phillips.
One acre of salt Meadow lying in west fields.
About one acre of salt meadow lying at the
head of Norwalk harbor. M. CRAFT.
Norwalk, January 31, 18°25. 49 sziv
AT THE SAME TIME AND PLACE,
The House lately occupied by Dr. Ansel
Hoyt, a few rods south of the Bridge.
Also, the House and an acre and a quarter
ofL-and, fotnicrly owned by llfidoiv Betts,
near Dr. Knight’s, about 80 rods from the
Bridge. Condition-that it is not to be sold
for less than 8000. '
Also, one acre and a halfof Salt Meadow,
at Call P:istiii‘e". so called. A
A FACTORY AT AUCTION.
ILL be sold at PublicVendue,on Wed-
. nesday, the 9th lost. at Mr.Wliitlock’s,
Norwalk,tlieFaciory owned by the subscriber.
pleasantly situated in Norwalk, about two
miles north ofthe Bridge, on the Danbury
road that leads to Nurwalk. The property is
new and in complete order, and is one ofthe
finest stands in this county. There is I new
Double Cardiug Macliine and Picker, mic
Shearing machine, 9. Presses, 2 Dye Kettles,
and one BlueV:it, and all other apparatus
which is required to carry on the busincss.--
The building, is ‘.14 by 30 feet, and two story.
Likewise, a Dying and Finishing shop, about
30 feet from the Feit:tory,about 20 feet square.
The Factory is situated on a large and never
failing streaui of water. There is about 10 ft.
head ofu-ater. There is also a grand situav
tion on the other end ofthe dam for any oth-
er Works that may be erected, and a sufficient
qtiaiitity of water to supply tliciri both. Sale-
to corninence at I o’cluck. P. M.
N0i'ivall<,FPb. v2. A.iizo.~i BYINGTON.
HE Honourable Court of Probate for the
District of Norwalk liatli assigned “led-
'iesday, the sixteenth day of February next,
at ten o’cloi:k, foreuoon, for the appointment
of coniinissioiiers on the estate of Jonas Fan-
chcr, late of New Caua.-iii, dec’d, represented
iiisolvcnt, and this public notice is given by
order ofsd. Court.
. STEPHEN Sr-:W.n.nr'>, Adm’r.
Norwalk, January 91-2, 18:25. 48
'1‘ H E Court of Probate for the District of
Stamford liath allowed six uionths from
the date hereof for the creditors to the estate’
of Lewis Lockwood, dec’d, late of the city of
New-York. to exhibit their claims for settle-
-nent. Those who neglect to present their’
act-oiiiits, properly attested, within said time,
will be debarred a recovery. All persons iii-
debted to said estate are requested to inaket
immediate payment to ‘
1
Pnisciu./t LOCKWOOD, Adminis-
DAVXS LOCKWOOD, trators.
Stamford. Dec. °.’.8ih. I894. 49
Y order of the Hon. Court of Probate for’
the district of Norwalk, public notice is,
hereby given to the creditors" of the estate of
.Ezra Grumman, late of Wilton, dec’d, that
unless they exliibit their claims against said?
state within six months from this date, they
will ever after he (lt{ll‘«il‘l‘t?(l :1 legal recovery.
SETH Tarpon, Adm ’r.
‘by its success render a lasting service to irrati-
kind.’
Norwalk, Jan. 31, 139-5» 40*
‘a
Norwalk Chronicler