The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-11-08
a LETTER TO DIR. LOVE.
The PASTORS Reply to a Criticism on
His Sermon on Lynching.

Rev. Z. X. Love received a postal card
yesterday from one of the white hearers
of his sermon on ''Lynching and Raping''
Sunday night. The writer commends the
sermon, but goes on to state that as the
ravishing always takes place before the
!ynchlng, 1t will be necessary for the raw
1sh1ng to cease first. The writer claims
that the law is insufficient. The only
way, he thinks, to provide a sufficiently
speedy trial for criminal assault is to
amend the constitution so as to make
rayishers subject to court martial. He
adds, that if the better element of negroes
condemn the crime they must be wofully
IN the minority, about in 1000
while the better element of the
whites deplore the necessity of lynching,"
he says, they see that that alone strikes
terror to british hearts, as 1t is swift and
sure"
The card is signed zone of the Better
Element of Whites"
In answer to the card and others of the
same mind, Rev. Love makes the following
reply;
The gentleman, perhaps, did not catch
exactly the idea l meant to convey. 1
know that rape proyokes the lynchings
and am very anxious that it should
stop. But I contend that the best way to
stop 1t is by law. l do not mean to show
mercy to the ravishers. Let them die;
but by civilized justice. Our community
can boast of as honest, fair and
intelligent set of officials as
any community in this country,
and any intimation that they are derelict
to duty is unjust. AS citizens we must
have abiding faith in our officials until
they prove themselves unworthy. This
is as essential to the peace, happiness and
prosperity of community as confidence
IN our wives is essential to the same in
our homes. l did not and do not advocate
any change in our laws or constitution.
think we have sufficient laws for any
emergency. / contend that if there is
dissatisfaction with regard to the power
of the law to reach such cases that it
would be better to make such laws as we
feel that would, to the end that the
civilized world might not have an excuse
to charge that the south is mob ruled
THE gentleman intimates that if the
best element among the negroes oppose
rape, that they are 'woefully in the mi
nority-about 1000 to bad ones. That is
an awful statement 1t is too sweeping.
l cannot accept it as being correct. The
white people of the south, who know the
negroes best, will bear witness that the
bad negroes in the south are not about
LOCO to II We remained true to the
white people of the south during the most
trying period in their history. While the
men were on the field of blood and death
we took care of their wives and children
We grew up together and withal there
is deep feeling of interest and tenderness
that these years of political storms and
antagonism has not destroyed The
spirit of alienation that political ex-
element and strife have created is
happily dying, and the conservative peo-
pie of both races are beginning to realize
that our interest is common, and our
destiny is exactly identical. 1 call upon
the conservative, falr-minded white men
of the south, with whom we were reared
and to whom we are still servants, to
deny that the vicious and lawless people
among us number 1000 toll" of the law
abiding negroes. That we have bad peo-
pie, and too many of them, do not deny,
but withal, as a mass, the negroes are
very humble and law abiding