The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-08-11
THE PRESIDENTS ADVICE.

Last week a meeting Of negroes wa
held In New York to protest agains
lynching. and resolutions were adopte
urging the President OF the United State
to use his efforts to protect negroes &C
cused Of crime from mob violence il
commenting on the incident we agail
reminded the colorei folks that they woul'
accomplish far more II they would holt
meetings and take steps to prevent mem
beers Of their race from committing bruta
crimes against the whites.
President Roosevelt has not replied d.
rectly to the New York resolutions, SO
far as we have seen. but he has replied
Indirectly In n letter which he recently
wrote to Governor Durbin, of Indiana. In
referring to the unmentionable crime the
President said:
"In sich cases, moreover, 1t is well to
remember that the criminal not merely
sins against humanity In inexplicable and
unpardonable fashion. but sins particu-
larry against his own race, and does them
q wrong far greater than any white man
can possibIy do them. Therefore. in such
| cases the colored people throughout the
| land should In every possible way show
| their belief that they. more than all 9TH
| org in the community, are horrfed at the
| commission of such crime. and are Pc
| culiarly concerned in taking every posi-
| BILE measure to prevent Its recurrence and
to bring the criminal to immediate Justice.
The slightest lack Of vigor either IN de-
runciatlon of the crime or In bringing
the criminal to justice is itself unpardon-
able
This Is the best advice the negroes could
receive on this subject from the Presi-
dent or from any other man, and they
wilt do we'll to heed it. So long as the
negro conducts himself ms brute he will
be treated as brute when he falls into
the hands OF the mob.
Indeed, there are many law-abiding cit
liens who seriously contend that a negro
who commits this crime ought not to have
q trial, but ought to be swung up to the
first limb without Judge or jury. They
say that such negroes are brutes and
should be treated as brutes. They say
that when a mad dog goes on the ram
page men go out with guns and pistols
and shoot him to death as quickly as
possible, and so It should be with a brute
worse than a mad dog. who prowls around
tho country to prey upon defenseless wo
men.
But the fact Is that in the eyes of the
law the brutal negro is not a brute. but
a human being and with the law there
is no respecter Of persons. The law cam
not say that one human being is to be
treated as such and another human being
as brute. We must have one law for
all, and each and every man. when ac-
cused of a crime. is entitled to trial
by jury Of his peers. 1t is provided in
our Bill Of Rights that no man shall be
deprived of his life or liberty except by
the law Of the land. or the Judgment OF
his peers, and that in all criminal prose-
cutions man has the right to demand
the cause and nature OF his accusation,
to be confronted with his accusers and
witnesses, to call for evidence In his ia
vor and have a speedy trial by an Impair
tial jury OF his vicinage, without whose
unanimous consent he cannot be found
guilty.
That Is the law Of Virginia. the funda-
mental law. and part of the Constitution
OF the State, upon which every citizen de-
ponds for his life and liberty, and II we
&c to making exceptions there Is no tell
ing where 1t will end. There Is but one
safe rule, and that is to uphold the law.
The President, in the letter referred to.
makes a strong and able plea in behalf
OF law and order under all circunnst ances.
He says that men who have committed
criminal assault or murder should be Wis
tied with swift and certain punishment,
but that the substantial rights OF pris-
oner to fair trial must be guaranteed.
He has no sympathy with the criminal.
but he points out that lynching Is demor-
alizing, and that lawlessness Of this type
never does stop with the lynch!ng Of men
for one particular crime. Every violent
man In the community" says he. rs en-
couraged by every case OF lynching In
which the lynchers go unpublished to take
the law into his own hands whenever 1t
suits his own convenience The nation.
like the individual" says he, In conclu-
sion, cannot commit crime with impu-
nifty If we arc guilty OF lawlessness and
l. T,
sists in active participation therein. or
in mere connivance and encoura cement,
we shall assuredly suffer later on because
of what VIC have done, The corner stone
OF this republic, as Of all free govern
ments, is respect for and obedience to the
law. Where we permit the law to be de-
fed or evaded. whether BY rich man or
poor man, black man or white, we are
by Just so much weakening the bonds of
our civilization and increasing the chances
OF Its overthrow and OF the substitution
therefor OF system In which there shall
be violent alterations of anarchy and
tyranny"
The President has written this letter
10 Governor Durbn, not as President
Roosevelt, but, as he himself says, as
citizen Of the United States. and 1t Is
timely utterance, 1t Is q Courageous and
manly plea for law and order. and 1t
ought to have an influence for good in all
parts OF the country
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THE TRUSTS.