Chapter XVII: Part 17

_Clerk_. Prisoner, you may remember you have heretofore been indicted for a certain crime by you committed; upon your indictment you were arraigned; upon your arraignment you pleaded guilty, and threw yourself upon the mercy of the court. What have you now to say, why judgment should not be passed upon you according to law.

The prisoner, who was a bad-looking mulatto, was silent.

_Recorder_. Schofield, you have been convicted of a very bad crime; you attempted to take liberties with a young white girl--a most serious offence. This is getting to be a very bad crime, and practised, I am sorry to say, to a great extent in this community: it must be put a stop to. Had you been convicted of the whole crime, we should have sent you to the state-prison for life. As it is, we sentence you to hard labour in the state-prison at Sing Sing for five years; and that's the judgment of the court; and when you come out, take no more liberties with white girls.

_Prisoner_. Thank your honour it ain't no worse.

_Clerk_. Bring out Mary Burns.

It was done.

_Clerk_. Prisoner, you may remember, etcetera, etcetera, upon your arraignment you pleaded not guilty, and put yourself on your country for trial; which country hath found you guilty. What have you now to say why judgment should not be pronounced upon you according to law?

(Silent).

_Recorder_. Mary Burns, Mrs Forgay gave you her chemise to wash.

_Prisoner_. No, she didn't give it to me.

_Recorder_. But you got it somehow, and you stole the money. Now, you see, our respectable fellow-citizens, the ladies, must have their chemises washed, and, to do so, they must put confidence in their servants; and they have a right to sew their money up in their chemise if they think proper, and servants must not steal it from them. As you're a young woman, and not married, it would not be right to deprive you of the opportunity to get a husband for five years; so we shall only send you to Sing Sing for two years and six months; the keeper will work you in whatever way he may think proper.--Go to the next.

Charles Liston was brought out and arraigned, _pro forma_. He was a dark negro.

_Clerk_. Liston, what have you to say why judgment, etcetera?

_Prisoner_. All I got to say to his honour de honourable court is, dat I see de error of my ways, and I hope dey may soon see de error of deirs. I broke de law of my free country, and I must lose my liberty, and go to Sing Sing. But I trow myself on de mercy of de Recorder; and all I got to say to his honour, de honourable Richard Riker, is, dat I hope he'll live to be de next mayor of New York till I come out of Sing Sing.

_Recorder (laughing)_. A very good speech! But, Liston, whether I'm mayor or not, you must suffer some. This stealing from entries is a most pernicious crime, and one against which our respectable fellow-citizens can scarcely guard. Two-thirds of our citizens hang their hats and coats in entries, and we must protect their hats and coats. We, therefore, sentence you to Sing Sing for five years,--Go to the next.

John Mcdonald and Godfrey Crawluck were put to the bar.

_Recorder_. Mcdonald and Crawluck, you stole two beeves. Now, however much I like beef, I'd he very hungry before I'd steal any beef. You are on the high road to ruin. You went up the road to Harlem, and down the road to Yorkville, and you'll soon go to destruction. We shall send you to Sing Sing for two years each; and when you come out, take your mother's maiden name, and lead a good life, and don't eat any more beef--I mean, don't steal any more beeves--Go to the next.

Luke Staken was arraigned.

_Recorder_.--Staken, you slept in a room with Lahay, and stole all his gold (1000 dollars). This sleeping in rooms with other people, and stealing their things, is a serious offence, and practised to a great extent in this city; and what makes the matter worse, you stole one thousand dollars in specie, when specie is so scarce. We send you to Sing Sing for five years.

Jacob Williams was arraigned. He looked as if he had not many days to live, though a young man.

_Recorder_. Williams, you stole a lot of kerseymere from a store, and ran off with it--a most pernicious crime! But, as your health is not good, we shall only send you to Sing Sing for three years and six months.

John H Murray was arraigned.

_Recorder_. Murray, you're a deep fellow. You got a Green Mountain boy into an alley, and played at "shuffle and burn," and you burned him out of a hundred dollars. You must go to Sing Sing for five years; and we hope the reputable reporters attending for the respectable public press will warn our respectable country friends, when they come into New York, not to go into Orange street, and play at "shuffle and burn" among bad girls and bad men, or they'll very likely get burnt, like this Green Mountain boy.--Go to the next.

William Shay, charged with shying glasses at the head of a tavern-keeper. Guilty.

_Recorder_. This rioting is a very bad crime, Shay, and deserves heavy punishment; but as we understand you have a wife and sundry little Shays, we'll let you off, provided you give your solemn promise never to do so any more.

_Shay_. I gives it--wery solemnly.

_Recorder_. Then we discharge you.

_Shay_. Thank your honour--your honour's a capital judge.

John Bowen, charged with stealing a basket. Guilty.

_Recorder_. Now, John, we've convicted you; and you'll have to get out stone for three months on Blackwell's Island--that's the judgment of the court.

Buckley and Charles Rogers, charged with loafing, sleeping in the park, and leaving the gate open, were discharged, with a caution to take care how they interfered with corporation rights in future, or they would get their corporation into trouble.

