The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-12-05

jeering at the faults of another section; |; 1t should be busy trying to amend It's own shortcomings. To deal with the crime of corruption it is necessary to have an awakened public conscience, and to sup plement this by whatever legislation will add speed and certainty in the execution of the law. When we deal with lynchings even more is necessary. A great many white men are lynched, but the crime is peculiarly frequent in respect to black men. The greatest existing cause of lynching is the perpetration, especially by black men, of the hideous crime of raye-themost abominable in all the cat egory of crimes, even worse than mur- der. Mobs frequently avenge the commits sion of this crime by themselves tortur- ing to death the man committing it.: thus averaging in bestial fashion a bestial deed and reducing themselves to a level with the criminal.
 Lawlessness grows by what it feeds upon; and when mobs begin to lynch for rape they speedily extend the sphere of their operations and lynch for many other kinds of crimes. so that twothirds of the lynchings are not for rape at all while a considerable proportion of the individuals lynched are innocent of all crime. Governor Candler of Georgia stated on one occasion some years ago: T can say of a verity that I have, within the last month, saved the lives of half a dozen innocent negroes who were pursued by the mob, and brought them to trial in a court of law in which they were acquitted" As Bishop Gal loway of Mississippi has finely said: 'When the rule of mob obtains, that which distinguishes a high civilization is surrendered. The mob which lynches a negro charged with rape will in little while lynch a white man suspected of crime Every Christian patriot in Amer 4z l,fr xrAtn f.. lYtI T eternal protest against the mob spirit that is threatening the integrity of this republic" Governor Jelks of Alabama, has recently spoken as follows: "The lynching of any perscon for whatever crime is inexeusable anywhere-it is a defiance of orderly government; but the killing of innocent people under any pro- vocation is infinitely more horrible; and yet innocent people are lilSley to die when a mob's terrible lust is once aroused. The lesson is this: No good citizen can afford to eountenanee a de- fiance of the statutes no matter what the provocation. The innocent frequently suf- fer. and, it is my observation, more usually suffer than the guilty. The white people of the south indict the whole col ored race on the ground that even the bet ter elements lend no assistance what ever in ferreting out criminals of their own color. The respectable colored peo- pie must learn not to harbor their crim- inals, but to assist the officers in bring ing them to justice. This Is the larger crime, and it provolses such atrocious offenses as the one at Atlanta. The two races can never get on until there is an understanding on the part of both to make common cause with the law abiding against criminals of any color'
 Moreover where any crime committed by member of one race aginst mem ta ft, fashion that it seems as if not the in dividual criminal. but the whole race, is
 tackled the result Is to exasperate to the highest degree race feeling. There Is but one safe rule in dealing with black men as with white men; it is the same rule that must be applied to dealing with -ich men and poor men; that is, to treat each man. whatever his color, his creed. or his social position, with even-handed justice on his real worth as man. White people owe it quite as much to them selves as to the colored race to treat well the colored man who shows by his life that he deserves such treatment; for if is surely the highest wisdom to en- courage in the colored race all those in- dividIals who are honest industrious. law-abiding and who therefore make good and safe neighbors and citizens. Reward or punish the individual on his merits as an individual. Evil will surely come in the end to both races IT we substitute for this just rule the habit of treating all the members of the race. good and bad alike There is no question of ''so- cial equality" or negro domination in- volved; only the question of relentlessly punishing bad men. and of securing to the good man the right to his life, his liberty, and the pursuit of his happiness as his own qualities of heart, head. and hand enable him to achieve 1t.
 Every colored man should realize that the worst enemy of his race is the negro criminal and above all the negro criml- nal who commits the dreadful crime of rape; and it should be felt as in the highest degree an offense against the whole country, and against the colored race in particular, for colored man 10 fail to help the officers of the law in hunting down with all possible earnest ness and zeal every such infamous of fender. Moreover, in my judgment. the crime of rape should always be punished with death, as is the case with murder: assault with intent to commit rape should be made a capital crime, at least in the discretion of the court; and provision should be made by which the punishment may follow immediately upon the heels of the ofTense: while the trial should he SO conducted that the victim need not be wantonly shamed while giving testi- monv and that the least possible pub licity shall he given to the details.
 The members of the white race on