The Savannah morning news., 1903-06-26

Some of the extreme Republican
papers of the North are of the opinion
that the recent lynching in Delaware
is the cause of rejoicing in the South
The Philadelphia Inquirer for in
stance, Says: 1T is now in order for
those Southern states which make a
practice of burning criminals or those
suspected of crime at the stake to
point the finger of scorn at Delaware.
That they will accept the occasion
with great glee cannot be doubted"
The Inquirer is mistaken as to the
character of the Southern people. We
have seen nothing in the Southern
papers that indicates that they are
rejoicing over the Delaware lynching.
Their feeling is of regret and sorrow
rather than of rejoicing. Negroes are
lynched in the South, it is true, but
the Southern people would rejoice if
there were never an occasion for a
lynching, either in the South or the
North.
1t may be that there is some degree
of satisfaction in the South because
of the proof which the Delaware trag-
edy offers of the correctness of the
position which the South has always
taken, namely, that the lynching spirit
is just as pronounced in the North as
it is in the South. That there are
more lynchings in the South than in
the North is due simply to the fact
that there is more of the kind of
crime in the South, owing to her large
negro population, which arouses the
people to the point of demanding inn
mediate punishment of the criminals
than there is in the North. But when
crimes are committed in the North
that incite the people to seek vengeance
it is noticeable that lynch law is re-
sorted to there as promptly as it is
in the South.
We are not in a position to state
the number of criminals who have
been lynched in the North within a
comparatively recent period by burn
ing at the stake or by some other
method. 1t was only last April that
negro was burned to death at Jop-
lin, No. and another was burned to
death at Belleville, ILL.,, on the 9Th of
this month. On June l a negro was
beaten to death at Pittsburg, Pa.
Here are three lynchings of negroes
within period of few weeks, all in
the North, besides the one in Della
ware.
The North should be honest about
this subject of lynching. 1t pleases
the NorfI,ar,, yauepaDarS par+inuIa -.
ly the extreme Republican papers, TO
assume that all of the lynchings of
the horrible character occur in the
South. AS a matter of fact many of
them occur in the North. There was
never more brutal lynching than that
at Leavenworth Kan, a few years
ago. negro was burned at the stake
almost in the center OF the city
We venture to say that the South
ern people are not so quick to lynch
negroes for heinous crimes as are the
people OF the North That is being
proven 10 be the case As Southern ne
groes IN the North increase in num-
Der II the negro population OF the
South could be scattered over the
North the lynohings would be almost
entirely confined 10 thai section.
The Southern people are not reJoie-
ing because iynchings occur IN the
North but they would like the North
efn people 10 b. frank ard fair IN tue
discussion ~ the iynching evil They
don't want fhe opprobuum u fhe
iynehing eyil saddlea wholly upon them
nhf1 northern people ere ar quick a.
resort 10 the most harbafous and o.
gnehinS aH tbey are.