So T R A V E(L S I N TtO R U S S I A.
b o o k o f th e penal code fince the edift o f Elizabeth, which is f u p -
v" k -' poictl to have totally annulled capital condemnations.
From this fuppreffion o f capital puniihment in all in-
ftances excepting treafon, Elizabeth has been reprefented,
not only by the lively Voltaire, but even by the fagacious
Blackftone as a ftandard o f legiflative clemency. Yet,
however
* V o lta ir e th u s èxpréfles liimférf upon
th is edi6t. “ L ’Im p é ra tr ice E liz a b e th a
“ a chevé p a r la clémence l ’o uvrage que fon
“ père commença p a r les lo ix. C e t t e in -
<( du lgen ce a été même pouflee à u n .p o in t
“ dont i l n ’y a p o in t d ’e x em p le dans l ’hil-
“ toire d ’aucun p eu p le . E lle a promis que
‘ Vpendant fon regne .perfonne ne fe ra it puni de
“ mort, & a tenu fa promejfe. E lle cjl lapre-
“ miere fouveraine qui a it ainji rejpeflé la v ie
“ des hommes. L e s m a lfa iteu r s ont é té con-
“ damnés au x mines, au x t ra v au x publics :
“ leu r s ch â tia ien s fon t devenus u tiles à
U l ’é ta t ; in flitu tio n non moins fa g e qu*
“ humane. P a r tou t ailleu rs on ne fa it que
•“ .tu e r un crimin el,.avec ap pareil,fan« avoir
“ jamais emp êch é les c r im e s . L a terreu r
de la -m o r tr fa it moins «Pimpreflion p eu t
ê t r e fu r .des méchants p o u r la plupa rt
•“ fainé ants, que la cra in te d’un ch âtiment
“ & d’un tra v a il pénible, q ui .rena iflcnt tous
“ les jo u r s .” . H ift . de Ruffie, p . 120.
*Sir W illiam Bla ckfton e makes th e f o l lo
w in g rema rk upon th e fam e.p roh ib ition .
“ W a s th e vaft te r r ito ry o f a ll the R u f-
“ fias w o rfe regu la ted u n d er the la te em-
* prefs E liz a b e th , than under h e r m ore fan-
*'• gu in a ry predeceffors ? Is it now under
“ C a th a r in e I I . lefs c iv iliz ed , lels foc ia l,
le f s ie c u t e ? A n d y e t we are affured, that
“ neither o f -fbefe illufrious princejfes have,
** throughout their vibole admiriif ration, in-
“ jli& e d the penalty o f death ; and the la t te r
“ /has, upon fu ll perfuafion o f its b ein g u fe-
“ ;ie is , n a y , even pern icious, given orders
“ fo r ab o liih in g -.it -en tirely th rou gh ou t her
ex ten five dominions.” Commen ta ries ,
v o l. I V . p . 10.
-And lately L’Evcfque, *« Les grands
7 "
' “ .crimes on t.com m en c e71 d evenir p lu s rares
“ fous ee - regne , ou perjonne n'a ete p u n i de
“ mort.” H i ll, de Ruffie, T om . V . p . 9.2.
