The prison mirror. [volume] (Stillwater, Minn.) 1887-1894, 1891-03-26
THE NEWSPAPERS AND THE MOB.

THE NEWSPAPERS AND THE MOB.
Most of the newspapers have expressed
themselves upon the recent slaughter of
prisoners in New Orleans. Some have de-
nounced it as unjustiiable murder of the
most cowardly nature. while many of our
leading papers give their sanction to the
act. AS to which is right we will not pre-
tend to say. But if it was justifiable, as
some say it was. then it is wrong to punish
man who kills another whom he thinks is
not worthy to live. or if the law fails to
convict one accused of murder then the
dead mans brother has a perfect right to
kill the murderer. But there is not one of
those editors who uphold the New Orleans
mob that would defend man in such a
case-unless he were very powerful man.
The newspapers of New Orleans may
justly claim the greater share of the honor
due for the slaughter of the despsed ltal-
ians. 1t was the newspapers that inflamed
the public mind against the prisoners be-
fore and during the trial; it was the news
papers that started the cry of bribery while
the trial was in progress; and after the YER
dict was rendered. it was the newspapers
that called out the mob and directed it to
its bloody wOrk-very much as a sport ag
gravates his bull dog and then kicks him
into the ring to fight. When the bloody
work was done, it was the newspapers that
pronounced the benediction over the mob.
We say the honor belongs to those pa
pers. for had they upheld established law
with half the vigOr they advocated its viola
ton, there would have been no slaughter of
prisoners. The editors of those papers say
that the act was justifiable under a higher
law than that laid down in the statute
books. They say it was right; and if we
could warp our reasoning faculties around
to fit their system of logic, perhaps we
would view the matter as they do; but if
viewed from the standpoint which we have
been taught to regard as the standpoint of
right, then it was terrible wrong, wrong
that cries to the Supreme Judge for redress.
1t looks very much as if the newspapers
"OAO OAo'oPOAoIOu UCCouoC tliO NCTUICU
did not agree with the verdict which had
been drawn up in the editorial sanctum:
and as they had tried and convicted the men
independent of the established courts of
justice, they only had to pronounce SEN
tence and order the execution of the prison
ers to prove their court the higher judicial
tribunal.
But suppose that some time in the future
it should be shown that the jury which &C.
quilted the accused had rendered it's verdict
in fear of the all searching eye of the Al
mighty. and that all or some of those
slaughtered Italians were innocent, does
any one think those newspapers would la
ment over the greviOus mistake they had
made? No; they would throw the whole
blame upon the public. That time will
never come. for now the whole city of New
Orleans is interested in keeping everything
covered up that might tend to show that
mistake had been made. There has never
been spark of positive testimony that even
one of those jurors was bribed, and there
was not word of positive proof to show
that any one of those eleven slaughtered in
the Jail was responsible for the murder of
Chief of Police Hennessy.