The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-05-12
FINEST or THE KIND.

No beverage nfs recent years has tn i,l
with such pronounced success W. ..-r.,, :
general public as BLACK q. 80. ,,,e
American Porterr-its popula sostls To-
to Its true merit. Orders address, = viii
stumpf, Mana ger Richmond blaiis'4'
be promptly executed: -
seen and felt in every part OF siiss ; 49,.
Is it not time to call halt
Lynching. is affecting puoilc nv. 80 -,
creating lawlessness in Its Worst 49,, soft
couraSing the young to disresalu ~ -
at defiance the law Of the laho ~
GROWING wrong that is done Is eire I p.uS
ing Of the rights and liberties OF -,
citizen in the hands of most Vietoa' 80
often the most ignorant classes U . 49,,
munty. These people delight IN eseis 10 -
of elawlessness.
Strange as it may appear, Is atiiS'A ...s
to hear good citizens. who ousht ~ os - -
abiding, advocating these wicked anu W.
lent measures.
Again it is hard to understand why II Is
that right thinking men cannot see .he
danger their violence will ieaa 10. ~.
when a mob begins its deadly WORK "iio .
safe?
Are either the lives of the citizens or
their property safe:
r writer once expressed the eieeS ~
eNll III his way. lie Cuui
SO slowly and from such slight cause, an
Infants hand could stem its tide, pus iet
the stream get deeper. philosophy aye anu
religion too, would strive in VAN 70 turn
the headlong torrent.
Apart from these considerations OF pun
lie safety, is not such 1awlesshess iil.aii-
oialy destructive to the material interests
OF a country? Who will want 70 puS prop
erty or to live among people WIG ~. Sc.
the civil law at defiance ana SUBSTITUTE
mob law in its stead
Another reason is the criminal expenses
incurred in guarding the jalls and atteno-
ing the trials of prisoners. where Floienee
is threatened, are often very AeaNS ana siie
result is that the taxes of the people are
greatly increased.
AIecklenburg has never had out one
Iynching, and this one proved me great
folly of sucn hasty action. / speak OF the
lynching of the negro who murdered DE.
higgins several years ago, an old ana
prominent citizen OF Meclllenbur2. There
were ssid to have been three or four ne
gros implicated in this crime, but SO eager
was the crowd to infiict death upon ann,
that they hung him at once. without CIV.
ing him any opportunity to tell anything
about the murder.
It is generally believed that had the man
been arrested in the regular way and
been brought out. and his confederates IN
crime would have been caught and eXecu-
ted. but as it was. every man, except Inc
one that was lynched, escaped punish
ment.
1t will be remembered that only snort
time since a crowd of men in one OF the
counties of the State took negro out
into the woods and actually placed rope
around his neck and told him they meant
to hang him for having cursed and struck
a white man. The law gives ample protec-
ton for offenses of the character for which
this negro was arrested, but that did not
satisfy them.
I merely speak of this circumstance
as showing the danger that .lreatens the
liberties of the people, and while these
citizens did not put their threat into exc
cution. it shows how little regard the aver
age citizen has for law, if his passions are
aroused.
The Legislature ought to pass stringent
laws for the suppression of these acts
Texas requires the county in which
lynching occurs to pay to the family of
the person lyncned the sum of five thou
sand dollars. Such a law would have a
salutary effect and would go long way
towards suppressing lynchns, FOR it would
make the taxpayers and the conservative
element use their power and their best in
auence to prevent it.
T. H. 3.
Roydton Va May, 1900.