V o lta ir e affigns as th e g rounds o f his en comiums
on E liz a b e th ’s fuppreffion o f cap
ita l puniihment, the two followin g re a fo n s :
1 . T h a t the permanent chaftifement w h ich
en ta ils upon th e offender a lo n g con tin u ance
o f h a rd (hips and mife ry , ha s a g re a te r
e ffe ft upon the m u ltitu d e than the fumma ry
pangs o f d e a th . 2. T h a t th e prefervation
o f m a le fa ilo r s is fubfervient to p u b lick
emolum ent. 1 . U p on the firft reafon I ih a li
b r ie fly rema rk, th a t the ho r ro r o f d iffo lu tio a
'lias been rep e a ted ly obferved in th e g en er
a lity o f mankind to prep on dera te beyon d
a n y o th e r t e r r o r s ; and th a t i f w e cou ld
devife a puniihment more terrible th an
d e a th , th is new pu n iihmen t, in o rde r to
w o rk its effedt upon vu lg a r minds, ou gh t to
b e inflicted w ith in .th e rea ch o f vu lg a r o b -
ferva tion, and not in the remoteft region o f
S ibe ria. F o r can we fuppofe th a t the lowe r
clafs o f man kin d, w h o are.governed by th eir
fenfes, receive any ftrongimpre flion from the
cafual rep o r t o f fufferings endured at a g re a t
diftance ? 2. V o lta ir e ’ s fecond reafon fo r
his applaufe o f E liz a b e th ’ s edidl, namely, the
p ro fit w h ich th e community derives from the
lab o u r o f a malefad lor whofe l ife is fp a red ,
w ill h a rd ly be allowed to hold good in re g
a rd to murderers ; fo r i f capita l pun iili-
mcn ts b e rea lly the mo il efficacious p re v en tion
o f crimes, th e y w ill neceffarily form a
ftron g e r b u lw a rk round the rives o f o rd e r ly
c itiz en s than any oth e r pen alties! T h e le~
g ifla to r , th erefo re, w h o fub verts this fec.u-
r it y with a view to the em o lum en t,o f the
fta te , adlually revives .th e ohl .barbarous
.cuftom
however incontrovertible it may be that the mfliiUon o f c ^ p-
death for offences which ihould not be eiteemed capital is,— J—j
much too frequent in many countries, we may venture to
affirm, that Elizabeth’s modification o f the criminal laws
is perhaps no lefs exceptionable, in point o f policy and expedience,
than illufive in regard to its fuppofed lenity.
With refpeót to the firft pofition, its contradiction to found
policy; ihould we even erroneoufly fuppofe, with fome authors
% that the edict has been literally obeyed, and that,
during the fpace of forty years, not one criminal has fuffered
death throughout the vaft empire o f Ruffia, furely this lenity
to the moft atrocious crimes cannot but be confidered as extremely
injurious to the fociety. For, as a denunciation o f
death is probably, to the generality o f mankind, the moft
formidable prevention o f crimes, the removal confequently
o f this falutary terror withdraws a material fafe-guard from
the lives and property o f worthy citizens, and diminifhes
that fecurity which thefe valuable members o f fociety have
a right to claim from the protection o f the laws. I advance,
cu ftom o f w e ig h in g th e life o f man in a
fcale aga infi pecuniary ad van ta g e , w ith th is
m a terial difference, however, in fa v ou r o f
th a t barbarous cu ftom, th a t th e la t te r af-
figned th e p r ic e o f b lo od to the-re la tions o f
th e perfon whofe blood had been flied, and
w h o had a more immediate c la im , than the
community at la r g e , on an y compenfation
made b y th è offender.
Jud ge Bla'ckftone intima tes his doubts
con c ern in g the fu p e rio r efficacy o f cap ita l
punifhments over o th e r pen altie s in the
lhape o f a q u e ry . W a s th e v a ft te r r ito ry ,
& c . Bu t no reader can perh aps an fw er this
que ll ion in the neg a tive ; n or cou ld th e fa gacious
au th o r hirpfelf have anfwered it in
th e affirmative. F o r can it b e de cifively determined,
ex cept b y a col le 61 ion and com-
p a rifon , d u r in g a lo n g feries o f y e a r s , o f
felonies r e fp e& fu lly committed u n d er the
V ol. II.
tw o different modes o f . j u riipru den ce ? and
ju d g e B la c k llo n e does n o t p reten d to have
formed his th e o ry o n this g ro u n d : B u t a f te r
a ll, this re a fo n in g fuppofes a fa 61 w h ic h in
r e a lity does not e x if t , th a t no criminal has
fuffered c a p ita lly fin ce th e acceffion o f E l i za
b e th ; th e fa lfity o f w h ich aflertion is , as
I f la tte r m y fe lf, abu n dan tly p ro v ed in th e
co n t e x t .
I en tered Ruffia fu lly p reju d iced in favou r
o f th e n o tio n , th a t th e re no perfons w e re
e v e r pu n iih ed w ith d e a th . I was firft u n dece
ived b y a fo re ign g en t lem an , to whom
I addreffed th e que ftion, W h e th e r thei&,
w e re an y c a p ita l e x e c u t io n s in Ruffia?
“ M a lefa6 to rs, in d e ed ,” h e re tu rn ed , “ are
“ not beheaded o r h a n g e d ; b u t th e y arc
“ n o t u n freq u en t ly kn o oted to d e a th .”
* See th e fo rm e r n o te .
M however,