The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-09-04
SENSE TO THIS.
Instead of Whooping About
Lynching of Outragers
South Texas Negroes Will Try
to Stop the Ontrages.
IF There Were No Assaults on
White Women
LYNCHING WOULD END
A Call From a Negro to Let
White Women Alone.
Convention of Negroes Called at
Columbus, Tex.

Columbus, Tex, Sept. 4.-The following
call signed by N. @. Henderson, promi-
nent negro leader and others, has been
issued:
To the Negroes of Texas:
The cause leading to lynching is now
reaching the proportions of the Alps and
stinketh unto the heavens. The laws of
the state have gone as far as possible to
prevent lynching, but still the causes for
lynching increase. 1t has now become
the duty of every negro that has race or
individual pride to rise up and do all pos
sible to wash his hands of the fearful
crime of the rapist. The murderer is a
foe to society, the robber a pest; but the
rapist is veritable iend of the black
est he'll clothed with human flesh. 1t is
more desirable that maddened lean and
hungry lion should be left to roam in a
community than that this compound of
the brute and fiend-the rapist-be al
lowed to dwell among humanity. The
man who deffleS home sanctity is I'M
worthy to dwell among the beasts of the
field. Too long have unbridled libertines
been borne with. This crime, due to a
lack of human instinct, must be met and
stamped out, or the end will be dreadful
even to contemplate. Verify the time has
come for the pulpit, the schoolroom, the
hustings, to sound in no uncertain tones
the death-knell of the fiend who finds
pleasure in darkening homes. Let there
be united, persistent and determined eff
forts to rid the race of these moral hy-
enas. 1 rise to move that every gather
ing of representative negroes of Texas
take active and effective steps to eradi-
cate by the roots this evil Let worthy
men be employed to travel over this
state under the direction of well or
ganized anti-rapist institution and thun-
der into the hearts of our people the burn
ing necessity of rising in might to
blot out this evil that is damning and
cursing race. Every publication of
these heinous deeds that are occurring
so lamentably frequently horrifies and
hardens the public against defense
less heads. We cannot afford to lose the
sympathy and good will of the white
man, and we can reasonably expect such
so long as our presence in community
may fill the hearts of aged women with
horror and the young with blood curdling
visions. Let us delay no longer but let
every community organize at once for the
express purpose of arreSting this hellish
evil, by the throat. We a have
too much to lose to stand idly by and all
low events to take their own course. No!
We must rush and take opportunity by
| the forelock and wash our garments of
| the blood and tears of defenseless women
| and children. We must dam up the cur
| rent of popular sentiment that is soon to
dash against fearful fate. call
| your attention to the driving out of the
negroes from Leonard on account of the
! murder of white man. If such sweep
| ing consequences follow the murder of
| one white man, who can measure the
fearful consequence attendant upon the
| repeated bIighting of fair maidens ?-To
| stand and hesitate longer what course to
pursue may push off into an irretriev-
! able and overwhelming abyss. So in be-
| half of humanity, appeal to every negro
of south Texas and many others as
may come to meet in Columbus the
| first Saturday in October to organize an
| anti-rapist convention. We have month
| to diffuse the intents and purposes. Let
| every negro who reads with shame the
| foul and black deeds which appeared in
| The News today work without ceasing
| that this meeting shall be large and rep
! resentative. And with prayers and
! earnest solicitude let anticipate the
| first Saturday in October as the ushering
| in of a new epoch in our history, fraught
| with deeds of humanity and Christianity.
| May it be the death stroke that will con-
| sign to a past soon to be forgotten that
abroad infiaming human minds with deeds
| blacker than the flames of hell. Bestir,
| then, ourselves to that on the End of
| October is inaugurated a day that will
| mark turning point in our career to
| which unborn generations may look back
| and call us blessed. Yours for the salva-
| ton of the race.