Ann Boyle, charged with being too _lively_ in the street. Let off on condition of being quiet for the time to come.

Thomas Dixon, charged with petty larceny. Guilty.

_Dixon_. I wish to have judgment suspended.

_Recorder_. It's a bad time to talk about suspension; why do you request this?

_Dixon_. I've an uncle I want to see, and other relations.

_Recorder_. In that case we'll send you to Black well's island for six months, you'll be sure to find them all there. Sentence accordingly.

Charles Enroff, charged with petty larceny--coming Paddy over an Irish shoemaker, and thereby cheating him out of a pair of shoes.--Guilty.

Sentenced to the penitentiary, Blackwell's island, for six months, to get out stone.

Charles Thorn, charged with assaulting Miss Rachael Prigmore.

_Recorder_. Miss Prigmore, how came this man to strike you?

_Rachael_. Because I wouldn't have him. (A laugh.) He was always a teasing me, and spouting poetry about roses and thorns; so when I told him to be off he struck me.

_Prisoner_ (theatrically). Me strike you! Oh, Rachael--

"Perhaps it was right to dissemble your love,
But why did you kick me down stairs?"

_Prisoner's Counsel_. That's it, your honour. Why did she kick him down stairs?

This the fair Rachael indignantly denied, and the prisoner was found guilty.

_Recorder_. This striking of women is a very bad crime, you must get out stone for two months.

_Prisoner_. She'll repent, your honour. She loves me--I know she does.

"On the cold flinty rock, when I'm busy at work,
Oh, Rachael, I'll think of thee."

Thomas Ward, charged with petty larceny. Guilty. Ward had nothing to offer to _ward_ off his sentence, therefore he was sent to the island for six months.

Maria Brandon, charged with petty larceny. Guilty. Sentenced to pick oakum for six months.

_Maria_. Well, I've friends, that's comfort, they'll sing--

"Oh, come to this bower, my own stricken deer."

_Recorder_. You're right, Maria, it's an _oakum_ bower you're going to.

The court then adjourned. See Note 4.

But all these are nothing compared with the following, which at first I did not credit. I made the strictest inquiry, and was informed by a legal gentleman present that it was correct. I give the extract as it stood in the newspapers.

_Influence of a Pretty Girl_.--"Catherine Manly," said the Recorder yesterday, in the sessions, "you have been convicted of a very bad crime. This stealing is a very serious offence; but, _as you are a pretty girl_! we'll suspend judgment, in hopes you will do better for the future." We have often heard that justice was blind. What a fib to say so!

Mr Carey, in his publication on Wealth, asserts, that security of property and or person are greater in the United States than in England. How far he is correct I shall now proceed to examine. Mr Carey says, in his observations on security of person:--"Comparing Massachusetts with England and Wales, we find in the former 1 in 86,871 sentenced to one year's imprisonment or more; whereas, in the latter 1 in 70,000 is sentenced to more than one year. The number sentenced to one year or more in England is greater than in Pennsylvania. It is obvious, therefore, that security is much greater in Massachusetts than in England, and consequently greater than in any other part of the world."

Relative to crimes against security of property, he asserts:--

Of crimes against property, involving punishments of one year's imprisonment, or more, we find:--

+================+==========+ YIn Pennsylvania Y1 in 4,400Y +----------------+----------+ YIn New York Y1 in 5,900Y +----------------+----------+ YIn MassachusettsY1 in 5,932Y +================+==========+

While in England, in the year 1834, their convictions for offences against property, involving punishments exceeding one year's imprisonment, was 1 in 3,120.

Now, that these numbers are fairly given, as far as they go, I have no doubt; but the comparison is not just, because, first, in America crime is not so easily detected; and, secondly, when detected, conviction does not always follow.

Mr Carey must be well aware that, in the American newspapers, you _continually_ meet with a paragraph like this:--"A body of a white man, or of a negro, was found floating near such and such a wharf, on Saturday last, with evident marks of violence upon it, etcetera. etcetera, and the coroner's inquest is returned either found drowned, or violence by person or persons unknown." Now, let Mr Carey take a list from the coroner's books of the number of bodies found in this manner at New York, and the number of instances in which the perpetrators have been discovered; let him compare this list with a similar one made for England and Wales, and he will then ascertain the difference between the _crimes committed_ in proportion to the _convictions_ which take place through the activity of the police in our country, and, it may be said, the total want of police in the United States.

As to the second point, namely, that when crimes are detected, conviction does not follow, [see Note 5] I have only to refer back to the cases of Robinson and Goodwin, two instances out of the many in which criminals in the United States are allowed to escape, who, if they had committed the same offence in England, would most certainly have been hanged. But there is another point which renders Mr Carey's statement unfair, which is, that he has no right to select one, two, or even three states out of twenty-six, and compare them all with England and Wales.

The question is, the comparative security of person and property in Great Britain and the United States. I acknowledge that, if Ireland were taken into the account, it would very much reduce our proportional numbers; but, then, there crime is _fomented_ by traitors and demagogues--a circumstance which must not be overlooked.

