The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1897-08-12
THE USUAL CRIME"
ATTITUDE OF THE NEGROES TOWARD
BRUTAL RAPISTS.
Prompt in Their Manifestations of
Sympathy for Such Criminals. but
Doing Nothing to Put Stop to the
Foul Crime for Which Lynching Is
Most Common.
(NewS and ObServer.)

Ihe assault at klttrell and the
bringing Of the brute to Raleigh for
safe keeping discloses spirit among
the negroes Of this city and State that
is in marked contrast to The law abid-
ing spirit Of the white people under
provocation that was we'll nigh over
powering. The white people Of Vance
county rallied and sent the ravisher to
Raleigh that he night have full benefit
Of the law. Did they do this because
they palliated his heinous crime? Not
at all. They preserved his life because
they deprecate mob law. having conf
dence that the law in due form will
speedily prevail and that he will pay
tn penalty Of his crime with his life.
This self repression on the part of
the people Of Vance county, ho, with
righteous indignation, stands out in
strong relief against the back ground
of the expressed sympathy for the
negro brute on the part of some men,
bers of his race in Raleigh. There
has not been moment when if the
desire to lynch had existed, it could
not have been carried into execution.
A crowd Of negroes in Raleigh, on
both nights since the man has been in
Jail, have lowered about the court
house, ready, some of them said, to
defend the prisoner if attacked. On
Sunday night they sent a committee
to the S. A. l.. vestibule train from the
North to ascertain if any large party
left the train at Raleigh. If so they
were ready to stand by the one against
whom they alike with whites should
have felt incensed. Was this because
they loved law and order? Was it
because they had any ground for
believing white people, who had shown
marvellous self repression, were trying
to lynch the man? No. 1t was
because he was a negro. If he had
done some good deed, not a dozen of
the watchers about the court house
would have met him and shown him
cour,esies while in Raleigh. Twenty
could not have been gotten together
to DO honor TO an educator of the
race, but the negro rapist has body
guard all night long. What impress
sion does this make on low and
depraved negroes1 They argue natur-
ally that if they 60 and do likewise,
they will also command the sympathy
and protection of their race. Their
presence not only has this dangerous
tendency, which the good men of the
race will deplore, but it naturally
irritates law abiding white men whose
respect for law has been put to the
severest test. 1t cannot be said that
it is precaution against lynching, for
there has been no suggestion Of lynch
ing the scoundrel. Even if there had
been such suggestion the presence of
the military is worth hundred men
without training in arms. The truth
is that the presence of the negroes in
such numbers has endangered the
peace Of the city instead of being an
aid to the legal authorities, and the
better class of the race know this 10
he true.
Why was not the negro lynched in
kittrell4 Because the people Of North
Carolina are the M st law abiding
people on the face Of the earth. They
are people who have control even Of
their righteous Indignation. They
want 70 blood on their hands and no
stigma on their State provided hanging
follows the most repellant of all crimes.
They reflect that under the Watson
law, introduced in the General
Assembly by Hon. Cyrus B. Watson,
the Governor is required to call a
special term of the court and have a
speedy trial SO that the crime may be
avenged without delay. 1t is to this
law, and the law-abiding character Of
our people-and not to the presence
OF negroes about the jail-that Brodie
is indebted for a trial in the courts.
1t is the highest evidence of the faith
in the law Of the North Carolinians,
though chivalrous and high spirited
as men of other States-that the Kit
trell fiend was not swung up immedi-
ately without process Of law or benefit
Of clergy.
The attitude OF the negroes of the
South toward the members OF their
race who are guilty Of this assault has
been one that has done more to injure
the race in the eyes Of the world than
anything else. With rare exceptions
so rare as to make the exception re-
garded as almost a miracle-there is
no expression from negroes Of denun-
citation Of the men of their race who
are guilty Of the crime for which
lynching is practised. They are loud
in denouncing lynching and make such
a TO do about it as TO admit the con-
cIusion that they do not regard it as
the worst Of crimes. The Washing
ton Post has noted this disposition
Aamong the negroes and in Mondays
| paper the following wise and thought
iul editorial appeared
awhile our colored friends are agi.
.ating the lynching questlon-making
a race issue of it, as usual, and thereby
injuring ,hemselves-though,ful peo.
pie are considering the moral involved
in the case Of DR.. w. l.. Ryder, o.
Georgia.
"Ds. Ryder was white man. He
belonged to the best society. was cult
vated, well-bred, and comfortably sit
ua,ed as regarded his worldly affairs
He did not even commit the fiendist
crime for which men are usually lynch
ed. In fit Of jealousy and despair