Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1874-10-21
HAS HUMAN LIFE BEEN " A
CHEAP COMMODITY?u
what the Democratic PRESS tias said
About 80.


Speaking of The Gibson county
ouuogO- the Memphis Aua19acdc of
Augua. -,th, said
But why were there a hundred or
tifty men in Gibson county who ban
dcd together to take the lives OF six
teen coIored prisoners in the hands
and custody Of the officers of the law ?
10 occurs TO Us that if public opinion
were sound, if the citizen. who love
public iustice-who believe in law and
order-had made themselves felt it
would have been impossible for fifty
cut -throats to live in Gibson county.
Speaking Of disgraceiul mob a.
SOmervilIc, the Nashville Banner
says:
Our friends down about Somerville
complained Of drouth and hard times.
and the commercial prustratiun left Us
as legacy from our last sensible war
But uudeva-tajion we have ct known:
no ruin that has followed the track of
hostile investigation will compare To
the haigtul, almost uuuIhilaJiug COM
merciat wreck thai would come in the
train OF such a conflict as that. u j.
=
purary has no adequate conception of
its seriousness, and Hstlcssly dreams
a. he gHrrulnusly gahhlcs nonsense
overa volcano, and indulge, the lux
ury Of partisan pyIotechnics round a
powder magazine. Perhaps the fact
that he is candidate for F,uateY blinds
him to humane consideration of any
other possibilities.
The Aruiancir of the same date as
above said
Resolutions and pgoclamations are
very proper as expressing public opin-
ion, but let us not end with procla-
nations and resolutions. Arrest of the
murderers, conviction and hanging Toy
the neck in the open sunlight Of heav-
en-, that the world may have ocular
proof of the decency and manhood of
Tennessee and the vindicution of the
law. Nothing short Of this will an
swer the just eXpectatiuns and demands
of good citizens in and out of the
State.
The same paper Of August 3Oth says
We learn from reliable source
that ON Wednesday night party Of
masked marauders took an old negro
man from his house, near Milan, GIT.
son county, Tennessee, and shot him
dead. The old negro is said to have
been peacabe and law-abidiug, and
the act was without a shadow of prov
ocatiOu.'
The Shelbyyille COmmcrcial a Dem
ocratic paper, alIudes to the foregoing
and other outrages, and comes 20 this
conclusion
"But, seriously, the war O races has
begun 1t was not Of the Suuth's
the rebellion, It has been thrust upon
us against our wishes, against our pro-
test; and having been forced upon Us,
henceforth our motto will Ice, Lay
on, Macdutr"
Possibly the general Government
would like 20 wipe us out, annihiiate
Us, c0ntiscate cur lands, etc. But
there is little danger from that direc-
ton such step would be highly
interesting To the boudholdrrs. The
issue of a couple billions more of bonds
would not appreciate the volume Of
those already held. Possibly the Gov
eminent might induce u few million
soldiers 10 come again, but we think
this doubtful also. They have not
forgotten how million OF their brave
but misguided comrades found home
steads among us Another million
more can enter lands in the South on
the same terms when the GOverument
is ready to unfold the uegro's banner
and make war on the whites