Still, the whole of Ireland would offer nothing equal in atrocity to what I can prove relative to one small town in America: that of Augusta, in Georgia, containing only a population of 3,000, in which, in one year, there were _fifty-nine assassinations_ committed in open day, without any notice being taken of them by the authorities.

This, alone, will exceed all Ireland, and I therefore do not hesitate to assert, that if every crime committed in the United States were followed up by conviction, as it would be in Great Britain, the result would fully substantiate the fact, that, in security of person and property, the advantage is considerably in favour of my own country.

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Note 1. Miss Martineau, speaking of the jealousy between the Americans and the French creoles, says--"No American expects to get a verdict, on _any evidence_, from a jury of French creoles."

Note 2. America though little more than sixty years old as a nation, has already published an United States Criminal Calendar (Boston, 1835.) I have this book in my possession, and, although in number of criminals it is not quite equal to our Newgate Calendar, it far exceeds it in atrocity of crime.

Note 3. Some allowance must be made for the license of the reporters, but in the main it is a very fair specimen of the recorder's style and language.

Note 4. There is, as will appear by the quotations, as much fun in the police reports in New York as in the best of ours: the _style_ of the Recorder is admirably taken off.

Note 5. Miss Martineau, speaking of a trial for murder in the United States, says, "I observed that no one seemed to have a doubt of his guilt." She replied, that there never was a clearer case: but that he would be acquitted; the examination and trial were a mere form, of which everyone knew the conclusion beforehand. The people did not choose to see any more hanging, and till the law was so altered as to allow an alternative of punishment, no conviction for a capital offence would be obtainable. I asked on what pretence the young man would be got off, if the evidence against him was as clear as it was represented. She said some one would be found to swear an _alibi_.

"A tradesman swore an _alibi_; the young man was acquitted, and the next morning he was on his way to the West."

VOLUME THREE, CHAPTER FORTY SIX.

REMARKS--LYNCH LAW.

Englishmen express their surprise that in a moral community such a monstrosity as Lynch law should exist; but although the present system, which has been derived from the original Lynch law, cannot be too severely condemned, it must, in justice to the Americans, be considered that the original custom of Lynch law was forced upon them by circumstances. Why the term of Lynch law has been made use of, I do not know; but in its origin the practice was no more blameable than were the laws established by the Pilgrim fathers on their first landing at Plymouth, or any law enacted amongst a community left to themselves, their own resources, and their own guidance and government. Lynch law, as at first constituted, was nothing more than punishment awarded to offenders by a community who bed been injured, and who had no law to refer to, and could have no redress if they did not take the law into their own hands; the _present_ system of Lynch law is, on the contrary, an illegal exercise of the power of the majority in opposition to and defiance of the laws of the country, and the measure of justice administered and awarded by those laws.

It must be remembered that fifty years ago, there were but a few white men to the westward of the Alleghany Mountains; that the states of Kentucky and Tennessee were at that time as scanty in population, as even now are the districts of Ioway and Columbia; that by the institutions of the Union a district required a certain number of inhabitants before it could be acknowledged as even a district; and that previous to such acknowledgment, the people who had _squatted_ on the land had no claim to protection or law. It must also be borne in mind, that these distant territories offered an asylum to many who fled from the vengeance of the laws, men without principle, thieves, rogues, and vagabonds, who escaping there, would often interfere with the happiness and peace of some small yet well-conducted community, which had migrated and settled on these fertile regions. These communities had no appeal against personal violence, no protection from rapacity and injustice. They were not yet within the pale of the Union; indeed there are many even now in this precise situation (that of the Mississippi for instance,) who have been necessitated to make laws of government for themselves, and who acting upon their own responsibilities, do very often condemn to death, and execute. [Note 1.] It was, therefore, to remedy the defect of their being no established law, that Lynch law, as it is termed, was applied to; without it, all security, all social happiness would have been in a state of abeyance. By degrees, all disturbers of the public peace, all offenders against justice met with their deserts; and as it is a query, whether on its first institution, any law from the bench was more honestly and impartially administered than this very Lynch law, which has now had its name prostituted by the most barbarous excesses and contemptuous violation of all law whatever. The examples I am able to bring forward of Lynch law, in its primitive state, will be found to have been based upon necessity, and a due regard to morals and to justice. For instance, the harmony of a well-conducted community would be interfered with by some worthless scoundrel, who would entice the young men to gaming, or the young women to deviate from virtue. He becomes a nuisance to the community, and in consequence the heads or elders would meet and vote his expulsion. Their method was very simple and straight-forward; he was informed that his absence would be agreeable, and that if he did not "clear out" before a certain day, he would receive forty lashes with a cow-hide. If the party thought proper to defy this notice, as soon as the day arrived he received the punishment, with a due notification that, if found there again after a certain time, the dose would be repeated. By these means they rid the community of a bad subject, and the morals of the junior branches were not contaminated. Such was in its origin the practice of Lynch law.

