Taruhan

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I

Malam musim gugur itu gelap. Sang bankir tua sedang berjalan mondar-mandir di ruang kerjanya dan teringat bagaimana, lima belas tahun sebelumnya, ia mengadakan pesta pada suatu malam musim gugur. Ada banyak orang cerdas di sana, dan ada banyak percakapan menarik.

It was a dark autumn night. The old banker was walking up and down his study and remembering how, fifteen years before, he had given a party one autumn evening. There had been many clever men there, and there had been interesting conversations.

Di antara hal-hal lain, mereka membicarakan hukuman mati. Mayoritas tamu, yang di antaranya terdapat banyak wartawan dan kaum terpelajar, tidak menyetujui hukuman mati.

Among other things they had talked of capital punishment. The majority of the guests, among whom were many journalists and intellectual men, disapproved of the death penalty.

Mereka menganggap bentuk hukuman itu ketinggalan zaman, tidak bermoral, dan tidak cocok untuk negara-negara Kristen. Menurut pendapat beberapa orang di antara mereka, hukuman mati seharusnya digantikan di mana-mana dengan hukuman penjara seumur hidup.

They considered that form of punishment out of date, immoral, and unsuitable for Christian States. In the opinion of some of them the death penalty ought to be replaced everywhere by imprisonment for life.

“Saya tidak setuju dengan Anda,” kata tuan rumah mereka, sang bankir. “Saya belum pernah mencoba hukuman mati maupun penjara seumur hidup, tetapi jika seseorang boleh menilai secara apriori, hukuman mati lebih bermoral dan lebih manusiawi daripada penjara seumur hidup.

“I don’t agree with you,” said their host the banker. “I have not tried either the death penalty or imprisonment for life, but if one may judge a priori, the death penalty is more moral and more humane than imprisonment for life.

Hukuman mati membunuh seseorang seketika, tetapi penjara seumur hidup membunuhnya secara perlahan. Algojo mana yang lebih manusiawi, dia yang membunuh Anda dalam beberapa menit atau dia yang merenggut nyawa Anda secara perlahan selama bertahun-tahun?”

Capital punishment kills a man at once, but lifelong imprisonment kills him slowly. Which executioner is the more humane, he who kills you in a few minutes or he who drags the life out of you in the course of many years?”

“Keduanya sama-sama tidak bermoral,” komentar salah seorang tamu, “karena keduanya memiliki tujuan yang sama—merenggut nyawa. Negara bukanlah Tuhan. Negara tidak berhak merenggut apa yang tidak dapat dikembalikannya saat ia menginginkannya.”

“Both are equally immoral,” observed one of the guests, “for they both have the same object—to take away life. The State is not God. It has not the right to take away what it cannot restore when it wants to.”

Di antara para tamu ada seorang pengacara muda, seorang pemuda berusia dua puluh lima tahun. Ketika dimintai pendapatnya, ia berkata:

Among the guests was a young lawyer, a young man of five-and-twenty. When he was asked his opinion, he said:

“Hukuman mati dan hukuman seumur hidup sama-sama tidak bermoral, tetapi jika saya harus memilih antara hukuman mati dan penjara seumur hidup, saya tentu akan memilih yang kedua. Hidup dengan cara apa pun lebih baik daripada tidak hidup sama sekali.”

“The death sentence and the life sentence are equally immoral, but if I had to choose between the death penalty and imprisonment for life, I would certainly choose the second. To live anyhow is better than not at all.”

Perdebatan sengit pun muncul. Sang bankir, yang pada masa itu lebih muda dan lebih mudah tersulut emosi, tiba-tiba terbawa suasana; ia memukul meja dengan tinjunya dan berteriak kepada pemuda itu:

A lively discussion arose. The banker, who was younger and more nervous in those days, was suddenly carried away by excitement; he struck the table with his fist and shouted at the young man:

“Itu tidak benar! Saya bertaruh dua juta bahwa Anda tidak akan tahan berada di sel isolasi selama lima tahun.”

“It’s not true! I’ll bet you two millions you wouldn’t stay in solitary confinement for five years.”

“Jika Anda bersungguh-sungguh,” kata pemuda itu, “saya menerima taruhan itu, tetapi saya akan tinggal bukan lima tahun, melainkan lima belas tahun.”

“If you mean that in earnest,” said the young man, “I’ll take the bet, but I would stay not five but fifteen years.”

“Lima belas? Sepakat!” seru sang bankir. “Tuan-tuan, saya mempertaruhkan dua juta!”

“Fifteen? Done!” cried the banker. “Gentlemen, I stake two millions!”

“Setuju! Anda mempertaruhkan jutaan Anda dan saya mempertaruhkan kebebasan saya!” kata pemuda itu.

“Agreed! You stake your millions and I stake my freedom!” said the young man.