The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-01-11
THE LAW OF JUDGE LYNCH Said That Lynch Law Derived Its Name from Lynch
 Greek, in South Carolina, About the Year 1706.

ing Post.
 u--- HE subject of lynching has 8
 threefold interest-historical ety.
 mological and practicai-and de- serves to be treated at length; but the material already collected by the present writer Is SD extensive that only an put line can be given here.
 There are various conjectures as to the otjgin of the term, no one of which Is wholly satisfactory. In Niles register for August s, 1885, 1t was stated that the practice arose many years ago" in Washington county, Pennsylvania, and that the party, which held an impromptu trial of a preacher proceeded to try him in due form, choosing one of their number, a farmer named Lynch, to be judge" (xlviii, 4O2). Nothing further is known of this alleged farmer. Lynch law is also variously stated to have derived its name from James Cor Walter) Lynch, mayor Cor warden) of Galway in 14sl, from & man named Lynch, who is said to have been sent to America in 16S7-SS to suppress piracy; from John Lynch, for whom Lynchburg, Va, was named, and from Charles Lynch of Virginia Ca brother of John). Of these the only one whose claims deserve serious considera- tion is Charles Lynch. For a fuller and more accurate account of him than can elsewhere be found the reader is referred to an article on ''The Real Judge Lynch, by T. w. Page, in the Atlantic Monthly for December, 1901 Qxxxviii, 7Sl-'43) Charles Lynch was born in 17S6; he was a justice of the peace both before ana after the outbreak of the revolutionary war; in 17SO he Illegally fined and impris- oned certain tories; in 17S2 an act passed the Virginia assembly holding him and others indemnifed for suits brought on account of such illegal acts (Va- statutes xii. 134-l35) and he died in 1796 Untortun- ately, Professor Page assumes, but does not prove, the connection between Charles Lynch and lynch law. Other deri- yations of the term have been suggested Meanwhile what are the facts in regard to the history of lynch law? The follow ing extracts briefly indicate this history from the earliest known appearance Of the term down to 1850.
 Tn the year 1792 there were many suits on the south side of James river for in- fieting Lynch's law. [1Sl7, Judge $. Roane, in w. Wirt's Life of P. Henry, 1S1S D. 372. In a note (but whether writ ten by Roane or by Wirt is uncertaih) we read: "Thirty-nine lashes inflicted with out trial or law, on mere susplclon oi guilt, which could not be regularly proven This lawless practice, whicn, sometimes by the order of maglstrate' sometimes without, prevailed extehslVely in the upper countries on James river took its name from the gentleman who set the first example of it.'
 Two years ago a young Yankee Of the name of Williams became the object or malicious prosecution here on suspicion of robbing a store. Circumstantlal eVl- dence of the worst kind only could De adduced, and he was, as is common Tn this country, acquitted. The people Of the place. however, prejudiced against him as a Yankee, deputed four persons to in- form him that unless he quilted the town and state immediately he should receive IYnchs law; that Is, a whipping in the woods. He departed, with his wife ana child next day on foot, but in the woods, four miles from Princeton Undiana), they were overtaken by two men. armed with guns dogs and q whip, who said they came to whip him unless he would con fess and discover to them the. stolen money, so that they might have it. He vainly expostulated with them; but, in consideration of his wife's entreaties and cries. they remit ed his sentence to thir- teen lashes. This poor fellow was of respectable parents at Berlin. In the state of New York. He quilted the state, and returning soon after to prose- cute his executioners, died at Evansville before he had effected so desirable an ob- ject Os19, Nov. 20. w. Faux, Memorable Days in America" dS2S), pp. So4-SO5) On December 27 Faux met the widow of Williams (p. 326)
 Among the early settlers there was way of trying cases which may per haps be new to you No commentator has taken any notes of Lynch's law, which was once the lex loci of the iron tiers. It's operation was as follows: When a horse thief counterfelter. or any other desperate vagabon infested neigh borhood evading justice by cunning or by a strong arm or by the number or his confederates the citizens formed them selves into a regulating company, a kind of holy brotherhood, whose duty was to purge the community of it's un- ruly members. Mounted. armed and com manded by a leader. they proceeded to arrest such notorious offenders as were deemed fit subjects of exemplary justice: their operations were generally carried on in the night. Squire Birch. who was personated by one of the party estab- lshed his tribunal under a tree Tn the woods, and the culprit was brought be- fore hlm, trleO ana SenerdilS he was then tied to a tree. lashed without mercy and ordered to leave the country within a given time under pain of second visitation. ." - Whenever a coun- ty became strong enough to enforce the laws these high-handed doings ceased to be tolerated, dS2S. Judge J. Hill, Let ters from the West" pp. 291-lJ2)
 We have heard that Captain Click sum moned his corps the other night and ob- tained possession of man with whose misdeeds they had become familiar. car ried him to the prairie near town and ad- ministered "Lynch's law upon him in fine style. He received about fifty lashes and was ordered to decamp. The of- fense consisted in cheating at the gam bling table dS33. October 5, Niles Reg ister" xiv, SD. This was at St. Louis.
 He was therefore, for tying the young Indian to a tree and giving him a sound flashing. and was quite surprised at the burst of indignation which this novel mode of requiting a service drew from us Such. however Is too often the ad- ministration of law the frontier, "I,ynch's law" as it is technically term
 "Cat-Iifed" >HoI