The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-04
SENSATIONAL ARE STATEMENTS OF
 LOCAL MINISTER Dr. George Eaves Declares Jefferson County in
 Murder Industry CALLS M'NAMARAS FOOLS AND TRAITORS Roasts Local Courts and the Con- science of Jefferson County
 People-Press Placed on
 the Griddle

That the labor unions of Birmingham had no apologies to make for their as- sstance to the McNamara brothers, who are traitors and murderers and de- serve to be treated as such. and that Jefferson county is seven and a half times lower in morality than any other American county, were basic sentiments of the sermon delivered by the Rev. George Eaves from the pulpit of the Congregational chapel last evening.
 The chapel was comfortably filled with representatives of the labor unions of this city and members of the church. Dr. Eaves, who is affiliated with the labor organizations and prominently Identified with every labor movement, named his discourse '"The fool, the trai- tor and the murderer and began the recitation of it with the announcement that he prepared it with some pains.
 Reading first the commandment: "Thou shalt not kill,'' and speaking in his most earnest manner, Dr. Eaves said in part;'
 America Murderers' Paradise
 America stands before the world to- dav as the murderers' paradise, for you are safere here if you kill man than if you steal a dollar Last year We Americans murdered 5000 persons to the 90 00oO00 inhabitants. This does not in clude the mine and railroad accidents which are as surely murder as those of intent We have in Jefferson county
 
 some 100000 people, and 153 of these were murdered last year according to the facts known. Many more might have been killed that have not been discovered as yet or have not been made public This record for Jefferson. county is seven and a half times greater than the esti- mate for the entire country. It is 76 persons to every 100000 people and more than seven and half to every 10,000 peo- ple It means that we in Jefferson county are seven and a half times more brutal, seven and a half times moro murderous, seven and half times more beastly in crude old sensuous passion than any other American county These are the figures, and figures are hard to get over when they are honestly handled.
 "It means that our courts are seven and a half times more dilatory, that ou' conscience is seven and half times more coarse and hardened and that we as people are seven and half times more indifferent of human life than we as an American county are due to be. Alabama kills one person in every 1873, which is ten times worse than England, making HIS 76 times worse than England. We kill 76 to England's one by murder and equally as many by mine and railroad accidents.
 Jefferson's Murder Industry
 "Some of the best people in the world live right here in Birmingham and 1t isn't that every man goes armed around the streets that a shooting occurs upon every street corner night and day and that the citizens go gunnlng for victims' Quite the opposite. Religion is as wide awake, as noble and phlanthropic as anywhere, yet the blood of Jefferson county's murders are on the hands of every citizen. Religion of America IS intelligent and zealous but the brand Of Cain rests on the nation. John the Baptist wrote that murderer has no place in the Kingdom of Heaven and we should feel that way towards slaughter.
 'All America, especially Jefferson coun- ty, is in the murder industry, in spite of widespread religion ,.
 we must accept the news from Los Angeles telling of the confession of the McNamara brothers, and we must ad- init that labor officials have conspired to murder and do violence of the worst nature. They made us believe that they were innocent and the victims of gigan- tic combination of capital. We wanted to help them, we had right to heip them, believing that they were innocent We have no lpophole to escape their CT forts to make it appear that in our cause they did that terrible deed and we do not apologize for our assistance rendered.
 What will you do about this status of murder in America you men or the labor unions? Isn't it plain that those men out in Los Angeles have been both fools and traitors in representing you No one but fool would have pursued the course of annihilation involving their very own to bring about desired change Were those men killed in that building the men ofs the labor unions. the men who were one of us and tholr wives and children exactly III re- lationship to them as our very own For years to come organized labor VIII have to bear the blot and stain of that crime and the folly of those men who were betrayed into the murder of their very own brothers. They were fools Co think that good could come from doing wrong We talk about the universal brotherhood of man in the labor union and one of those has deliberately plotted and taken the lives of 21 of his brothers with an explosion
 Criticises the Press
 we must create sentiment of ab- horrence for murder before we can entirely free ourselves from it We must insist upon the newspapers of the land doing this also It is time that the American press was reforming in this regard. I rejoice that the papers of the south have not yet adopted the sensationalism of the north and east, and am glad that they are giving us the square deal in this. But what one of them does not print the press dis ratches that are explorations of the sensational murders of all parts of the globe? We take our morning paper and would not be surprised to find IT murders in as many columns.
 "Newspa pers should take an attitu le against murder and report the murder stories as deplorable and terrible events. The press could defend the na- tional soul if 1t so desired. r want to join in the cry for the American papers to line, up against murder and show this standpoint through their news col imns.'
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