The leader., 1904-09-17
War ON THE NHITECAPS
THE SITUATION AS VIEWED BY THE
TIMES DEMOCRAT.
The Southern Whites Must Protect the
Negro in His Lawful Rights.

Some few, at least, of the white
cap organization that has terror
lied certain parts of Lincoln coun-
ty, Miss, for so long are likely to
be brought sharply to book as
result of the activity of the good
citizens, backed by all the weight
of the gubernatorial Office. In
Yesterdays issue we we're told that
three men, charged with murder
ing a negro farmer while cn the
usual midnight raid, had their
preliminary trial and we're re
manded to jail by the justice of
the peace without benefit of ball..
to await the action of the grand
jury. Doubtless other arrests are
in contemplation, for the charac-
ter of the testimony introduced in.
dicatas that itsWould be little trou-.
BILE, if the witnesses are reliable.
to implicste several more to an
extent that would justify their be-
ing held over.
There was one thing in connec-
tion with the preliminary hearing
at once significant and deplorable.
1t was actually deemed necessary
to have company of the State
National Guard called ont and
held ready to prevent a possible
demonstration by the white caps
in favor of the prisoners. The
people had evidently not forgot
ten that a mob of them once in
vaded the court house at Brook
haven and~were resolved to pre-
vent a recurrence of the outrage.
But the mere fact that such re-
currence was deemed possible IL
lustrates the effrontery of those.
criminals and the absolute necessi-
ty Of dealing with their misdeeds
in no tender fashion. AS for the
evidence adduced, it told the old
story of wanton lawlessness. The
midnight band of white cappers
went to the house of negro nam
ed Henry List, who had recently
purchased a farm from a Brook
haven merchant and was attend
ing to his own affairs. At about
10 O'Clock, as he was sitting by
the fire, a fusilade of shots was
fred into the house. The negro
rushed to the door with his shot
gun, fired twice, Intellectually, and
was riddled with bullets.
OF course, it is not for us to an
ticipate the judgment of the courts
by the expression of opinion as to
the guilt or innocence of the par
ticular men in custody. The
crime, however, is one that calls
emphatically for punishment, and
the officers should leave nothing
undone to see that the perpetra-
tors are brought to justice. The
murder shows, what hardly need
ed further ploof, however, that
when once the lawless element
take it into their own hands to
regulate affairs by terrorism,
there is no limit to which they
will not go. Lenient treatment
by either courts or public opinion
is interpreted as a sign Of weak
ness and encourages to further ex-
cesses. All compromises are sim
ply concessions to the spirit of
lawlessness and can not be pro-
ductive of lasting good. The one
thing that will clear the situation
nightly is for the courts to con-
Vict few Of them and for the con-
viction to be followed by penal
ty that suits the crime. We claim
that negroes are permitted to-
work in this section of the coun-
try, thereby taunting our North
ern friends with their intolerance
in this regard. 1t remains for us,
by stamping out as quickly as pos
sible white cap outrages on peace
full and inofensive negroes, to
make absolutely good our asser-
tions. We are informed that the
infected district" in Mississippi
is very small at present, only a
portion of one county. That fact
has its comfort. But there should
be no infected district at all.
And if the good citizens will keep
hammeriug away, the backbone Of
the conspiracy against life, prop
erty aud law will. we have no.
doubt, be effectually broken.
New Orleans Times Democrat.