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(Fun Tin W«stminstrr Oh:tiibia* j Conclusions hastily reached are ! very often erroneous- People fit***j J 1 j! quently change their opinions, and ia chango of opinion implies an error I of judgement. The fallibility ot all j human judgement makes it all the more necessary that he should act with extreme caution before arriving at conclusions the consequences of which may be serious. The laws of all civilized countries provide many safeguards which are intended as a protection against injustice.A man cannot bo snatched up and tried for a serious crime until he J has bad fair and ample opportunities to vindicate) his conduct. If our laws are at all in faolt their fault lies in the opportunities they afford for the escape of the guilty. It is reported as a rumor which has gained considerable credence about Chiliwhaek and Snmas that the Indian Louis Sam, lately lynched, had nothing whatever to do with the murder of which he was accused. There is a story in circulation which throws the suspicion of guilt in an •ntirely different direction. The work of the lynchers was done with both decision and haste, ai d nobody would be greatly surprised if it tnr.iod out that these peoplo have made a shocking blunder. An in. nocent man may have been rashly sent beyond the realms of recall while the guilty criminal is enjoying the fruits of his well.laid plans. We hope these rumors may be shown to haye no foundation. Although only an Indian, Sam had a life as precious to him as any of our jives are to us; and he was just as much entitled to the protection of the law. It is sad enough to reflect that a guilty man has been hanged uncondemned by any process of law but it would be much more sad If ^ came to be known that he was iuno cent. Those who leud tbemselve * to this dangerous practice of sum** mary lynching take some terribfe chances, and if some oftbem shoul d appeu to stand innocent ly with a rope about tboir necks, in the bands of a mob, they may become alive to the full extent ot the risks taken. Mob law must never be tolerated in British Columbia. Better allow 99 guilty persons to escape than have the blood of one innooent victim upon our beads.
Newspaper Details
Anacortes Northwest Enterprise
Anacortes, Washington, US
Sat, Mar 22, 1884
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CA 11 Nov 2024
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Anacortes Northwest Enterprise