A circumstance occurred within these few years in which Lynch law was duly administered. At Dubuque, in the Ioway district, a murder was committed. The people of Dubuque first applied to the authorities of the state of Michigan, but they discovered that the district of Ioway was not within the jurisdiction of that State; and, in fact, although on the opposite side of the river there was law and justice, they had neither to appeal to. They would not allow the murderer to escape; they consequently met, selected among themselves a judge and a jury, tried the man, and, upon their own responsibility, hanged him.

There was another instance which occurred a short time since at Snakes' Hollow, on the western side of the Mississippi, not far from the town of Dubuque. A band of miscreants, with a view of obtaining possession of some valuable diggings (lead mines,) which were in the possession of a grocer who lived in that place, murdered him in the open day. The parties were well known, but they held together and would none of them give evidence. As there were no hopes of their conviction, the people of Snakes' Hollow armed themselves, seized the parties engaged in the transaction, and ordered them to quit the territory on pain of having a rifle-bullet through their heads immediately. The scoundrels crossed the river in a canoe, and were never after heard of.

I have collected these facts to show that Lynch law has been forced upon the American settlers in the western states by _circumstances_; that it has been acted upon in support of morality and virtue, and that its awards have been regulated by strict justice. But I must now notice this practice with a view to show how dangerous it is that any law should be meted out by the majority, and that what was commenced from a sense of justice and necessity, has now changed into a defiance of law, where law and justice can be readily obtained. The Lynch law of the present day, as practised in the states of the west and south, may be divided into two different heads: the first is, the administration of it in cases in which the laws of the states are considered by the majority as not having awarded a punishment adequate, in their opinion, to the offence committed; and the other, when from excitement the majority will not wait for the law to act, but inflict the punishment with their own hands.

The following are instances under the first head.

Every crime increases in magnitude in proportion as it affects the welfare and interest of the community. Forgery and bigamy are certainly crimes, but they are not such heavy crimes as many others to which the same penalty is decreed in this country. But in a commercial nation forgery, from its effects, becomes most injurious, as it destroys confidence and security of property, affecting the whole mass of society. A man may have his pocket _picked_ of 1000 pounds or more, but this is not a capital offence, as it is only the individual who suffers; but if a man _forges_ a bill for 5 pounds he is (or rather, was) sentenced by our laws to be hanged. Bigamy may be adduced as another instance: the heinousness of the offence is not in having more than one wife, but in the prospect of the children of the first marriage being left to be supported by the community. Formerly, that was also pronounced a capital offence. Of punishments, it will be observed that society has awarded the most severe for crimes committed against itself, rather than against those which most offend God. Upon this principle, in the southern and western states, you may murder _ten_ white men and no one will arraign you or trouble himself about the matter; but _steal one nigger_, and the whole community are in arms, and express the most virtuous indignation against the sin of theft, although that of murder will be disregarded.

One or two instances in which Lynch law was called in to _assist_ justice on the bench, came to my knowledge. A Yankee had stolen a slave, but as the indictment was not properly worded, he knew that he would be acquitted, and he boasted so, previous to the trial coming on. He was correct in his supposition; the flaw in the indictment was fatal, and he was acquitted. "I told you so," said he, triumphantly smiling as he left the court, to the people who had been the issue of the trial.

"Yes," replied they, "it is true that you have been acquitted by Judge Smith, but you have not yet been tried by _Judge_ Lynch." The latter judge was very summary. The Yankee was tied up, and cow-hided till he was nearly dead; they then put him into a _dug-out_ and sent him floating down the river. Another instance occurred which is rather amusing, and, at the same time, throws some light upon the peculiar state of society in the west.

There was a bar-keeper at some tavern in the state of Louisiana (if I recollect right) who was a great favourite; whether from his judicious mixture of the proportions of mint juleps and gin cocktails, or from other causes, I do not know; but what may appear strange to the English, he was elected to an office in the law courts of the state, similar to our _Attorney-General_, and I believe was very successful, for an American can turn his hand or his head to almost anything. It so happened that a young man who was in prison for stealing a negro, applied to this attorney-general to defend him in the court. This he did so successfully that the man was acquitted; but Judge Lynch was as usual waiting outside, and when the attorney came out with his client, the latter was demanded to be given up. This the attorney refused, saying that the man was under his protection. A tumult ensued, but the attorney was firm; he drew his Bowie-knife, and addressing the crowd, said, "My men, you all know me: no one takes this man, unless he passes over my body." The populace were still dissatisfied, and the attorney not wishing to lose his popularity, and at the same time wanting to defend a man who had paid him well, requested the people to be quiet a moment until he could arrange the affair. He took his client aside, and said to him, "These men will have you, and will Lynch you, in spite of all my efforts, only one chance remains for you, and you must accept it: you know that it is but a mile to the confines of the next state, which if you gain you will be secure. You have been in prison for two months, you have lived on bread and water, and you must be in good wind, moreover, you are young and active. These men who wish to get hold of you are half drunk, and they never can run as you can. Now, I'll propose that you have one hundred and fifty yards law, and then if you exert yourself, you can easily escape." The man consented, as he could not help himself: the populace also consented, as the attorney pointed out to them that any other arrangement would be injurious to his honour. The man, however, did not succeed; he was so frightened that he could not run, and in a short time he was taken, and had the usual allowance of cow-hide awarded by Judge Lynch. Fortunately he regained his prison before he was quite exhausted, and was sent away during the night in a steamer.

