FLOGGING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15249, 12 March 1913, Page 4

FLOGGING.

Sir, —Agnes Nioholls advocates flogging as "a help in the right direction," and writes that "no man is worth much to the commonwealth" unless feeling "righteous wrath," "just indignation," the stirring of "hot anger," ana the impulse "to see justice metea out to the wrongdoers." My first letter was mainly a protest against the action produced by the wrath which Agnes Nioholls oomtnends. I do not object to anyone having all these inflammatory feelings if they do him or her any good, but I strenuously object to acting or. them. A very large part of the cruelty which mam the history of the human race has been produced by "righteous indignation.'/ The Inquisition was merely an institution based on it; the martyrdoms of .Protestants and Catholics at the hands of each-other were the products o! "just indignation" ("just" in the eyes of tho persecutors)i the "holy ware in which Mahommedans attempt to exterminate Christians; the floggings of political prisoners in Russia; the burning of witches; the excesses of the French Revolution, ana .' the counter-murderings of the " White I Terror" that followed the restoration of i all these are examples of the J action produoed from "righteous indigna- . tion." Acts done under this emotion turn , to vengeance and produce hate of the i principles that lie behind them. If we . are not merely to repeat endlessly the 1 blunders of our forefathers we must finally • suppress the promptings of emotion ana | soentiraenti in euan relations ; _ we must ) learn from the past and decide in the cold • light of reason. The confusion of thought I • produced by emotion that mixes the satis- * faction of our " hot anger" with the re- * form of the evil must give place to clear realisation of the real end in view; and when that is determined we will find that history guides us emphatically away from I. the folly and brutality of flogging. March 6, 1913. M. O. Irvinb.