The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1894-06-23
JUDGE LYNCH AT MONROE.

Day was speedily hanged IN Monroe
on Wednesday Of last week. Il APP
pears that several fires bad occurred in
Monroe lately, which were without q
doubt the work Of all incondiary. On
Wednesday of last week two fires TOOK
place IN Monroe the same evening. ana
both were supposed to be the work OF
the same incendiary; a bloodhound
was put on trail aud followed it to
the house OF one j. H. Day. who i'm
mediately was arrested and put in the
caiaboose. Later on in the night un-
known parties. as usual, got the keys
of the Jail from the policeman who had
charge of it. and Day was hanged to a
tree not far from the house that he was
supposed to have fired. On analyz-
ing the evidence given against Day,
as printed in the Monroe papers, we
find that it was all circumstantial,
and we hesitate not to stamp as muir
derers the unknown parties who took
it upon themselves to dispose OF
Day. Why! because the dog followed
a trail to Days house. because cobwebs
and whitewash were found on Days
clothes supposed to have gotten there
by crawling under the houses to ire
them, and because especially on his
back gallery "were found pieces OF
plank which had been split for kind
ling, which in sap, heart and grain cor
responded to the pieces of kindllng
used in firing the houses" Day was
taken out of Jail, and made acquainted
with Ouachita parish summary pro-
ceedings of justice. The taking OF
human life on circumstantial evidence
of this kind by unauthorized parties is
murder, consequently totally unjusti-
fable and the lynchers should be prose-
cuted. Admitting the fact that Day
was the incendiary fiend he was sup
posed to be, IS there no court of justice
in Ouachita parish? Was there even
one chance for Day to get out OF the
clutches of the lawP 1t is admitted
that Day had no money. that he had
no friends. that he was securely con-
fined in one of the latest improved
jails, that there was no way for him to
escape conviction and punishment in a
community already aroused against
him, and it was case in which lynch
ing, if it is ever justifiabie, was GER
tainly a crime. Of course, as usual
no one knows the lynchers, but, We
Lpresume, everybody can spell theil
names. Will the District Judge ant
the District Attorney and the mex
Grand Jury of Ouachita parish, strict
| ly in accordance with their oaths o
Office, say to the lynchers at the mex
term of the court: well done, gen
tlemen." Win the Governor sent
reward of merit?
Monroe's lynching record is not
/ short one, and the bar sinister OF hel
escutcheon is not unsullied. Sh
claims to be the .'Parlor City," but he
annals would read more like those OF
frontier town. But we are not warrinl
against the pride[P] of the Ouachita
we simply advocate the principles o
Justice for all men, even in the case o
a fend like Day, if he was reall
guilty. There may be cases whe1
populy frenzy knows no delay in tn
punishment of atrocious crimes, whe
ordinary courts of justice are too sloN
to be remedial and efiicacious, but sue
was certainly not the case with Day
even if he was an incendiary. Merl
4 dian, Miss, suffered from incendlarisn
i lynching was also proposed. bu
promptly rejected by cool and wise cit
zens, and the incendiaries were prompi
ly brought to grief ard punishment, q
, they should have been.
4 Let lynching like that of Monroe g
, UNPUBLISHED, and you may as we
Incense it for other supposed offense
allow lynching for arson and whel
will you draw the line?
pnrs uE FAVOR A REFORM