At Natchez, a young man married a young lady of fortune, and, in his passion, actually flogged her to death. He was tried, but as there were no witnesses but negroes, and their evidence was not admissible against a white man, he was acquitted: but he did not escape; he was seized, tarred and feathered, _scalped_, and turned adrift in a canoe without paddles.

Such are the instances of Lynch law being superadded, when it has been considered by the majority that the law has not been sufficiently severe. The other variety of Lynch law is, when they will not wait for law, but, in a state of excitement, proceed to summary punishment.

The case more than once referred to by Miss Martineau, of the burning alive of a coloured man at St Louis, is one of the gravest under this head. I do not wish to defend it in any way, but I do, for the honour of humanity, wish to offer all that can be said in extenuation of this atrocity: and I think Miss Martineau, when she held up to public indignation the monstrous punishment, was bound to acquaint the public with the cause of an excitable people being led into such an error. This unfortunate victim of popular fury was a free coloured man, of a very quarrelsome and malignant disposition; he had already been engaged in a variety of disputes, and was a nuisance in the city. For an attempt to murder another coloured man, he was seized, and was being conducted to prison in the custody of Mr Hammond, the Sheriff, and another white person who assisted him in the execution of his duty. As he arrived at the door of the prison, he watched his opportunity, stabbed the person who was assisting the Sheriff, and, then passing his knife across the throat of Mr Hammond, the carotid artery was divided, and the latter fell dead upon the spot. Now, here was a wretch who, in one day, had three times attempted murder, and had been successful in the instance of Mr Hammond, the sheriff, a person universally esteemed. Moreover, when it is considered that the culprit was of a race who are looked upon as inferior; that this successful attempt on the part of a black man was considered most dangerous as a precedent to the negro population; that, owing to the unwillingness to take away life in America, he might probably have escaped justice; and that this occurred just at the moment when the abolitionists were creating such mischief and irritation:--although it must be lamented that they should have so disgraced themselves, the summary and cruel punishment which was awarded by an incensed populace is not very surprising. Miss Martineau has, however, thought proper to pass over the peculiar atrocity of the individual who was thus sacrificed: to read her account of the transaction, it would appear as if he were an unoffending party, sacrificed on account of his _colour_ alone.

Another remarkable instance was the execution of five gamblers at the town of Vicksburgh, on the Mississippi. It may appear strange that people should be lynched for the mere vice of gambling: but this will be better understood when, in my second portion of this work, I enter into a general view of society in the United States. At present it will be sufficient to say, that as towns rise in the South and West, they gradually become peopled with a better class; and that, as soon as this better class is sufficiently strong to accomplish their ends, a purification takes place much to the advantage of society. I hardly need observe; that these better classes come from the Eastward. New Orleans, Natchez, and Vicksburgh are evidences of the truth of observations I have made. In the present instance, it was resolved by the people of Vicksburgh that they would no longer permit their city to be the resort of a set of unprincipled characters, and that all gamblers by profession should be compelled to quit it. But, as I have the American account of what occurred, I think it will be better to give it in detail, the rather as I was informed by a gentleman residing there that it is perfectly correct:--

Our city has for some days past been the theatre of the most novel and startling scenes that we have ever witnessed. While we regret that the necessary for such scenes should have existed, we are proud of the public spirit and indignation against offenders displayed by the citizens, and congratulate them on having at length banished a class of individuals, whose shameless vices and daring outrages have long poisoned the springs of morality, and interrupted the relations of society. For years past, professional gamblers, destitute of all sense of moral obligation--unconnected with society by any of its ordinary ties, and intent only on the gratification of their avarice--have made Vicksburgh their place of rendezvous--and, in the very bosom of our society, boldly plotted their vile and lawless machinations. Here, as everywhere else, the laws of the country were found wholly ineffectual for the punishment of these individuals; and, emboldened by impunity, their numbers and their crimes have daily continued to multiply. Every species of transgression followed in their train. They supported a large number of tippling-houses, to which they would decoy the youthful and unsuspecting, and, after stripping them of their possessions, send them forth into the world the ready and desperate instrument of vice. Our streets were ever resounding with the echoes of their drunken and obscene mirth, and no citizen was secure from their villainy. Frequently, in armed bodies, they have disturbed the good order of public assemblages, insulted our citizens, and defied our civil authorities. Thus had they continued to grow bolder in their wickedness, and more formidable in their numbers, until Saturday, the 4th of July (inst), when our citizens had assembled together, with the corps of Vicksburg volunteers, at a barbecue, to celebrate the day by the usual festivities. After dinner, and during the delivery of the toasts, one of the officers attempted to enforce order and silence at the table, when one of these gamblers, whose name is Cabler, who had impudently thrust himself into the company, insulted the officer, and struck one of the citizens. Indignation immediately rose high, and it was only by the interference of the commandant that he was saved from instant punishment. He was, however, permitted to retire, and the company dispersed. The military corps proceeded to the public square of the city, and were there engaged in their exercises, when information was received that Cabler was coming up, armed, and resolved to kill one of the volunteers, who had been most active in expelling him from the table. Knowing his desperate character, two of the corps instantly stepped forward and arrested him. A loaded pistol and a large knife and dagger were found upon his person, all of which he had procured since he separated from the company. To liberate him would have been to devote several of the most respectable members of the company to his vengeance, and to proceed against him at law, would have been mere mockery, inasmuch as, not having had the opportunity of consummating his design, no adequate punishment could be inflicted on him. Consequently, it was determined to take him into the woods and _Lynch_ him, which is a mode of punishment provided for such as become obnoxious in a manner which the law cannot reach. He was immediately carried out under a guard, attended by a crowd of respectable citizens, tied to a tree, punished with stripes, tarred and feathered, and ordered to leave the city in forty-eight hours. In the meantime, one of his comrades, the Lucifer of his gang, had been endeavouring to rally and arm his confederates for the purpose of rescuing him--which, however, he failed to accomplish.

