Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1892-05-26
OUR RNASHVILLELETTER
A Colored Man Hanged by a Mob
for Housebreaking.
Best Citizens of the NeighbOrhOOd Cen.
denim the Act.
NASHVILLE. MAY. 10. 1891.

Shall it be Backward, turn back
ward, 0 time in your flight2"
What is to become OF our boosted
civilization if boys are to be permitted
to go about the streets of our towns ex-
hibiting the ear from the head of a
lynched negro, whose crime is nothing
more than housebreaking, with intent
to burglarize? Barbarism is a better
name.
Mob violence is becoming intolerable,
and for british and bloodthirsty pur-
poses the two organized at Tullahoma,
especially so.
Charles Everett is the eighth negro
who has been lynched in Middle and
West Tennessee within the past two or
three months. The lynching of the
Grizzards in this city and Goodletsville
was, perhaps, justifiable, but the lynch
ing of the two at Tullahoma was, be-
yond question, without cause or reason
or the least provocation.
Yourcorrespondent has just returned
from Tullahoma, and spared neither
time nor pains to obtain all the facts in
the case, and knows that the law abid-
lug element feel that such desperate
deeds as these are a shame and a dis
grace to any civilized community.
Only few weeks ago cringing ne
gro was dragged from his cell to the
suburbs of town and shot to death for
simply being drunk and, to some ex-
tent, boisterous on the streets of that
town. The one who was hanged this
morning on the Duck River bridge near
Manchester, entered the houses of A.
Y. Smith and w. G. Baird last Monday
night at Tullahoma to steal what mon
ey or valuables he might find about the
premises. In pilfering the Baird house
he entered the bedroom of some ladies,
but with no criminal intent as to them.
He opened one of their trunks and 9TH
er things in which he supposed money
might be concealed. AS soon as he
was discovered he abandoned the house
and crossed a lot to the Smith residence,
entered, but found no money in either
house.
Everett was arrested Tuesday morn
ing, identified and placed in the Jail in
Manchester, ten miles from there, and
the countyseat of Coffee County. 1t is
said he confessed to having entered the
houses, but with no design other than
robbery, and this is substantiated by
the statments eof the ladies themselves.
The mob, which was composed most
ly of boys and loungers about the town,
assembled last night near the depot at
about 1s O'Clock. They proceeded in a
disorderly manner to the Jail and de-
manded Everett. He had been removed
from the Jail the evening before to a
barn, short distance from the town,
presumably for safe keeping, but per-
haps for convenience to the mob. His
whereabouts was soon discovered. A
rope placed about his neck, and after
he had been mangled to the satisfaction
of the crowd he was swung to a rope
and his body literally perforated with
bullets.
The mobbing Of these two negros
was unwarranted. Do sheriffs dis
charge their duties to permit a mob to
take prisoners who are committed to
their custody, without any show of re-
sistance? 'The opinion is prevalent
ahong many sensible, fair minded citi-
zens that our officers who are sworn to
enforce the law, are in many cases in
consultation and directcommunicatio
with the leaders of mobs, and many
times aid in arranging the plans, and
in this way repudiate their oaths and
prostitute their Office by delivering pris-
oners entrusted to their charge. Many
times the little demonstration made
about jails is sham and a humbug,
and it is high time halt was called to
such sham affairs. If mobs keep on
assuming the alarming proportions for
the succeeding five years that they have
for the twelve months past, there will
be but little protection to white men in
this part of the State, and the colored
man will have to flee to other parts to
save the wool on his head. X.