The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1903-08-19
Mob Violence VS.. Laws Delay.
CHARLESTON. w. Va,
August II, 1908.

shown by the Presidents letter to
to Mr., Durbin and the latter's
reply together with extracts from
London papers commencing the
above named gentlemen for the
stand they have taken upon the
question of lynching. Why are
they so much exercised with re-
gard to this particular kind of
crimef Do they think that the
mass of the people regard it as SO
much worse than some other crimes
that are almost daily committedP
We in common with all other good
citizens greatly deplore the ap-
parent necessity for these lynch-
ings but / fear that all that can be
said by the President and Cover
nor in denunciation of these horri-
BILE crimes will have but little eff
fect in checking them.
What the people want is to
know that when crime is COM
mitted its perpetrator will be
promptly tried and punished by
the courts. whatever the crime may
be Whenever our courts show
the people that speedy and abso.
lrte Justice will be visited upon
violators of the law without regard
to race, color or political pull or
whether the offender is hod oar
rier, U. s. Senator, a railroad or
other corporation or whatever may
be his occupation, then, / say, mob
violence will disappear and be
heard of no more forever. The
President, as Mr.. Durbin very we'll
says. has "struck the key note of
natural necessity when you say
that all publice men, all writer's for
the press, all clergymen, all teach
ers, all who in any way have right
(italics mine) to address the peo-
pie, should with every energy
unite to denounce such crime and
to support those engaged in put
ting them down and declare the
corrected doctrine that we must
show that the law is adequate to
deal with crime by freeing it from
every vestige of technioality and
delay" There, you have it in a
nutshell, free the lar from eoesy
Uestige Of technicality and delay.
Gentlemen, if you will do this you
will have struck the death blow to
mob violence 1 wish. just now. to
call your attention to the word
right" in the above quotation.
We have always been imbued with
the old fashioned idea that the con.
stitution of the United States,
guaranteed to every citizen of this
Republic the right of free speech
and if that does not carry with it
the right to address the people,
what does it mean? It would seem,
though, from the Presidents words
that he had in mind some party or
class of people who do not have
this right But let us return to |
the mob. 1t is sad thing to say, |
but is apparently true. the people
seem to acquiesce in the acts of the
mob, else why the extreme difficult |
ty. you might almost say, imposi.
oility of oonvicting any of those
engaged in them? Numerous at
tempts have been made but very
few convictions have resulted.
Another very sad thing to say,
but conviction of its truth compels
me, is this: Justice IS no longer
blind.
She has evidently recovered the
sight of one eye which causes her
to see but only in a lop. sided man.
ler. Here at Charleston several
were convicted of various
primes, and l understand the Sher.
if is to take all who drew peniten.
'isry sentences to that institution
as soon as court adjourns. In st
Louis nineteen criminals have been
sentenced to the "pen" for differ
ant class of crimes, though every
whit as bad in their way, that of
in connection with legisla-
ion, and not one of the nineteen
mas ever yet seen the inside of the
penitentiary, Notwithstanding the
.aot that one of the convictions
vas secured over year ago. What
makes the difference. do you ask ?
Well, the criminals here were
ust common, ordinary mortals,
With no influential friends to
crease and put in motion the .'teo.