"Having thus aggravated the whole band of these desperadoes, and feeling no security against their vengeance, the citizens met at night in the Court-house, in a large number, and there passed the following resolutions:--

"_Resolved_, That a notice be given to all professional gamblers, that the citizens of Vicksburg are _resolved_ to exclude them from this place and its vicinity; and that twenty-four hours' notice be given them to leave the place.

"_Resolved_, That all persons permitting faro-dealing in their houses, he also notified that they will be prosecuted therefore.

"_Resolved_, That one hundred copies of the foregoing resolutions be printed and stuck up at the corners of the streets--and that this publication be deemed a notice.

"On Sunday morning, one of these notices was posted at the corners of each square of the city. During that day (the 5th) a majority of the gang, terrified by the threats of the citizens, dispersed in different directions, without making any opposition. It was sincerely hoped that the remainder would follow their example and thus prevent a bloody termination of the strife which had commenced. On the morning of the 6th, the military corps, followed by a file of several hundred citizens, marched to each suspected house, and sending in an examining committee, dragged out every faro-table and other gambling apparatus that could be found. At length they approached a house which occupied by one of the most profligate of the gang, whose name was North, and in which it was understood that a garrison of armed men had been stationed. All hoped that these wretches would be intimidated by the superior numbers of their assailants, and surrender themselves at discretion rather than attempt a desperate defence. The house being surrounded, the back door was burst open, when four or five shots were fired from the interior, one of which instantly killed Dr Hugh S Bodley, a citizen universally beloved and respected. The interior was so dark that the villains could not be seen; but several of the citizens, guided by the flash of their guns, returned their fire. A yell from one of the party announced that one of the shots had been effectual, and by this time a crowd of citizens, their indignation overcoming all other feelings, burst open every door of the building, and dragged into the light those who had not been wounded.

"North the ringleader, who had contrived this desperate plot, could not be found in the building, but was apprehended by a citizen, while attempting, in company with another, to make his escape at a place not fir distant. Himself, with the rest of the prisoners, was then conducted _in silence_ to the scaffold. One of them, not having been in the building before it was attacked, nor appearing to be concerned with the rest, except that he was the brother of one of them, was liberated. The remaining number of five, among whom was the individual who had been shut, but who still lived, were _immediately executed_ in presence of the assembled multitude. All sympathy for the wretches was completely merged in detestation and horror of their crime. The whole procession then returned to the city, collected all the faro-tables into a pile, and burnt them. This being done, a troop of horsemen set out for a neighbouring house; the residence of J Hord the individual who had attempted to organise a force on the first day of the disturbance for the rescue of Cabler, who had since been threatening to fire the city. He had, however, made his escape on that day, and the next morning crossed the Big Black at Baldwin's Ferry, in a state of indescribable consternation. We lament his escape, as his whole course of life for the last three years has exhibited the most shameless profligacy, and been a series of continual transgressions against the laws of God and man.

"The names of the individuals who perished were as follow:--North, Hullams, Dutch Bill, Smith, and Mccall.

"Their bodies were cut down on the morning after the execution, and buried in a ditch.

"It is not expected that this act will pass without censure from those who had not an opportunity of knowing and feeling the dire necessity out of which it originated. The laws, however severe in their provision, have never been sufficient to correct a vice which must be established by positive proof, and cannot, like others, be shown from circumstantial testimony. It is practised, too, by individuals whose whole study is to violate the law in such a manner as to evade its punishment, and who never are in want of secret confederates to swear them out of their difficulties, whose oaths cannot be impeached for any specific cause. We had borne with their enormities until to suffer them any longer would not only have proved us to be destitute of every manly sentiment, but would also have implicated us in the guilt of necessaries to their crimes. Society may be compared to the elements, which, although `order is their first law,' can sometimes be purified only by a storm. Whatever, therefore, sickly sensibility or mawkish philanthropy may say against the course pursued by us, we hope that our citizens will not relax the code of punishment which they have enacted against this infamous and baleful class of society; and we invite Natchez, Jackson, Columbus, Warrenton, and all our sister towns throughout the State, in the name of our insulted laws, of offended virtue, and of slaughtered innocence, to aid us in exterminating this deep-rooted vice from our land. The revolution has been conducted here by the most respectable citizens, heads of families, members of all classes, professions, and pursuits. None have been heard to utter a syllable of censure against either the act or the manner in which it was performed.

