Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1904-01-09
TROUBLE AT PINEAPPLE.

December 20, 1903 was not without it's
amusing features. AS usual one of the
best white citize MS" of that locality,
who answered TO the euphonious name
of PIG MELTON was engaged with a
number OF Neg roes IN shooting crap A
little disagree ment resulted IN his being
SHOT. No ind ertaker has as yet testi-
fed to having placed MELONS, remains
within the bosom of Mother Earth.
Still, another man, who was charged
with being an accessory was caught,
placed in a calaboose, while the Negro
who did the shooting was moving rap
idly IN another direction, no doubt
humming the well-known refrain,
Foot, help the body" he has not as
yet been captured.
In this section, it is evidently a CAPT.
tai offense to even talk about shooting a
white man and so mob gathered,
broke open the calaboose, and after
practicing other indignities, knock ed
the colored man in the head. He was
murdered. This should have answered
all purposes, but it didn't Their blood
thlrstinesS was not satisfied They had
evidently read of the case of man,
who, after he had crushed in the head
of snake was found hammering and
beating that same snake for an hour
afterwards.
MY friend, " remarked an on -looker.
that snake is dead What are you
beating him for ~
Il want it to understand" was the
remark, THAT there is such a tn ing as
punishment after DEATH
But this was not snake. 1t was a
man made in COPS image
He had committed no crime, for the
man who did the shooting had taken
leg-bail ami left that section for parts
unknown.
But these 'best citizens" who shoe,
crap with Negroes not only killed an
Innocent man, but took drastic meas
ures TO let she corpse know that there
was such thing as punishment after
DEATH" They wet it with kerosene OIL
and set fire TO it aud SOON the remains
were a seething muss of flames and the
barbarians, who practiced such "A desc
Grafton, no doubt, danced around in
glee
But their mirth soon turned &c mourn
ing, for the calaboose caught fire and
their efforts TO extinyuish the flames
were unavailing. The red tongues of fire,
famed by the strong winds, reinforced
too by GODS disapprobation, set fire
to JACKSON 90 ADAMS seed house which
was well filed with infiammable mate
rial and then TO the cotton ware house
and then from store to store, Just as
though the deeply wronged Negro had
found an atoning angel in the flames.
PAUL DAvIDsoN's wagon repair shop
went the same way, and citizens who
had turned lazily on their heels when
informed that a Negro was to be lynch
edaud gave gruut of satisfaction when
they lesrned that the deed had actually
been accomplished, now became blind
with fury. They became in3ensed and
demanded the punishment of the men
who had disgraced the young, but grow
ing town of Pineapple
The indignation over the outrageous
killing and burning of this colored cit
izen became more pronounced and TO
the establishment of the outside world,
Negro who, twenty-four hours before
was not regarded as being worth pair
OF old suspenders suoueuly became TO
be regarded as one of the most valuable
adjuncts to Pineapple's p osperity.
a coroner's jury was emLanelled TO
view the remains or the place where
the remains were and while it recessed
for dinner an indignation meeting, con-
sisting of about 200 white citizens, over
which Mr.. j. A MATHERsoN presided
was held and committee was appoint
ed TO go that night to Selma, Alabama
to ask Solicitor QUARLEs to come to the
great and growing town Of Pineapple.
They wanted him to have a special ses-
sion of the court held. not for the pur-
pose of indicting the other Negro, who
shot Brother" PIG MELTON; not for
the purpose of hanging any more Ne
groes, but for the purpose of maintain
ing the majesty of the law by punish
|, ing those white men, who had been so
murderous in their instincts as TO kill
and burn colored citizen of Pineapple
directly and about fifty thousand DOL
lars worth of the white folks property
, indirectly.
The more the losers thought over the
matter, and gazed upon their wives and
children with no shelter over their
heads and but little money in the bank,
the more they became impre sed with
the fact that "lynch-law must CO." and
the lynchers with it. They wanted
!, some hangings now in Pineapple and
: Negroes were not to be the chief actors
, at the performance.
: Nine stores had been burned and the
insurance amounted to but half the
amount OF the total loss.