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WHY MEN ARE HANGED
of sinfulness. Naturally and inorally, no child is illegitimate. Recognise this simple truth, and the tragic practice of abortion will disappear. A mother reluctantly destroys her child, only when she has to be ashamed of her motherhood instead of being proud of it. The anxiety to avoil the shame of illegitimate motherhood, leads to the cominission of the crime of abortion which, committed necessarily clandestinely, with crude, often dangerous mcans, under insanity conditions, involves the life of the mother as well. Sometimes the mother is killed in oriler that the new life germinated in her "sin" may be destroyed. Obviously, that was what happened in the casc here recorded.
The harassed old woman certainly did not want to kill her daughter, however much she might have disapproved of her misdemeanour. But steps taken for sparing the family shame and social persecution, led to the death of the unfortunate girl. The mortification of the poor old lady could be easily imagined. As if she was not sufficiently punished by the tragic consequence of her own act, done in deference to a callous society and unthinking compliance with a perverse code of morality! In addition to that, she had to pay ihe penalty of law. Helpless victim of cruelty and injustice, she blamed her fate, and sought con solation in her faith in the doctrine of karma.
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