"An Anti-Gambling Society has been formed, the members of which have pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honours for the suppression of gambling, and the punishment and expulsion of gamblers.

"Startling as the above may seem to foreigners, it will ever reflect honour on the insulted citizens of Vicksburg, among those who best know how to appreciate the motives by which they were actuated. Their city now stands redeemed and ventilated from all the vices and influence of gambling and assignation houses; two of the greatest curses that ever corrupted the morals of any community."

That the society in the towns on the banks of the Mississippi can only, like the atmosphere, "be purified by storm," is, I am afraid, but too true.

I have now entered fully, and I trust impartially, into the rise and progress of Lynch Law, and I must leave my readers to form their own conclusions. That it has occasionally been beneficial, in the peculiar state of the communities in which it has been practised, must be admitted; but it is equally certain that it is in itself indefensible, and that but too often, not only the punishment is much too severe for the offence, but what is still more to be deprecated, the innocent do occasionally suffer with the guilty.

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"A similar case is to be found at the present day, west of the Mississippi. Upon lands belonging to the United States, not yet surveyed or offered for sale, are numerous bodies of people who have occupied them, with the intention of purchasing them when they shall be brought into the market. These persons are mailed _squatters_, and it is not to be supposed that they consist of the _elite_ of the emigrants to the West; yet we are informed that they have organised a government for themselves, and regularly elect magistrates to attend to the execution of the laws. They appears in this respect, to be worthy descendants of the pilgrims."--_Carey on Wealth_.

VOLUME THREE, CHAPTER FORTY SEVEN.

REMARKS--CLIMATE.

I wish the remarks in this chapter to receive peculiar attention, as in commenting upon the character of the Americans, it is but justice to them to point out that many of what may be considered their errors, arise from _circumstances_ over which they have no control; and one which has no small weight in this scale is the peculiar climate of the country; for various as is the climate, in such an extensive region, certain it is, that in one point, that of _excitement_, it has, in every portion of it, a very pernicious effect.

When I first arrived at New York, the effect of the climate upon me was immediate. On the 5th of May, the heat and closeness were oppressive. There was a sultriness in the air, even at that early period of the year, which to me seemed equal to that of Madras. Almost every day there were, instead of our mild refreshing showers, sharp storms of thunder and lightning; but the air did not appear to me to be cooled by them. And yet, strange to say, there were no incipient signs of vegetation: the trees waved their bare arms, and while I was throwing off every garment which I well could, the females were walking up and down Broadway wrapped up in warm shawls. It appeared as if it required twice the heat we have in our own country, either to create a free circulation in the blood of the people, or to stimulate nature to rouse after the torpor of a protracted and severe winter. In a week from the period I have mentioned, the trees were in full foliage, the _belles_ of Broadway walking about in summer dresses and thin satin shoes; the men calling for ice, and rejoicing in the beauty of the weather, the heat of which to me was most oppressive. In one respect there appears to be very little difference throughout all the States of the Union; which is, in the extreme heat of the summer months, and the rapid changes of temperature which take place in the twenty-four hours. When I was on Lake Superior the thermometer stood between 90 degrees and 100 degrees during the day, and at night was nearly down to the freezing point. When at St Peter's, which is nearly as far north, and farther west, the thermometer stood generally at 100 degrees to 106 degrees during the day, and I found it to be the case in all the northern States when the winter is most severe, as well as in the more southern. When on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, where the heat was most insufferable during the day, our navigation was almost every night suspended by the thick dank fogs, which covered not only the waters but the inland country, and which must be anything but healthy. In fact, in every portion of the States which I visited, and in those portions also which I did not visit, the extreme heat and rapid changes in the weather were (according to the information received front other persons) the same.

But I must proceed to particulars. I consider the climate on the sea coasts of the eastern States, from Maine to Baltimore, as the most unhealthy of all parts of America; as, added to the sudden changes, they have cold and damp easterly winds, which occasion a great deal of consumption. The inhabitants, more especially the women, shew this in their appearance, and it is by the inhabitants that the climate must be tested. The women are very delicate, and very pretty; but they remind you of roses which have budded fairly, but which a check in the season has not permitted to blow. Up to sixteen or seventeen, they promise perfection; at that age their advance appears to be checked. Mr Sanderson, in a very clever and amusing work, which I recommend to every one, called "Sketches of Paris," says: "Our climate is noted for three eminent qualities--extreme heat and cold, and extreme suddenness of change. If a lady has bad teeth, or a bad complexion, she lays them conveniently to the climate; if her beauty, like a tender flower, fades before noon, it is the climate; if she has a bad temper, or a snub nose; still it is the climate. But our climate is active and intellectual, especially in winter, and in all seasons more pure and transparent than the inking skies of Europe. It sustains the infancy of beauty--why not its maturity? It spares the bud--why not the opened blossom, or the ripened fruit? Our negroes are perfect in their teeth--why not the whites? The chief preservation of beauty in any country is health, and there is no place in which this great interest is so little attended to as in America. To be sensible of this, you must visit Europe--you must see the deep bosomed maids of England upon the Place Vendome and the Rue Castiglione."

