The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1899-04-25
A BLOW TO GEORGIA.
Hon. JudsoB ID. Lyons .lepIores the Lynch
ing af Newman.

hon. y ndsoB ID Lyons sfeploie= tAt ~ HSH-
ing al Newman.
Judson p. Lyons, Register Of the
Treasury, who vas a strongly Endorsed
applicant for the position Of POSTMASTER
at Augusta. Ca. but who failed OF ap-
pointment on account OF strenuous oppo-
sltion by the white people OF that city.
made the following statement last night
regarding the lynchings in Georgia;
4 regret very much that these Things
should have occurred in Georgia In
view Of the statement which was pub
iished throughout the whole country last
week. that colored people were actively
assisting posses in uniting to hunt down
this alleged murderer, sam Hose. and
so earnest was one man in it that ne
was mistaken for the murderer by a
part OF the posse, and shot, and upon II
being discovered who he was and what
he was doing, as slight compensation
for his wounds, the press says that
collection was taken UP all over the cOun-
try for his benefit-in view OF ali this, L
am at a loss 10 understand what Gov.
Gambler meant by intimating that eolored
people were harboring this supposed
criminal.
1T IS most unfortunate, because the
natural inference is that they are dis
posed TO encourage crime. which any one
who kEows them must agree in saying
is untrue. Gov Gambler has the reputa-
ton OF being an honest and upright man.
and il must be that he was so appalled,
by the awful occurrences that have re-
Gently taken place in Georgia that for the
time being he lost his usual deliberate
and clear way of stating things.
Ex-Gov. Atkinson and Judge Freeman
are entitled to all praise for the fearless
and manly stand they took for law and
order under circumstances which would
have easily affrighted the bravest. What
they did and said yesterday is the posi-
tion that all the true lovers of Law and
order must take, else all the accumula-
tions of toll, Of science. and Of Chris
tianity will be lost.
i remember when a boy it used to be
urged in excuse OF violence of this char
acter that some of the State govern
ments in the South could not be trusted
to mete out justice in the punishment of
crimes and misdemeanors. since they
were in the hands of Republican OFF,
cials, who we're described as earpet-ba8-
gers, negroes, and scalawags; But now
the entire judiciary OF the South IS in
other hands, and no such excuse as this
can be urged. Still. violence and lawless-
ness seem to be on the increase. No
man VINO mas q spark OF nldEnOOu IN MIN
could ever excuse a rapiSt. but we have
courts, and why not use them?
These occurrences are begetting such
contempt for law and order that men are
lynched upon even the suspicion Of crime
The newspaper dispatches this afternoon
say that a man by the name Of Strick-
! land, a preacher, was lynched, although
great majority of the people, both white
and colored, in and around the town, as
serted most positively that he was not a
party to the alleged crime of Hose. They
also say that another man, by the name
of Sewell, who was merely suspected of
making threats was lynched. What are
we coming to?
IF these occurrences do not show the
danger of mob violence, | do not know
what will Man is said to be something
like a beast. If he once takes human
life. it becomes a matter of Indifference
with him; and SO, you see, from lynching
men for the alleged crime of rape they
have gone to lynching them for alleged
threats. The mob near Newman yester-
day and to-day dealt the PROUD Empire
State of the Southland this | say with
profound regret, for Georgia is my home
a blow that il will take her a generation
to recover from.
There is only one solution that / can
see to this thing. Everybody who loves
the country. its fame. and its glory, who
! is jealous of our good name, must exert
himself TO re-establish law and order"