The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1901-11-26

up to tho crimo, it seemed to be
c"so particularly demanding that tn,
law should bo permitted to tako III
course. 1t was not qu"cton of the
rape Of Il white woman by negro
brute. 1t was the assassination o.
tho aged parents Of young white
man who had previously shot to
death the son of the negro mother
for attempted poison. The young
man was out on bail awaiting the
action Of the Grand Jury. But there
was only one way to prevent that
lynching. That way was by super
ior force, and the constituted author
tics did not offer it.
In connection with my experience
and observation on the day of tho
lynching, / took care afterwards to
discuss the case itself and the whole
matter of lynehing, as it obtains III
tho South, with soEne of the best and
maturer and more conservative citi.
zens of that part of the State Of Mis-
sissippi, to learn whether and how
far they approved of lynching for
crime. Of course | found some ex.
treme mon, who are good citizens in
their way, who are yet very nervous
over the whole question of the negro
and his preponderancc in their part
Of the State, and who assert that for
any considerable crime, of whatever
nature, committed against q white
person by negro, they would take
the law in their own hands and shoot
him down as they would dog
These arc extremist.
The greater part of the educated,
conservative, thoughtful, and, in or
dinary situations, moro influential
citizens approve of lynching for the
rape of q white woman, but deplore
the seeming necessity for it, and are
cropping helples5ly in tho dark for
some way to mako lynching unnec.
essary. They see that it is gradually
undermining their civilization, do
stroying all respect for law, and,
with reference to all sorts Of offen-
! ses, is substituting mob law for the
ancient forms which have safoguarded
ded the liberties Of the English speak
ing peoples for centuries They
contemplate the future with some-
thing akin to terror, and confess
themselves tied hand and foot to a
situation from which it seems impos-
sible to break away without hasten
ing the very thing they fear. They
believe that to turn over to the law
a black 1iend who has raped de-
fenseless white woman and made over
her whole life into living he'll
would enevitably ten to multiply
rapes and practically put all our wo.
mon at the mercy Of the lustfnl
brutes,
Their explanation of the situation
as it is now found in the South, may
not be entirely satisfactory to the
denizens Of the cities and the dwell.
lers amidst predominant white pop
ulation, but will try to give it as it
WAS given to mo by some of the most
conservative, most thoughtful, and
most wise citizens of the South.
|. The natural barbarism of our
human nature, whose first impulse is
to wreak vengeance for an outrage,
is to be always considered, for, as q
matter of fact, neither individuals
nor communities ever get far away
from nature and that is human ma
ture.
2. From the earliest time IN the
South seduction has always resulted
in either what is known as "mili-
tary wedding" or q homicide, The
community has always supported the
family Of the seduced woman for
killing the seducer if he would not
redeem the situation as far az posi-
bic by marriage. If that was the ro-
suit where there was "consont," how
much more certainly would homicide
bo tho result where there was force
used to accomplish the ruin of wo-
man-Whero there was rnpeY A
white man would no moro escape
than a negro. If tho white man
must pay with his life for rape, how
much more certainly negro for the
rape of a white woman, where in ad,