Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1901-02-23

eide. and 70 beco mes necessary to or
der out military company TO protect
he lite OF that person while he il on
trial, shall grant Q change OF venue
Justice becomes farce when q per-
con has 20 be tried fer HE life and sol.
diers have 20 save that life until q YER
dict has been rendered."
That 10 good common sense aud it
sbouid b. the practice in every county
IN Virginia. A year OF two ago a man
was tried for . heinous fence in this
tate, and while the trial was going on
a mob wss hanging around the court
house, Ore of the mob actually went
into the court house and tried to throw
IoPe around the prisoners neck.
while he was sitting in the bcx. Gov.
O'FsrrslI had hear d OF the trouble aud
ordered out the military. or else the
man would never have been brought
60 trial. But the pressRee OF the sol
diers had no other effect than to keep
the mob from taking the prisoner out
and lgnching HIM. The mob was shere
and It's l. tileDce was do minapt. There
was no chance in the world for che
prisoner on trial, HIS doom was sealed
in advance. There was a trial, but il
was mockery. The mob-spirit pre-
vailed and IL Jury failed to bring in 3
verdict OF guilty, even the soldiers
could hardly heye kept the NIB from
taking vengeance on the prisoner.
Every man accused 4 crime IL er-
tit ed to fsie trial by q jury OF his
peers upon the evidence and without
prejudice. L; is almost impossible for
him to get such q trial in o Sommuu.
ity where the feeling against himIis
such that the presence OF the military
Unnecessary to protect him from mob
violence.
We recall . case during the aduiniv-
tratien of Governor Mckinney. to
which reference has more than once
been made in the public print. Two
white men were accused of criminal
assault, and the Indignation against
them was so great that the Governor
ordered out the military to protect
them from the m b.
court was in session a. the Gime the
matter was brought before the grand
jury, true bill was found ami the csse
came on for trial while the spirit of
popular indignation ran high TIE
men were convicted and condem IL
eschIto long term in the penitentisry
About two years thereafter, one o
the women concerned wse again in the
court as . witness and che pref sced
her testimony OF saying that she would
sell the trnth in spite OF pressure that
had been brought TO bear upon her
that she had perjured herself once and
| sent two men to the peniteptisry. and
that che would not repeat the offence.
This caused something OF . seuss
| ton in the courtroom and she was
called upon to explain. She then con-
| fessed tx at in the csse under review
she had sworn falsely against the mes
on trial, that they had not committed
the crime with which they had been
charged and OF which they had been
| convicted and that she had since b leu
| much troubled in mind because she
hsd been instrumental in sending
them TO prison.
Or course the presiding Judge and
the Com monweslth's Attorney lost 10
time in communicating the facts e.
Governor Mckinney and the m u
Were forthwith pardoned, but they hso
been made to wear the stripes of fel
on for tive years, as we It call, and suo-
lected to the disgrace and mortifics.
| sion OF penitentisry sentence, all be-
| cause they were tried under circum.
stances which absolutely precluded
anything like fair and deliberate
trial.