I. Capital punishment is inexpedient.
  (a) It is contrary to the tendency of civilization.
  (b) It fails to protect society.
      (1) It does not prevent murder.
      (2) New crimes follow hard on executions.
  (c) It makes punishment uncertain.
      (1) Many criminals are acquitted who would
          be convicted if the penalty were imprisonment.
  (d) It is not reformatory.

II.  Capital punishment is immoral.
  (a) It rests on the old idea of retribution.
  (b) It tends to weaken the sacredness of human life.
  (c) It endangers the lives of innocent people.
  (d) Executions and the sensational newspaper
        accounts which follow have a corrupting influence.

III.  Capital punishment is unjust.
  (a) Its mistakes are irremediable.
  (b) Many men are criminals from force of
        circumstances.
      (1) From heredity.
      (2) From environment.
  (c) Inequalities in administration are marked.
      (1) In some states men are hung, in others
        imprisoned for the same crime.

[Footnote 1:  Taken from Brookings and Ringwalt:  Briefs for Debate, Longmans, Green and Co., where specific references of material for many of the topics are given, as well as general references for the entire subject.]

      (2) Many jurors have conscientious scruples
        against condemning a man to death.
      (3) Men of wealth and influence are rarely
        convicted.

IV.  The abolition of capital punishment has been followed
    by satisfactory results,
  (a) In Europe.
      (1) Russia.
      (2) Switzerland.
      (3) Portugal.
      (4) Belgium.
      (5) Holland.
      (6) Finland.
  (b) In the United States.
      (1) Michigan.
      (2) Rhode Island.
      (3) Maine.
      (4) Wisconsin.

Brief for the Negative

I. Capital punishment is permissible.
  (a) It has the sanction of the Bible.
      (1) Genesis ix, 2-6.
  (b) It has the sanction of history.
      (1) It has been in vogue since the beginning
        of the world.
  (c) It has the sanction of reason.
      (1) The most fitting punishment is one equal
        and similar to the injury inflicted.

II.  Capital punishment is expedient.
  (a) It is necessary to protect society from anarchy
      and private revenge.
      (1) Death is the strongest preventative of
        crime.
  (b) No sufficient substitute has been offered.
      (1) Life imprisonment is a failure.
      (2) Few serve the sentence.
  (c) Its abolition has not been successful.
      (1) In Rhode Island.
      (2) In Michigan. 
III.  The objections made to capital punishment