The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1904-02-25


'In his letter to the News and
Observer Of Sunday, the 14th, the
Rev. Theodore Bryant Kingsbury,
in speaking sboIit the fearful con
dition of crime in this State, has
this to say:
Crime in North Carolina and in
the United States steadily increases
1t is far more aggravated than in
Great Britain. The amount # law
lessness, brutality, roguery and
crime generally in this country is
staggering to philanthropists and
puts to shame the braggarts who
blow over improved conditions.
While murder, burglary and
other crimes are rampant in the
North, crimes rage in the South. In
South Carolina last year over 220
homicides occurred, it has been stat
ed. Say what you will, the viii
lians do not stand in awe of the
courts now, and the fact of pos.
sible pardon adds to their deviltry
and readiness to destroy. The bad
men-devils incarnate-walk about
like so many small arsenals, while
the law looks after peaceable, en-
dangered citizens least they should
carry pistol to protect purse and
h tot N
1901, in North Carolina, once so
staid, conservative and law abiding,
there We're 200 homicides, while in
the great city Of London there were
less than 20. North Carolina has
100000 inhabitants and London
about 4,S00,0O0-or about 1,OOO,-
900 more than double the popuIa-
ON of this State. Compare the
two reports, and stand aghast.
Crime is rampant in a State that
prior to the war had an excellent
record, good criminal laws, faithful
courts, heightened lawyers, and a
love of justice, when human life
was not cheap and homes were safe.
It is my opinion Their has nothing
ever happened 10 North Carolina
which is more responsible for this
terrible condition of crime than the
Democratic red shirt campaign and
their legislative aftermath. To
justify their red shirt outrages in
the campaign in 1S9S-190O the
Democratic papers said crime then
existing in the State were all due
to fusion rule. They undertook to
make the people believe that all
that was necessary to restore order
and bring about an Obedience to
Undue, the people of the State to
condone and even justify the most
conduct that has ever
disgraced the history Of North Caro-
Ina, with the single exception of
that of the kuklux. AS culmina-
ton of this Indictment against the |
Fusionists. Gov. Aycock used this
language in his inaugural address:
''LaWlessness walked the State
ike a pestilence, crime stalked
broad at MONDAY, sleep lay down
With alarm and the sound of the
PISTOL was more frequent than the
ong of the hooking Bird"
And yet the concensus of opinion
8 expressed by the papers and by (
be judges is that crime has been l
yer on the increase during the l
'hole of Aycock's administration {
ntil to-day it is fearful to contem-
late. This great increase of crime
the effect Of some cause, and it is I
le duty of every man to look for C
lat cause and so far as it lies in
Is power, do all that he can to cor i
'ct it. Some two Or three weeks
20 l tried to show some of the b
asons which thought had helped p
bring about this condition; but e
ese were by no means all. There a
one reason which I did not men, is
On and that was the unfair and ii
Just method our judges have of IL
mlnlstering the law. Here are Il
70 articles which 1 clipped from L
e News and Observer of Feb. 18th 10
1ich 1 desire to offer by way of
ntrast. The first is: OF
Aubrey L. Brooks, of in
is in the city. hav- 70
3 reached here yesterday from til
ford, where he attended Gran
lie county court. tn
He says that Arch Lipscomb, a sh
gro charged with the murder of ta
other negro, was found guilty of gi
lder in the first degree and was ga
ltenced to be hanged on the 18th Of
April. This is the case in which lea
charged that the negro he frt
It aud killed was 'scopjure doc xii
)" and had conjured his wife. Pei
This is negro who killed another Nc
did il in. all probability be- my
Sc he believed his wife was being wa
jured, which like superstition, dis
'ne Of the weaknesses of the val
70 race yet he is to be hung for reu
and in all probability he shsuld Cal
Here is the other from the haC
le paper of the same date: the
ioldsboro, N. c., Feb. lin the
court room at Wilson this yet
ming, through their counsel. res
9, Whitley. Rich, Pittman, Allen Y
Ward plead guilty of man the
ghter in the case Of Percy Jones. tina