The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-06-20
THELYNCHING OF SAM HOSE
REPORT OF A DETECTIVE EMPLOYED
ny dERO-AMERICdNS.
He Says That Mrs. Crawford Did Not Acc
cuse Hose of Assault and That Hose
Killed Her Husband in Self-Defence-

Gov. w. j. Nurthen OF GeorRia defended the
prevalence OF mob law in the South in the fol-
lowing language: There is an unwritten law.
not peculiar to Georgia or the South. but dom
mating conditions IN every State in the Union.
where the circumstances are the same. that
demands the quickest execution in the quick
est way ot the nend who robs n virtuous NO.
man OF her honor to crafty his helIsh dlabo-
lism.. Human nature Is the same throughout
the civilized world. and. say what you may.
Massachusetts will not be one whit behind
Georgia. when you make Mrs. Crawford the
wife OF farmer In your State and Sam Hose.
a brutal flend in human shape. a neighbor near
her home" Again: II repeat with emphasis
that violence for crime is administered with
out distinction as to race. when the crime s
the same. Ii is not the color OF the skin that
brings the punishment. but the nature OF the
crime committed"
Gov. Northen. and oil the other apologsts Of
mob law. lays down the rule that lynchinR and
rape go together. and that II there were none
Of the latter there would be none Of the former.
How TRANSPARENT this contention is will be
seen from the fact that five men were ynched
at Palmetto on March IL. charged with in
cendarism; that Sam Hose was ynched at
Newman on April % for murder and alleged
rape and that Lge Strickland was lynched on
the same day and Mt the same place simply be-
cause II was reported that he instRated Hose
TO commit the crimes imputed to him-all
these lynchings occurring In the same dis
| trict-and from the further fact that 80 per
| cent. OF all the lynchings in the country are
provoked by other offences than alleged crmi-
nal assault. We can at least insist that the
| Ex-Governor OF Georgia. in dealing with so
vital question shall stick to the facts and
use the language Of soberEess and truth.
But was Sam Hose guilty Of the crimes i'm
puted to him and for which he was lYnched
and butchered and burned in the presence OF
5000 people? Those who murdered him and
| those who. stood by and applauded the murder
| and the torture insist that he was guilty. and
the veruict has been generally accepted rs true
by the country at large despite the fact that
nowhere in the civilized world is murderers
word accepted as conclusive against his VIC
tim in court Of mpetent in risdcton. Sam
Hoses alleged crimes and the manner OF his
barbarous and inhumnn taking off make 1t
important TO the Afro American race that the
facts shall be known. 1t is even more i'm
portant to the white people Of Georgia than to
the Afro Americans or.the people Of the coun-
try.at large that all the facts in the case shall
be known. 1t is their civilization. their good
| name and reputation which are on trial before
the world
About four weeks ago the Afro. American
Barnett. collected enough money to send a
reputable white detective. Louis r. lie Win. to
Georgia to ascertain the facts in the case Of
Sam Hose. Mr.. lie Vim spent three weeks in
Griffin. Newman and Atlanta. and has Just
submitted his report He said he found nc
difficulty in securing interviews with white
people. There was no disposition on their
| part to conceal any share they took in the
lynrhinGs., The, discussed the details OF the
| burning OF sam Hose 18th the freedom with
which one would talk about The afternoons
ente il In which he had very pleasantly
really named Samuel Wilkes. He was born in
Macon. Ga. where he lived until his father
mother, brother and sister moved to Mar.
shall. where all worked and made the reputa-
studied. and was able to read and write. and
was considered bright. carahe man His
| the mainstay OF the family He worked on
lirerent farms, and among the men he worked
for,was J. i. Iones.who after ward captured him
and delivered him over TO the mob at Newman.
sans mother partly recovered. and, as his
to better his condition. He secured work
near Palmetto with man named Alfred Gran
TO the Time Of the tragedy. Il will not call It
murder; says the detective. "for. Samuel
Eea hs. nHon in
ing into the house and numbering the unfor.
tunate man at supper has no foundation in
| Tact Equally untrue is the charge that after
| numbering the husband he assaulted the WIFE
The reports indicated that, the murderer was
fact is he had worked for Crawford for over
veaaWT; ,,..o ,r,..q,, mai, no,oo,,.
no doubt. but under what circumstances can
never h" proven. asked many white people
| OF Palmetto what was the motive. They con
sidered it useless question. niger had
killed a, white man. and that was enough;
did not know their places. others that they
! were ,Gcttng.too much education. while 9TH
ers declared that it wa, all due to the infr-
OF o; Newman sa'd II | hnd my way about i
| comes this way. They are at the bottom of
negroes would die for me SIMPLY Eecause i
| ern negroes 10 associate with them
l ron thS question Of motive there Wng nc
himself The despatches said nat Wilkes con
iessed both to the murder and The alleged as
IS A M did Gn e hns hHs1
Mr.. Crawford, but h. did no, at any time ad.
nit that he assaulted Mrs Mrs.; CRAWFORD. This he
CAPTURE Wilkes told his, story. iIs said thar
his rouGe 's sSG yh Mr. Gronor1 week
mother was much worse at home and tina, he
wanted TO go TO visit his mother. He told Mr.
reeed to I nay wke so ana Int
hard words Crawford was known to he a man
Of Of, gn Mex 'emncr Gu, noIhimG more occurred
IL
revolver pnd, said that 4 Sam started any
more trouble he would kill him.
| Sam, continuing his story said that on the
day Crawford was killed he Sam was ont in
the yard cutting up wood thai Crawford cu m
out IN the, yard and that ne and Crawford began
talking about the subject OF their former
trouble that Crawford became cnraged and
drew his gun to shoot, and then Sam threw
the axe at Crawford and ran. lie knew the
axe, struck Crawford, put did not know Gran.
ford had been Killed by the blow for several
days. At the time q the encounter in the
| yard Sam said that Mrs Crawford was in the
house. AID that after he threw the axe at
| Crawford he never saw Mrs. Crawford. for he
| immediately went to the woods and kent in
hiding until he reached the vicinity OF his
mothers home, where he was captured. Dur
| ing all the time Sam was on the train going TO
| the scene OF the burning sam is said hy all
| talked with to have been free from excite
ment or terror He told his story in straight.
| forward way. said he was sorry he had killed
! Crnnford and always denied that he had at
| tackled Mrs. Crawford
-. did not see Mrs, Crawford continues De
tectiyc lie Yin, she was sti!l suffering from
! the awful shock. As soon as her husband was
killed she ran to the home OF her father ard
! told him that sam had killed her husband
| She did not then say that sam had assaulted
! her Sho was completely overcome and was
| soon spiOus and remained 40 IA nlnst