The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1912-12-31
In Previous Years Number
SummariIy Dealt With Has
Been Much Larger
100 RECORDED IN 1894
The Number Has Been Gradually
Decreasing for. the Past Ten
Years
NORTH CAROLINA NONE

Chicago. Dee. 2S.-Only % lynch
ings. known to be such beyond doubt,
occurred in the United States in the
year now closing. In previous years
the number has been much larger,
100 having beer recorded in 1894 and
10 in the yea following. The past
ten years the number has been steadi-
~ decreasing. Only one year, how
ever, produced fewer lynchings than
1872. In 1907 the record shows 81
In some of the southern states
there were fewer lynchingS il 1872
than III almost any previous Year.
The decrease is attributed largely to
the efforts made by governors and
prominent citizens to prevent mob vio-
fence. Many of the governors have
acted promptly and energetically to
prevent lynchings with the declared
policy of giving the law free OppOr-
tunity for the punishment Of all al
legged offenders, white or lack.
Again as in the record Of former
years. more lynchiugs occurred in
Georgia than in any other state.
Louisiana and Florida come next in
the list. South Carolina. whose gov
trnor has gone on record as uIlOppOS-
ed To l~ynchings in certain cases. had
six cases of summary execution his
year as against only one in the year
1911. Kentucky, with eight lynch
ings in 1911, had q clean slate this
year. Oklahoma is another state with
Il clean record for the past twelve
months. h figures for Texas, Ten
nessee, Florida and Arkansas show
fewer ~lynchings thar in 1911. In
Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana
the number slightly exceeded tina Of
last year.
The states outside Of the South
where lynchings occurred in 1912
were West Virginia, Wyoming, Mon
tana, North Dakota and California.
BY states the record is as follows:
Georgia, IA; Louisiana, s: South
Carolina. 6; Florida. 5; Alabama. 4:
Tennessee. /; Wyoming. 1; West Vir-
ginia, /; Montana, |; California. 1
and North Dakota, /.
In the 50 lynchings the victims OF
all but two were negroes. Three ne
crosses were included in the list. Al
legged crimes against women or girls
and the murder OF white persons &C
count for practically all OF the cases
a singular feature is found i'll the
~lynChing of the two white men, both
of which occurred in the far North
In each case the victim was accused
of murder. In the town of .Jappa, {
short distance from Rosebud, Mont.
Harry Heffner, alleged slayer of Mrs
William Merrill. was taken from The
county Jail by a crowd Of masked meI
and hanged, despite the efforts Of tht
sheriff and his deputy. The secon
lynching occurred at Steele, n. d.
where George Baker, charged Will
the murder Of his wife and father-in
law, was taken from the Jail an,
hanged by a job. The .lynching wa;
the first recorded in North Dakota il
more than q decade.
The lynching in Wyoming was on,
OF the most sensational of the year
Frank Wigfan. - negro who confess
ed to having made a criminal attac]
on Mrs. Esther Higgins. an age,
woman known as the prisoner
friend was lynched by the convict
OF the State p~enitentiary at RawlinS.
In the West Virginia lynching tn
victim was Walter Johnston. a negr
accused of assaulting "a young whit
girl in Mercer county.
CALIFORNIA; one lynching was on
of the ordinary. 1t occurred on tn
desert, some 80 miles from the tow
known negro accused of haying al
tackled a six-year-old child. He VIZ
hanged by men alleged to be employ
ed on the Los Angeles aqueduct.
The three negreSses who fell VIZ
TINS to mob violence were Ann Bo.
ton, who murdered the wife OF
planter at P~inehurst, Ga: Mary Jacl
son. who was lynChed in Pamela cou1
ty, Texas. for alleged completely
he murder OF a White man. and q
nknoW negresS who, together wit
three negroes, was hanged by a mo
in Harris county. Georgia, for IL
murder OF a farmer.
Tyler, Texas. furnished the only il
stance Of the year where the victi