The sea coast echo. [volume] (Bay Saint Louis, Miss.) 1892-current, 1900-06-16
MISSISSIPPI CITY LYNCHING.

| Diobolical the crime with which
they were charged, but horrible
the more in civilized eyes was the
swift punishment when Henry
Askew and Ed Russell were sum-
marilv hurled into enternlty for
| an offense of which only one was
vaguely thought to be guilty. The
lynching at Mississippi City, un-
! der these circumstances was pre-
meditated murder pure and SIM
pie and massacre vile and baba-
rous scarcely becoming a Zulu,
and cannot and will not produce
any good. Far from it. AS a
vengeance for the criminal assault
and murder of little Chrlstini
/ Winterstein, occurring near Biloxi
on the 2nd, instant, it was savage
and cowardly, and serving a warn
ing to evil doors of the same kind.
if this be the purport of this mid
night tragedy, it will fail utterly
and embitter the races IN ii man
ner concerned more than ever.
No good can obtain practicing the
method in this wise. OF course
the crime which lends the excuse
is more to be deplored, but the
fact that innocent blood paid the
death penalty for the guilt is re-
pulsive to society where justice
and euuaI RIGHTS. fundamental
principles of our civil government,
by virtue of our Constitution is
supposed to prevail. The Lost
Cause has been fought and the
South for one has forgotten it.
No prejudices exist; none must
be entertained, none tolerated.
But the negro who is thus sum-
mariIy dealt with generally de-
serves it because he incites it by
his suspicious conduct either by
his wonted impudence or pricipal-
ly by that idle disposition that
shapes his own destinies. ldleness
is the predominant of sin and of
crime of darkest red and dooms
the thriftless negro inevitably.
We have never yet, whether the
subject be free or guilty of some
particular crime which provokes
the lynching, heard of good or
industrious niger gong the way
of the rope. Idleness, the god of
discomfort, nutors his vilest pas
sions and under this he falls.
The toiIsome darkey regarding
family and self honestly and keep
ing within the bounds prescribed
for his good has never been lynch
ed-and never will. 1t is here we
would dwell and impress on the
minds of those concerned the
menace found in negro vagrancy.
The statutes cover this well. But
their enforcement are not wholly
regarded.
The Echo condemns lynch law,
We do not wish to sec weakened
the sacred tribunal Of law. We
are violently opposed to it, save
IN one instance only, that is in the
premises where hell's fayorite
crime of rape has been perpetrat-
eG. The statute law can cover
this we'll and amply, but not suf
ticiently swift. Retribution must
necessarily be fieet-footed. Be
sides lynching, in this instance,
we favor the stake and torch.
Burn them! Burn the rapists, II
respective of color. Our mothers.
sisters, wives and daughters are
all to us, and if they be molested
then no bounds can stay our in-
furiated feelings. 1t might, tC
thoughtless sentimentalists, ap-
pear rank and sensational to ap'
plaud lynching, but it is only
mild disposition to make of the
arch-fiend who would to gratify
his inordinate passions outrage
the sanctity of our women giver
us by God. Iflynching is wrong
then simply burn them! Flay
them alive! But always the guilty