New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-09-26

slowness OK the operation Of laws of its own
enactment. and overtrrns them all upon an
impulse of barbarism what is there to be said
except that the community which does it is
unfit for seligo' eminent?
For months past there have been recurring
instance, of the most barbarous execution OF
the vii. Of laWlcss and bloodthirstv mob upon
uutr:e1 and rncOavicted criminals or persons
charged with crime. throughout the South.
Men charged with crime have not been merely
killed in accordance with the decencies which
vullc law requires when capital crimes have
he n committed Mcn-not white men TO be
sure but men III the >amc-hlye been taken
without the form Of tlial. or the chances OF an
oyclnzCd court: without permission even 20
pat 40 helpless. hopeless hands in explanation
exclamation or defence against a brutal mob
have been taken and not merely killed, but
slowly and cruelty tortured TO DEATH with such
inhumanitic, Is would make tie attendants AZ
\ cadat1rill show wiring their hands and
cry. Mercy :" No such show of cruelty stag
gers the sense of pity in man on all the pages
of history IL that which fairly rceks from the
columns Of the daily newspaper which during
the last few months has told how the " best
acknowledgements OF the model Rcpub-
hc-have pursued with bl001hounds, prepared
with iclihcIatiOn the instruments Of slow tort
IRE. and waited for the apprehension OF the
victim to put him to the torment Of an agoniz-
ing death. For what? Punishment? As u de-
tcrront for crime? Not by any means. Simply
and we desire to present this subject lust as
il appears 10 every human being who has IN
him a Grain Of we will not say common hui
manity but OF common ScnSc-slmply rs the
qualification Of a worse than brutal instinct the
shaking of thirst for blood.
Make no bones about il. The men who build
fires and prepare red irons with which to
torture men to dcath-n0 matter what inc
crimes may be for which this fearful vengeance
is inlictcd-arc not fit to be ut large. Much
less are they fit To make laws, or have any
hand in making them. since they sec iii to
ovcrturn them and set them ut nauGht at their
own cruel will And the very worst feature OF
it is that the newspapers which represent pub
lie opinion at the South 50 generally palliatc
the widespread lawlcssness. Here, for IN
stance. comes Tho Lynchburg News cont
plaining that in the criticism which has been
INDUCED in by Northern newspapers there Is
mover a word Of condemnation Tor the crlm-
inal and hi, shocking crime To which it
adds There would he more respect felt in this
part of the country for Northern deprecationS
# lynchng if they were occasionally mixed
up with a little dcnunciation of the practice
which vicious negroes have Of aSsanltng de-
fcncacsS white women" ln>inuatlon 50 bold
and >andcrouS as hardly to need answer. There
is no Northern newspaper, no Northern man
that does not donounco the crime. But they
dcnouncc it 10 the law: not 20 the brutal pas
sons Of mob. And until the Southern news
papcIs can bring themselves 10 see that the
recurrence Of these outbreaks of lawleSsncsS
indicates n social condition which needs corrcc-
ton. We shall continue 10 think that, notwlth-
standing their prcp'ndcIancc Of power through
their Tammany alliance, they do not actually
possess the genius FOR government"