The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1911-04-26
KENTUCKY MELODRAMA OF REAL LFE-AND
DEsTTii
DEATH!

Not content with the good old-fashoned plays
wherein virtue trumphed vice in the last act to
the great delight of the audience and the playwright
whose royalties thereby greatly increased, the
good citizens of Lvermore, Kentucky put a one
act play the other day entitled Murder. The lead
ing part played by negro. The chief properties
which held the negro swinging in the
of the stage and small arsenal of revolvers in
the hands of the audience The playwrights were
Messrs. NJ. o. B. Violence and Lyn Ching. The sue
of the play act unprecedented the house
packed to the doors and the souvenir given
guilty conscience in the participation of cold booded
murder.
We have made mistake. There two leading
| roles The negro played and Death played the
other. The acting beyond praise leaving nothing
to be desired eXcept-Justice
1t that white and negro had
quarrel in pool room. Later, meeting the white
street. the negro pulled his gun killed him
There question about the guilt of the ne
gro and he quickly arrested and locked up in the
local Jail Then fearing for the safety of his prisoner
the town marshal hid him in the basement of the opera
house
Then the mob found him, dropped the negro to
the stage strung him and then took their places in
the theatre orchestra and gallery and shot him to
death, of those occupying the orchestra seats
had shots than the citizens in the gallery 1t
exceedingly realistic melodrama and the applause
which the lfeke-or better, deathlike-performances
of the two leading actors received was hearty and
tinuous. Pity that neither actor heard!
We want to say this: Every citizen of Livermore
who fired bullet into the body of that negro is
murderer in the eyes of the law. There not the
slightest excuse for it.. The could not have
capped the penalty of his crime Justice in this at
least, would have been prompt and The negro
would have been hanged beftted his crime.
The above programme would have been carried
under the stage directions of Messrs Law and Or
der But Livermore seemed to think that such pro-
gramme lacked action. Therefore they 'rewrote' the
play from start to fnsh changed the title from Jus
tice' to Murder and produced it with great
1t is vain to hope that any of those white MUIR
derers of that negro murderer will be put trial.
They will not be arrested. Still, there is
point which would like to make in regard to this af
fair through the words of the Philadelphia Inquirer:
There is movement in some quarters to force
upon the people the scheme for the reca of judges
among other public officials. Arizona has made the
recall of judges part of her Constitution. Now sup
pose the recall to have been operative in this Kentucky
town. What then? No judge in the land who values
his good name could justify the murder performance
successfully carried out in Lvermore. And yet any
judge who should handle such the law directs
would under the recall system, be promptly torn from
the bench the victim of temporary popular excitement
and mob spirit
From which it may be that hysterical 're-
form" sometimes pursues very devious and dangerous
paths"