The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-14
,vrcHING OF THE PREACHER.
.rFaTR CONDEMNED by BOTH
lhI WHITES AND BLACKS.

Meeting of Negroes Held Mt
city To Condemn the Lynch
amended by Many Whites-A
- committee Appointed to
:, ResoIutfOns-Justi Parnen
n. of the Alleged Crime OF the
Negro.
-. rftv. Fla, July IA. mass meet
= negroes. which was attended by
whites. was held here this after
N condemn the lynching Of Rev.
- Bennett. the negro preacher who
5rsered from the pulpit by a mob on
/ - ,orning of July 4.
-. senator B. H. Palmer was present
,..+ressed the negroes. He condemned
-. 1vnching and. the. crime. that leads
He pointed out. amid cheers from
n hat every race on earth is measured
: ,bs chastity of its women, and that
.s-,seb them they must rise. II at all. He
-.-,s5 out the inevitable results Of race
..-ts and the futility of the hopes of the
,.css should they engage in it, and
80 by saying: Let us live together in
peace.
=, BENNETT before he was lynched, was
.-sssnt and told all he knew of the af-
s,i- and also what evidence there was
Il gainst Bennett He said Bennett had
IAN in the habit of taking improper lib
s--iss with Alice, the 11-year-old daughter
/ Al Rrsntley Padgett of Suwannee county,
nd had actually had on one occasion at
,smpted the preparation of the crime,
rtich was not discovered for some time
fer the child fearing to tell. That is the
,oason Bennett remained at Padgetts
fnn June 10 July, after the offense, and
slso the reason for the hardness of the
vengeance.
01 motion from colored participants,
The following mixed committee of seven
was appointed by the chair TO draft reso-
utions appropriate to the occasion and
matter in hand: Hon. A. J. Henry, Col
B h Palmer. ]. w. Perry, Rev. A. b.
dudley, Rev. A. d. Holland, John Jones,
ST.. and W NJ. Tarver. The first three
are white and the last four colored. The
committee presented resolutions, which
were unanimously adopted. The resolu-
lions follow:
Whereas, on the 4th day of July, 1895,
unknown parties from Suwannee county
invaded our borders and took from Hope
Henry church one Robert e. Bennett,
well known citizen of our county, and
without authority of law hung and shot
him to death; therefore be it
Resolved, That we. the citizens of Co
lumbia county in mass meeting assembled,
do hereby give public expression OF our
condemnation Of SO unlawful an act, and
stamp the same as an unwarranted viola
ton Of law; that we have confidence in our
courts and citizens to enforce the law in
all such matters and to bring to speedy
trial and punishment any offenders
against the virtue and chastity of our
women; that lynching is nowhere Justb-
fed by law. nor should it be palliated by
the good citizens of our county and state.
and We now call upon the governor of our
state andall the officers whose duty it is
10 enforce and carry out the law. to-
gether will all good citizens everywhere,
10 use their best endeavors to stamp out
this growing evil in our midst. We believe
that one legal infection of the punishment
provided by law, whenever visited upon
law breaker against the virtue of our
women, would have better effect upon
the morals of the public than a dozen
lynchings.