The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-03-29

plc will be that Governor Tyler did all!
that the laws Of the State would permit
him to do. s
And The Times is quite as confident
that Governor Tyler did MT do. In that
emergency, f..au that the laws Of the
State would permit him to do" We do
not speak By authority, but we hazard
little In expressing the opinion that II
Governor Tyler had consulted the Attor-
ney-General Of the State, after receiving
the last message from Major Cutchins,#
it would have been pointed out to him
quite clearly that he had ample authority
to take matters into his own hands ana
prevent the prisoners OF the State from
being lynched.
We say that the Governor had the au
thorityt to act, and that by not acting ne
let slip the opportunity TO strike vlso-=
rous and telling blow in the interest OF
peace and law in this State. 1t was re-
ported to Governor Tyler early In the
day that the mob was gathering, ana
the sheriff and the judge of the County
Court told him that they were unable TO
protect the prisoners. Judge Goodwin
telegraphed that his own life had ,oeen
threatened, and the Governor had every
assurance that thee mob was in the sad
die. Then was his opportunity. Had he
called out two companies from Richmond,
one company from Franklin, and one or
more companies from other convenient
points and modified them at Emporle IN
a few hours with himself in command,
he would have been master of the situa-
ton. Then he might have stood upon
the courthouse steps and made all ad-
dress to the crowd, assuring the people
that he had ordered troops to the scene
and had come himself, not to save the
neck Of the negro murderer and his ac-
complete but to save the good name OF
the State, to save the good name OF
Greensville County, to save the people OF
Greensville from taking the law into their
own hands and committing an act which
they would regert to their dying day, to
let the people of Greensville and the
people of Virginia and the people Of the
whole world understand that the Cover
nor Of this State proposed to see to 1t
that the Ia" was uPnelu ulAue1 al Ill
cumstances, no matter what the cost
might be.
Such q demonstration as this would
have had a wholesome moral effect, would
have inspired the people with greater
respect for the law and would have struck
terror to the heart of evil doors and the
lawless element as showing the determi-
nation and the ABILITY of the State
to maintain law and order.
But so far from embracing this op-
portunity, the Governor called his troops
away, and although he was advised by
the commander of the troops that without
protection there would be lynch!nS in
Emporia that night, he declared by public
proclamation that the sheriff was in COM
mand, that the Governor Of the State was
powerless, and, in effect, that the mob
would have to have its way.
1t is this position of the Governor and
the Governors defenders, DR.. Hawthorne
and all of them, that The Times contTo-
verts. We say, in spite of all protests
to the contrary, that the Governor OF
Virginia has ample authority Of law to
prevent mob violence within the borders
of this Commonwealth and we pray that
should the mob break loose again during
his term of office, he will employ all the
powers of State at his command to throt-
tie it.