The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-11-19
PROTEST AGAINST hOBL LAM.
srEEcHEs WADE At MASS MEET
ING ~ DENVER.
Gov. Thomas of Colorado. Diseiaia'S
Responsibility for the fertarinw
OF Porter at Limon-sees No
way TO Reach the Perpetrators.

DENVER, Cot. MOI, ia mass meet
ing vaS held here today for the purpose
- protesting AGAINST the action az the
mob at Idrlon. COL Witch on. Friday last.
burned a. the stake John Potter who bad
confessed that he murdered IiTe8 r-nid
Louise Frost C. NJ Hohhs. president o.
she r. u. G. A.. presided speeches were
riaac by prominent ri.ixeus tnclading
Gov Thomas Mayor Johnson. az Denver,
President sioeum. OF color college
Rabbi Freedman. and Rev. co,le. Of Den
yer; Mrs Sarah Piau Decser, prominent
in National Wnmau's Club circles and
others They an spoke in stroas terms.
condemnlng what was termed the "l1mcn
atrocify.~ and denounced tho sensational
display Of wrste-ups concerning Is IN the
newspapers The audience was stirred 10
almost r!ntauS demonstrations az APPROX
al a; times
Resolutions adopted admit the difficulty
OF adequately chararterixing he crime for
which Porter was punished but declCe
that however much the negro. by his
cline meritcd death no crime ran lus-
tify recourse TO such barbarian methods,
and while ihe action Of the people Of LIN
coin county - attributed 70 excitement
and passion, Il n none fhs less condemned
and discountenanced. Hope i expressed
thar law VIII he speedily enacted In Col-
orsde providing effective punishment for
crimes such melted the torture ot for-
ter and asn that hereafter each and
every one will be punished for taking the
law into their own hands The remarks
OF Gov. Thomas. in part, follow
Gcye~nor Deprecnt~s ~.
Il do not believe the people OF this state
are worse than the people Of any either
state. This IL as civilized a community
ss any state IN the Inlnn and e az q
when tie people have been suddenly
aroused 10 some such terrible act when
some such .,,. awful horrible crime as ,n ~.
the ngnnized parents and whatever they
have done. have no words OF bfans. ~
censure Put ourselves IN their places and
we can understand their desire for ven
gsence.
My remarks today are addressed. not
50 rnurh 20 the fact that death has bern
Inflicted ~ 10 the manner In whsch n IL
done. | do not hy thfs mean So Justify
iynchinG law No well regulated citizen
can ever Justify 4 departure from the law
But every state has these anairs and We
are not an exception
The governor then disciain,ed any re-
sponsihiity for the affair. saying that he
understood that sheriff Freeman hsa
agreed 10 leave Porter m jail for eight
days and had gone ont Of town 80 beiicv-
ing. only to return 70 meet the announce
ment that the sheriff ard hts prisoner
were on the way 10 Iimcn.
This awful cfen=e has been committed
BY an entire county" he continued
There IL no way Of reaching thfrs peo-
pie. As Lord Chatham said once. You
cannot indict an entire nation IN TIN
coin county these offenders would have
70 sit on the iuries. indie, themselves
pass on The indictments. convict them
selves and then the chief offender ~ ALL
the sheriff OF the county. would have to
conduct them 70 the penitentiary, go All
sc can DC IS 70 declare thai we. as CHIT
gems o. the same state depiore and con-
denim this act OF harhsrity.''