The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-02-13
ANARCHY IN TENNESSEE AND
 KENTUCKY.

ANARCHY IN TENNESSEE AND
 KENTUCKY.
 This vigorous editorial is from The Nashville American:
 The repeated outrages in the to- bacco districts of Kentucky and Ten nessee call for summary action on the part of the Governors of those States.
 That a man living under the laws bodily and property harm because he does not choose to handle his products through the same agencies and In the same manner as do other men of his which he lives. is not the surety pro- missed all citizens of the two Common The fact that never yet has a single barn been burned, a crop destroyed. or a man hurt who belonged to the As- sociation does not prove that the As- sociation is per SC guilty of the arson, assaults and murders that have been so frequently committed since the Asso- ciation was formed, but 1t Is of proof that none of these crimes were com mitted before the Association organ
 Therefore, the Governors of these two States, with the Government of the United States, if necessary, should order this Association to abandon, law or no law.
 Public notice should also be given all officials and members of the Asso- citation that should further outrages be perpetrated upon on-Assooiation citizens. that the officials of the Asso- citation will at once be impressed as Association tnd the preservation of the life and property of non-Association men.
 It is folly 10 temporize ienger with those who commit those outrs ges. There is no surety of life or property promised by the Constitution of both of these States. after the happenings daily chronicled.~ Think of these num- erous outrages. Yet not a successful move has heen made to stop them! Must 1t be confessed that neither Ten Must a miserable. little band of tobac- co raisers tsrrortza whole sections of both Statese and nobody move in the
 It Is better to put both States under martial law, bankrupt the Tresuries and the credit Of both in order that the law may ben enforced and peace and security be the portion. as the
 Where are your boasted promises prior to election. Gov. Willson, and what are you going to do about it. Gov
 The situation is a serious one the very sanctity and life of the State Is 5eace staks sut sn tSsrs is ma no Sesce eey
 The Nashville Banner is equally plain in its condo mnation of the condi- tions existing in both Tennessee and Kentucky. and closes an editorial oD the matter with these words:
 The law must be sustained. There can be no properly organized commu- ntiy without law and the overthrow of the law means anarchy, no matter whether 1t is done by long-haired fan atics who throw bombs in Chicago or masked night riders who burn barns and shoot and beat people in Tennes- see. If we expect to keep pace with twentieth century civilization and re- tain the respect of the outside world we cannot complacently tolerate a reign of lawlessness.
 It matters not what may have been the original cause of dissatisfaction. or whether 1t was or was not we'll grounded. the fact remains that there is now in two States a condition of af- fairs that Is not only a dlscredit to the States themselves, but is a serious re- fiection on the American people gener- ally and on the South and the South ern people particularly. These night riders are not merely lawIess in the abstract, or as a mere matter of sentiment. They carry their lawless- ness to arson, pillage and murder. With the right or wrong of the tobacco quarrel We have no concern. It may be that there was wrong on both sides of the controversy, but there was no such wrong on either side as would justify or palliate the acts of these de- Gers of law and order for weeks and months past. There was no wrong done