Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-03-26
81 North Summer Street.
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perse. Complying with this request the
Governor spoke substantially as follows
FELLOW CITIZENS: Until few mo-
ments since l knew nothing of the double
crime Of Erobbery and murder alleged
against the prisoner; nor did l have intima-
ton that violence to the prisoner was indi-
Gated until heard Of the charge against
him. fastened to the scene, but found
him already in a dying condition. know
nothing either of the circumstances attend
ing the tragedies or of the persons who
have been the actors and victim. But l
deeply regret both. / have ne language to
express my sympathy for the friends Of
him, who, in a consciousness of security
sleeping beneath his own roof was muir
dered by the hand Of an assassin. The per-
petration Of such crime deserves the ut
most rigor of the law. And, thank God,
the time has come when the full measure
of the law can and will be melted out to all
such offenders. The legally constituted
tribunals of the country are open and pre-
sided over by judges of your own selection.
You, yourselves, are the jurors. And if the
majesty of the law is not maintained-if
crime is not punished judicialy-if society
is not protected-the fault is with you, the
people. But the time hiss passed in Ten
nessee when crime goes UNPUBLISHED by the
strong arm of the law. And l am
here, as the Executive officer of the
State, chosen through your Partially,
to warn you against taking the law into
your own hands. This is but adding wrong
to wrong and crime to crime. Only little
while ago you were powerless. You enjoy
ed none of the political liberties guaranteed
by the constitution. You have but recently
been restored to those rights. You enjoy
them now. But if such scenes as these are
to be enacted, Pin the midst of peace and
omnipotence of the civil law, | warn you
now, that your liberty will be short lived.
There be those who desire to subject you
to the will of arbitrary power. They only
desire a pretext, to place you under the
rule of bristling bayonets and military sa-
traps.
Since came into Office l ,have spared
neither the prerogativesi given me by the
law, nor the resources of some treasury,
to detect and bring criminals to punish
ment. They have been hunted down and
brought from the Far West where they had
taken refuge, and brought back, and are
now, some of them undergoing sentence,or
awaiting trial. Every department of the
State government has been vigilant and
active in sustaining the law and protecting
society. And no citizen Of any race or
condition can complain that the law is not
executed.
Then, gentlemen, what excuse is there
for such executions There is none. Then,
in the name of the State and of society,
implOre you to dispense and go quietly to
your homes. The prisoner is SAID by his
attendants to be in dying condition. If
he survives, he is safely in the custody of
the law, and will be punished as his OffenSe
deserves. Remember that society has
claims upon you. There is no security
against mob violence. The innocent may
suffer with the guilty. Your mothers, your
wives and your children, defenseless and
helpless, without the protection Of the
law, appeal to you to desist from acts of
violence. In the name of the State, | con-
jure all other people of the State to sustain
and execute the law, in the mode declared
by the law. In behalf of society, l implOre
you to abstain from violence. am deter
mined that the law shall be executed, by
every means at my disposal. And with your
aid and assistance, society will be protected
and the dignity of the law maintained.
AEAin3 L Ill 'iOAO JON3 w AAoHCASS1 H-N
stain from further acts ofviolence.
The mob seemed to be soothed by the
Governors speech, during which he was
frequently applauded. The mob now began
to dispense. Having learned that their viz
tim was not dead, the door of the staff IN
house was surrounded by men, nohe of
whom seemed disposed, however, to farther
acts of violence, unless such be necessary
to insure the death of Jones. By
this time the report of the hanging had
spread all over the city, causing hundreds
to visit the Square for the purpose Of
seeing
THE MURDERER's BODY.
An examination of the wound, according
to the report of policeman, for the reporter
of this paper was not allowed the privilege
by the Captain of the police to see Jones,
showed that he had been shot
twice in the back, on both sides
of the spinal bone, one bullet coming
out in the region of the navel, |
and the other penetrating to the front of
the body and lodging in the abdomen. Up |
TO late hour this morning Jones was N a |
critical condition, and we are told was |
vomiting blood. Why one newspaper |
should be denied the privilege of obtaining |
information, which the public have a right |
to know irrespective of the opinion of the |
police officer, cannot be well accounted for, !
unless it be one of those official freaks which |
sometimes small officers make an arrant |
display of.
When public interests demands informa
ton it should be given and not withheld.
Owing to our exclusion from the attending |
physicians we are unable to give more as to
the nature of the wounds or their probable |
termination.
The military did not arrive in time to do
anv good and the Post Commandant very |
halted them before reaching the
Square and repaired to the sta
ton house where after comforting
with Mayor Morris it was not
deemed advisable to suffer them to come to
the scene since the act was already COM
mitted. The time of the assault upon the
jail was about O'Clock, and the deed, from
its inception to its ending, was done so
quietly that few, save those present, knew
anything of it. The crowd finally left about
10 O'Clock, being satifed Jones would
not recover, for every one who came
down stairs was eagerly Intercepted by the
crowd as to the probability of his surviving.
The police took measures to prevent
repetition of the lynching, number of
hem being retained at the door, and at the
lime of going to press the city wore its
usual quiet aspect.
WHO WERE THEY?
We do not know the persons engaged in
he lyncbine, but have been informed by
'eIiabIe parties that twenty or more negroes
we're engaged in it, and many were heard TO
express their indignation towards him.