I have quoted this passage, because I think Mr Sanderson is not just in these slurs upon his fair countrywomen. I acknowledge that a bad temper does not directly proceed from climate, although sickness and suffering, occasioned by climate, may directly produce it. As for the snub nose, I agree with him, that climate has not so much to do with that. Mr Sanderson is right in saying, that the chief preservative of beauty is health; but may I ask him, upon what does health depend but upon _exercise_? and if so, how many days are there in the American summer in which the heat will admit of exercise, or in the American winter in which it is possible for women to _walk_ out? for carriage driving is not exercise, and if it were, from the changes in the weather in America, it will always be dangerous. The fact is, that the climate will not admit of the exercise necessary for health, unless by running great risks, and very often contracting cold and chills, which end in consumption and death. To accuse his countrywomen of natural indolence, is unfair; it is an indolence forced upon them. As for the complexions of the females, I consider they are much injured by the universal use of close stoves, so necessary in the extremity of the winters. Mr S's implication, that because negroes have perfect teeth, therefore so should the whites, is another error. The negroes were born for, and in, a torrid clime, and there is some difference between their strong ivory masticators and the transparent pearly teeth which so rapidly decay in the eastern states, from no other cause than the variability of the climate. Besides, do the teeth of the women in the western states decay so fast? Take a healthy situation, with an intermediate climate, such as Cincinnati, and you will there find not only good teeth, but as deep-bosomed maids as you will in England; so you will in Virginia, Kentucky, Missouri, and Wisconsin, which, with a portion of Ohio, are the most healthy states in the Union. There is another proof, and a positive one, that the women are affected by the _climate_ and not through any fault of their own, which is, that if you transplant a delicate American girl to England, she will in a year or two become so robust and healthy as not to be recognised upon her return home; showing that the even temperature of our damp climate is from the capability of constant exercise, more conducive to health, than the sunny, yet variable atmosphere of America.

The Americans are fond of their climate, and consider it, as they do every thing in America, as the very best in the world. They are, as I have said before, most happy in their delusions. But if the climate be not a healthy one, it is certainly a beautiful climate to the eye; the sky is so clear, the air so dry, the tints of the foliage so inexpressibly beautiful in the autumn and early winter months: and at night, the stars are so brilliant, hundreds being visible with the naked eye which are not to be seen by us, that I am not surprised at the Americans praising the _beauty_ of their climate. The sun is terrific in his heat, it is true, but still one cannot help feeling the want of it, when in England, he will disdain to shine for weeks. Since my return to this country, the English reader can hardly form an idea of how much I have longed for the sun. After having sojourned for nearly two years in America, the sight of it has to me almost amounted to a necessity, and I am not therefore at all astonished at an American finding fault with the climate of England; nevertheless, our climate, although unprepossessing to the eye, and depressive to the animal spirits, is much more healthy than the exciting and changeable atmosphere, although beautiful in appearance, which they breathe in the United States.

One of the first points to which I directed my attention on my arrival in America, was to the diseases most prevalent. In the eastern States, as may be supposed, they have a great deal of consumption; in the western, the complaint is hardly known: but the general nature of the American diseases are _neuralgic_, or those which affect the nerves, and which are common to almost all the Union. Ophthalmia, particularly the disease of the ophthalmic nerve, is very common in the eastern States. The medical men told me that there were annually more diseases of the eye in New York city alone, than perhaps all over Europe. How far this may be correct I cannot say; but this I can assert, that I never had any complaint in my eyes until I arrived in America, and during a stay of eighteen months, I was three times very severely afflicted. The oculist who attended me asserted that he had _seven hundred_ patients.

The _tic doloureux_ is another common complaint throughout America,-- indeed so common is it, that I should say that one out of ten suffers from it, more or less; the majority, however, are women.

I saw more cases of _delirium tremens_ in America, than I ever _heard_ of before. In fact, the climate is one of _extreme excitement_. I had not been a week in the country before I discovered how impossible it was for a foreigner to drink as much wine or spirits as he could in England, and I believe that thousands of emigrants have been carried off by making no alteration in their habits upon their arrival. See Note 1.

The winters in Wisconsin, Ioway, Missouri, and Upper Canada, are dry and healthy, enabling the inhabitants to take any quantity of exercise, and I found that the people looked forward to their winters with pleasure, longing for the heat of the summer to abate.