Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1891-03-26
The New Orleans Mob,

uO NV" oAiouho Nuoo'
The news which came last week
from the Crescent City relative to the
killing of eleven prisoners by a mob
of what the New Orleans papers are
pleased to call the best citizens of
that place is an event which must
greatly shock every law-abiding citizen
in this country. In organized society
and especially in a government like
ours it is of the utmost Importance
that the law should be supreme and
that even the forms of the law should
he held sacred. Every citizen must
he subject to law every human act,
in order to be tolerated, must be
within the requirements Of the law;
every business transaction must he
sanctioned by law. or dealt with As
an enemy of society; and especially
must offenses against the penal code
he dealt with in accordance with the
statutes for such cases made and
provided"
In society under the dominion Of
law, mob law and violence are. under
no circumstances. excusable. Acts
performed by mob are always
crime of greater or less magnitude.
according to the enormity of the
offense committed ; and the taking of
human life by an aggressive mob is
SIMPLY murder and nothing less, and
should be so regarded. In the New
Orleans case some of the prisoners
who We're killed had had no trial
whatever; and it is now generally
conceded that not all of the others
could have been concerned in the
assassination of Chief of Police Hen
messy. There Is an infection attend
INC the work of such mob that is
terrible in its consequences, and so it
WaS in this case. 1t seems to be
wcll-attested fact that the multitude
outside the prison walls were not CON
tent to know that the prisoner, were
being killed within the walls. They
demanded sight of the executions;
and. TO satisfy the thirst for blood.
some Of the prisoners were dragged
without the walls and hanged to lamp
posts in the open street, men and
women watching the hideous process
from windows and balconies with
opera-gla>>es. Such a sight must be
demoralizing beyond the power of
words 10 express.
The seed Of the terrible crime com
nitted by the New Orleans mob on
the llth instant has been sown little
hy little during many years which have
now gone into the past. The trouble
j. human life there has never been
held half SO sacred a it ought to have
been For slight offen>es. or real or
Imaginary injuries. the revolver or
some other engine of death has been
turned with comparative impunity
against human life: and from such
a sowing the mob reaped a good sized
whirlwnd the other day
We have before Il, lhe New Orleans
Imcs- Democrat of March 18th. 1t
has long editorial article defending
the work of the Infatuated mob and
from ii We copy As follows;
The people of New Orleans having
yindicated the majesty of the law in one
short hours time, and with such temper
auce as the ugly work to be done would
Admit Of will at once of course restore to
the sworn officers and ministers of the law
their authority usurped for so brief
while. Thus doing they will convince
both friends and enemies that theirs was
10 desire to interfere in the least with the
established order of things, but only to
Dust an evil element that threatened to
mar the symmetry of that order.
Gan anything be more ridiculous:
Was an article more absurd, more re-
plete with fallacy, ever written: No.
gentlemen, whatever the facts might
have been, the deeds committed in
the Crescent City. on the l4th instant.
cannot be defended, cannot be ex-
cused, cannot be palliated. Better
that ninety and nine murderers should
90 absolutely free than that one man.
guilty or innocent, should meet his
death at the hands of a mob. in an
American city!
Most of the towns of Maine select
women for teachers in the public schools
and an increasing number are showing
recognition of the qualifications of women
for the superintendent of these schools.
Among the towns that have elected women
on their school boards this year, are Hal
lowell, Wilton, Carthage, Readfeld, Wen
ma, Hebron, Abbot, Gilead, Orneville. Gar
land, Prospect, Charleston, Jackm antown,
Rumford, Waterford, Sebec, Woolwich
Foxcroft, Frankfort, Perkins, Kennebunk
Moscow, Gray, Canaan, Benton, Alfred,
Albany and Leeds, with many more towns
to hear from.
No greater diplomatic triumph has
ever been achieved by any Secretary of
State than that gained by Mr.. Blaine in
compelling the British Government to
abandon its position in the Behrng Sea
dispute and agree to submit the matter to
arbitration in the manner proposed by Mr..
Blaine. 1t is matter for congratulation
that satisfactory agreement has been
reached before the opening of the sealing
season this year, to which a great many
people have been looking forward with
apprehension. The dignity and honor of
the country have been maintained, as they
always have been and always will be when