Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-05-20
The Unreasopablsness of MODS.
From he CAicqoo Inter ocean.

from Ebe CAtcfDO inter OCsb"s
"a mob is always unreasonable" said an
old detective on Saturday. ut is always un :
reasonable, whether it is moved by good or
bad impulse. Those who are interested in
accomplishing any purpose through defiance
OF law play upon the hatreds ana pFe1udlces
of eXcitable men until the men themselves
are carried away by fury that renders
them incapable of listening TO or understand
ing any argument. Not long ago very Sc
riOus charge was brought against an old resi-
dent Of Kansas. Without inquiry as to
whether the charge was true Or not, his
nelghbors jumped to the conclusion that II
1t was true, he ought to be hanged. The old
fellow was the kind of man To be keenly
hurt by any accu sation, Accused of hldeous
crime, he became stubborn and resentful.
His IDEA OF dignity was not TO make any eX-
PLANTATION or TO listen to any questions asked
HIM. The crowd misunderstood him from the
first, and they hustled him out of his house
without ceremony. Lei loose for q moment
he turned on those about him with the rage
OF wild animal, and in two minutes half
dozen men were PROSTATE. This infurated
the crowd, and In the next ten minutes the
man was bound and gagged, and was being
carried to tree when his daughter asked the
mob to listen to her story. She made 1t 80
clear that her father was not and could not
be guilty of the crime charged, that sane men
would not have hesitated moment to ask his
pardon.
"But these men were not sane. They were
carried away by the rage of a tremendous eX-
element, and there were men to say: Let's
hang him anyhow This was the mere brute
instinct in men who had been Knocked
down and inundated by the accused man.
They were the loud takers. and it seemed at
one time as though their counsel would carry
the day. The cooler men had enough common
sense left to propose an investigation. This
was granted as a concession, and the nvesti-
gati0n demonstrated beyond all cavll that the
victim of mob rule was entirely innocent of
the crime of which he had been accused. Then
the men who had advised violence were
Quick TO sneak away. Their victim became
then as unreasonable in his hatred OF them as
they had been in their persecution of him."
''In the first election after the Fifteenth
amendment was adopted" said an old abo-
lltiOnist, there was more danger from mob
rule ten times over than there Is now. Men
now living made indiscreet and incendlary
speeches then which they have lived to be
heartily ashamed of. One man who a few
years later was the Chairman of State Dem
ocratic Central Committee stood up in car
riage and advised the mob about the polls to
hang every colored man who attempted to
vote. He gave himself free rein. and, being a
good talker, said great many things TO in
flame the already excited men. In the midst
of his harangue an old acquaintance of the OPP
posite party climbed into the carriage, and
putting his revolver to the ear of the speaker
said, John, shut up
I'm later years the man who MADE that in
cendiary speech was free to admit that the
heroic method Of applying cold steel to a
mans ear was very effective as an eyed opener.
He saw clearly on the instant, and saw that
he was guilty of grave Offense against tn c
law. He turned, and with one startled look
into the eyes Of his determined friend, stepped
out of the carriage, took that friends arm and
walked out Of the crowd. He lived TO regret
the trouble he caused on that day, because
there was trouble, He lived to think good
many times OF the man who stopped him 50
suddenly in the work of putting himself on
record as law-breaker. The speech was
never reported, and those who heard 1t were
persuaded to forget it,