Extenuating Circumstances.

In his political views Mr. Lincoln is, of course, a deep and strong Republican. As to the matter of candidacy, it is clear, from Mr. Lincoln's past action, that he believes the people should seek the man whom they wish to fill an office, and that a man should not look upon a vacant office as a prize for which to strive and to be secured if possible by inducing the public or those in power to bestow it upon him. In this respect he dif fers from politicians of the present, and re

EXTENUATING OF the strange and whimsical motives which determine French juries in the discovery of extenuating circumstances (Us circonstances attcnuantes), very curious in stances are recorded. From the generally accepted representation of the Gallic char acter, we might have supposed that senti mental considerations would exercise great influence, and that enthusiasm or even fana ticism for religion, liberty, glory, or ambition, though carried out in deplorable excesses, would find mercy tempered with justice; but on examination a different line of argu ment appears to be in usage, and the more horrid, unnatural, and extraordinary the crime, the more attenuated is the guilt. Whether the guiding principle is that mon strous crimes are better evidence of mental aberration or irresponsibility than small ones, we cannot pretend to say, but assuredly the history of half-a-dozen cases selected at ran dom from the records of the French tri bunals would warrant such an idea. Some years ago an innkeeper and his wife were tried for having murdered a trav eller while lodging in their house, and fur ther, for having made part of his body into sausages, with which they duly regaled suc ceeding customers. These singularly revolt ing accusations were clearly proved, and the jury returned a verdict of " guilty, but without

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minds one of the time when the Roman Dictator was called from his ordinary occu pation, and asked to take charge of the public welfare. Mr. Lincoln is devoted to the practice of the law, and has no de sire to leave it for any position however honorable; but all those who know him and know his record cannot but feel that the oftener he is called upon to serve the public the better it will be for the public good.

CIRCUMSTANCES. premeditation, and under extenuating cir cumstances! " The landlord (thoughtlessly, without doubt) stabbed his guest; the wife unthinkingly cut the body up into sausages, and in a fit of absence of mind served them up to other visitors. For such an extraor dinary verdict no other explanation occurs to us at this moment than that the admiration of the jury must have been unnaturally ex cited by the economy and thriftiness so largely manifested by the innkeeper's wife. In 1848 a man killed his mother, and then reduced the body to ashes in the fireplace. He was found guilty, but with " extenuating circumstances." A bare verdict of guilty was doubtless reserved in case any other man should advise himself to burn his mother before she was absolutely murdered. In 1843 a servant-girl committed several robberies on her master and mistress, who, unwilling to prosecute her, contented them selves with giving her notice to leave. The girl profited by her short stay to poison them both. The jury found her guilty; but con sidering how much she must have been irri tated at the prospect of being discharged, added that it was under extenuating circum stances. About the same period a young woman, aged eighteen, who had not been married many months, happening to have had some lit