Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1869-08-27
Jones County Tragedy.

We published yesterday an account OF
the last Jones county tragedy. The Col
Onel OF Governor Holden's militia has met
the same fate that hefell the late Sheriff
Colgro7e, having been shot by parties as
yet unknown to the public. Obedience tC
the law is :ho duty of every good citizen.
The good Of society and the peace and
the welfare of the community require that
reeort should be had to the proper tribun
ais for redress of injuries. The danger OF
abusing the right TO redress wrongs IS toe
great to make it eXpedient for the State to
allow private individuals to exercise it. Ii
therefore is the duty of every law abiding
citizen to frown upon all such unlawful
proceedings. If Colonel Shepard had com
mitted crime worthy of death the fact
onght to have been judicially ascertalned
and the sentence pronounced and executed
by the duly appointed officers of the law,
and in the manner and at the time and
place directed by tho law. individuals
have no moro right to intiict the death
penalty than they have to decide what
crimes are worthy of death.
The duty OF the citizen thus to ask pro-
lection from the law is, however, of no
greater obligation than is tho duty Of the
law and its officers 10 afford it. Obedience
and protection are reef prOcni rights. In
our form cf government, if not in others,
this principle Is fully recognized, and il
Incomes
sidelation 10 the officers Of the law how
lar by neglect of their duty they afford
Justification or cycusG 20 citizens in taking
lntO their own hRuGs tht redress of in.
jnries, whether to person or property. OF
course the Justification becomes more per
feet, the excise more complete, when the
officers of the law, instead of at1ording
protection to citizens, themselves become
their opprcssors. When this is the case, il
is apparent at glance that the citizen is
perfectly pOWerless unless he exercises his
right to defend himself.
We have reason TO think that the officers
of the law in Jones county have failed in
their duty to the people there. How far
the people may have been justified in
taking the law into their oyn hands We
cannot tell. We regret the killing of Col.
Shepard. If there is any justification for
it we regret the acts that brought about
the fatal deed. We do not either justify
or excuse the killing Of Col Shepard We
condemn all such acts. The good Of So
ciety requires the acts to be discounte-
nanced and the actors to be punished. 1t
requires also that officers of the law afford
that protection to citizens that is their
due.
We incline very strongly to the opinion
that had the officers of the law performed
their plain duty in arresting and punish
ing the murderers of Colonel Nethercutt,
of the Foscue family and the authors of
the many other earlier outrages and crimes
IN that portion OF the State, we would not
have been called upon to record the MUIR
der of either Colgrove or Shepard. Had
the officers of the law there exercised the
same prudence and discretion in the dis
charge OF their duties there would be as
much obedience yielded to them as is
yielded to other law officers equally other
wise obnoxious elsewhere because of their
political opinions.