The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-11-22

suits. The white mar was not mad
passion he had no desire to n
duIge in petty revenge. He had a
duty to perform, a duty to himself,
and he proposed to discharge Ii with
What he was to do should be done
in broad daylight. His fathers had de-
fled the British government in the
days of 1865 d~isda:ning coEcealment-
They had defied the stamp collector:
"a Colonel Wadde.i was leader Of the
men of that day., though backed by
British guns, they had published the
Mecklenburg Declaration of Independ-
ence, but they had never mia their
identity under masks. A meeting of
the white citizens WAS called for il
O'Clock of the morning of the 9th. Over
eight hundred responded. The room
could not contain the crowd. Cle1 ~
men, physicians, lawyers, merchants,
clerks, mechanics and laboring men,
with stern expectancy on their fea-
lures, filled the room. Colonel Alfred
Moore Waddell, whose ancestors had
stood as leaders of the people in other
times of import, a scholar. a lawyer,
a man of at/ainments n prominence,
was called to the chair. A second dec
laration of independence was adopted
which said, in no uncertain tones, that
the day of negro domination had for
ever passed; that the government of
North Carolina, established for white
men, by white men, and not for a race
Of semi-barbarians, led by renegade
white men, should foreve remain in
the hands of those rightfully entitled
and able to administer it. 1t was a
bold document, but it met an answer
ing throb in the heart of every man
present. It's concluding portion stated
tho oc On n ornn nf thu infapti0ro &c
the assemblage it was decreed that the
negro scoundrel who a published the
defamatory article on the white wo-
men should Immediately leave town;
that the paper should cease publica-
ton, and that the plant should be
shipped away A committee of twer-
ty-five was appointed, with Waddell at
the head, to see that the resolutions
were made effective.
Thirty-two of the more prominent
negro citizens were summoned to meet
the committee at 6 o'clock that even
ing. Nearly all were there. The scene
was dramatic. Seated at one end of the
room were the 25 white men-at
the other sat the thirty-two negroes.
The numerical proportion was repre-
sentative. The appearance of the
group vas likewise. Stern and deter
mined, the white looked the masters
they proposed to be-anxious and ex-
pectant, the negro realized that his
day Of dominancy had passed. With
quiet emphasis, Colonel Waddell read
to them the resolutions In response
to an inquiry as the meaning Of a
phrase, read them a second time. He
handed them copies. He stated no ar
gument would be listened to-no dis
cussion was expected or would be al
lowed. They had been invited because
they had assumed to be leaders among
their people, to hear an ultimatum.
The time had passed for words. The
demands made by the resolutions must
be acceded to, without question, or
they would be enforced. No unfair ad-
vantage would be taken. They had I'M
til 1880 o'clock the next morning to
make answer. The case was with them.
An attempt was made to evade re-
sponsibility. Colonel, we are not re-
sponsible for this, and have no au-
thOrity." "The meeting stands adjourn
ed" was the only reply. And so they
passed out into the night. Was it
symbolical?
On hat night, as on many before,
the streets were guarded by the white
citizens. No one was interfered with;
nothing was don to disturb any per-
son who chose to walk on the street,
u dll V lie CIly lIlCIcSlSIS SlOOu
picket over quiet homes and sleeping
families. 1t was a commentary on the
civilization Of the times that men of
peaceful habits were constrained by
the lack of proper government to per-
sonally walk guard through a large
city. Early next morning, men with
guns on their shoulders, men ordinari-
ly engaged in h quiet walks Of life,
men Of every line of business, from
every degree of SnniotU Unro Uon6inr
their way to a common centre. The
time had come to treat the disease,
the symptoms of which had been al
lowed to pass, though not without no.
tice. The hour fixed by the committee
arrived and passed, and the men stood
waiting. The hands Of the clock NOV
ed slowly on till the deep toned bell
sounded forth eight strokes, and still
the men waited. A few moments more
passed, and Waddell walked calmly
into the building, n the committee
went in with him. A hush of expec-
fancy came owe the crowd. The deci-
sive moment had come. Would the ne
gro leaders, active enough in the
causes which led to trouble, meet the
emergency as it could only be we'll
met, or, woul they, when the hour for
real leadership had arrived, shrink
from the crisis? The answer was
forthcoming in a moment-they had
evaded the issue. They had sent no
reply. The five hundred men who had
responded to a call for seventy-fve
swung into line. "Waddell," "Waddell"
was the cry, and as he moved to the
front the line broke into tours, and
the march began. 1t was not a mob.
Under thorough discipline, and under
command of officers, capitalists and
>labOrers marched together, the lawyer
and his client were side by side, men
of large business interests kept step
with clerks. 1T WAS NOT A MOB. 1t
was a gathering of men, white men.
who determined to teach a ~lesson--a
lesson which would be practical and
contain no element of doubt as to its
meaning. The work, when the fate1
building which held the printing press
was reached, was quickly done. NotE-
ing that looked like any part of a
printers establishment was permitted
to escape demolition. AS the work
reached completion, the building was
found to be on fire. One of the men,
who was there to destroy the printing
press sent in a fire alarm. The en-
gineSg came laundering I'D. laid their