Dec. 12.
No small amount of discussion has arisen over the sentence of twelve years imprisonment passed by the Second District Court on Mr. O. N. Bagiriantz, an Armenian, for the slaying of his shop assistant alleged to have criminally interfered with the former's six-year-old daughter. "There is not the slightest [suggestion that the Court's finding incorrect or that the sentence {inflicted was not in accordance with the law. Indeed the Court seems to have taken just as merciful a view of the whole matter as the law allowed it, and short of condemning {the man fo a minimum of ten years imprisonment, the sentence twelve, instead of life, indicates that ithe Court was fully cognisant of all ithe facts, had adequately weighed them, and within the limits imposed upon' it had tempered the sentence with whatever clemency it was in its power to administer. Murder is always a hideous crime. The summary taking of life, even for the [purpose of meting out a rough and ready justice is always to be deplored for it deprives the victim of the opportunity for repentance and the chance to reform. What is even more important is this:- in a case where a wrong has been committed, Janda most grievous wrong at that, the slaying of the offender amounts to the interposition of the avenger between his victim and the system of law which in all civilized countres is expected to punish the original wrong. Men cannot allowed to take the law into their own hands, and, when they do, it only to be expected that the law will vindicate Itself. That is the basis of good government, and because It {s 0, it is again emphasized that there is no criticism levelled
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.