If a man commits a single robbery he is arrested and punished by imprisonment. If he burns down a dwelling or takes a life he is hung. The Southern rebels commit innumerable arsons and murders, and there are now in our midst those who advocate their full and free pardon. Why is it? They say these rebels are ignorant and deluded, and committed their atrocities under wrong impressions. But the robber, the incendiary and the murderer may have been ignorant. Yet he is punished. The legal presumption is that all men understand the law. The rebels know the consequence of their acts. Their crimes have been ten-fold greater than those of the individuals who now fill our [penitentiaries]. The plea of ignorance cannot avail, and those who urge it in their behalf urge it simply as a cover to another and true reason – sympathy with the rebels and aversion to the rule which makes their acts treason.
– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, March 8, 1862, p. 1
No comments:
Post a Comment