Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1875-10-21
MOB LAW NoRrH Avn sourH.

W nln AAOun tAO NANNto "
The woman was arrested and confessed
her crime, also duplicating her brother
inlaw, one John Gair. 1t happens un-
fortunately that the State is in the hands
of the Radicals, and that such crimes
are rarely punished by law. The
officers of the courts select negro
juries who never fud n Of
their own race guilty of a crime
committed against a white man, although
they are sometimes very severe when the
crime has been committed against a ne
gro. This is a sad state of affairs, but
painfully true. As a consequence a mob
of persons rescued both the prisoners
from the lsnguid officers Of the law, shot
the mar and hung the oma Mob law
is seldom iustifable, and we cannot say
that it was in this case, although the in
centive was very great. 1t was that or
nothing. and the people for once took in
hand the matter Of furnishing the crimi-
mails by a summary process. Mob law is
not confined to any particular locality or
class of people. Such crimes are fire.
Quently charged against the South by
partisan journals and politicians, and
greatly multiplied as we'll as enlarged
upon. We read, however; of such occur
rences in almost every State until We
conclude hat they are Incidental to hu-
man society and not the particular result
Of the so-called rebellion or to this or
that system or political party. We were,
therefore, a little surprised to read
yesterday in the New York Times
Of last Monday a column article
devoted to prove that lynch law was ad-
ministered in the case mentioned above
simply because the offenders were ne
groes. As able and we'll posted a jour
nal as the Times ought to know better,
if it does not. Its arguments against
lynch law in the abstract are superhuous,
its conclusions erroneous. If white
people had committed the same heinous
ofense, and it had been known as well
as in this case that their trial would be
a farce, conducted by personal friends
who would acquit them. Judge Lynch
would have held his court the same. 1t
happens that the negroes in that region
have an overwhelming majority, and
that the white oficeholders pander TO
their ignorant prejudice against their
former masters to such an extent that
no white man expects justice in the
courts when q negro is involved 0cca-
sious will arise in almost any community
when the people feel So outraged that
they consider the common law too slow
and speedily deal out what they deem
justice at the moment. This happened
the other day near Bellefontaine, Ohio
when a mar was charged by his wife
with the murder and outrage of a young
girl. An armed and excited mob took him
out and hung him, although he protested
his innocence to the last. Next day
they concluded that he was innocent,
and his wife the real murderer. Then
they wanted to take the woman out and
hang her. 1t was only day before yes.
terday that forty masked men went TO
the Jail at Stevens Point, Portage
county, Wisconsin, put the Waterman
in irons, beat the doors down and took
two brothers named Cartwright out and
hung them to a tree in the court yard.
Is this to be set down as proof that the
people at large in that community are
not law-abiding, or is this an exceptional
case2 We read only to-day that a man
named Dugan had been shot and killed by
a mob OF masked men at ST. Charles,
Arkansas, but as he was not a negro the
Times will not have an opportunity to
say that it was done to show the negroes
that they have no rights which the
whites feel bound to respect. Even
pious New England is not exempt from
great crimes. Says the Hartford Times,
Take such measureless, uneharacteriz
able crimes as the Boston belfry murder;
the New Hampshire atrocities, the first
by Evans, and this new aud similar one
at Pembroke-crimes beyond all concep
ton or beIief-or the Boston murder BY
Pemberton what would they not have
done, had they happened 10 the South
to revive Morton's bloody Shirt This
world never does land, thank heaven
never can) produce worse crimes thar
these that have burst out, one after an
other, from the complaeent surface o
our Northern New England civilization
What, and where is the hidden ulcer tina
is rioting beneathG' Would theNewYor
Times or any Northern paper think i
fair for a leading foreign paper to charg
these crimes to the great body Of North
ern society? Certainly not. Nor is i
justice to lay every act Of violence il
the South to whole communities. Our
affairs are about as peaceable as eoul,
be expected after a great civil war, III,
upheayaI Of society and destruction o
State governments for corrupt polihcs
purposes. The great body Of the peopl
who own land and pay taxes are as Law
ssiding and Intelligent a a correspond
ing number and class anywhere Mort
or West. They are not a%ccountabI
for roving. lawless characters an
more ihgn the sturdy farmer
~-I--. IL. eho thouoandn 4