The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1913-05-06
GOVERNOR BLEASE ON
DELAYS OF THE Law
CITES NUMBER OF RECENT HOR.
RIBLE CRIMES.
Says the Laws Delays are RESPONSE
HE. for Condition of Affairs in this
State
Special to The Herald and News.

OpeCidI 10 1uC I1CI d1o d1Au ANS"o
Columbia, May 5.-Citing number
of recent horrible crimes in South Car
olina, Governor Blease in a vigorous
statement given to the press, says the
delays of the law, including delays
in bringing cases to trial, appeals on
frivolous technicalities, and delays in
final judgments in cases on appeal, are
responsible for the condition Of affairs,
and asks when the courts are going to
awake to the necessity Of a speedy dis
position of cases and how long the leg
islature is going to permit the present
methods to continue.
Commenting upon the action of the
sheriff Of Chester in bringing prison
ers to the penitentiary on Friday for
safe-keeping, Governor Blease said:
"The Chester sheriff insisted that his
prisoners should be brought here and
lodged in the penitentiary The sheriff
of Florence recently bad to slip some
prisoners around by Charleston to get
them here, and the Newberry sheriff
!, had to bring one of his prisoners
here not long ago for safe-keeping.
The situation in this State is due
to the laws delays-to delays in get
ting a case to trial, appeals upon tech
nicanties, and delays in getting a final
decision in cases. 1t is getting to be
a serious proposition and unless the
courts or the legislature provide some
remedy, i fear for the results. We
have now the Bethune case from
Clarendon-the murder of white
man by a negro four or five times
sentenced to death, and each time the
s. s.ntence set aside by some frivolous
technicality of law. We have the case
of the murder of the little boy at
Florence on appeal on some technl-
cal ground of frivolous nature. We
have the horrible and brutal murder OF
the two little boys pear BennettsVllle'
in Marlboro county-another conVlc-
ton with death sentence, and trl-
vial technical appeal holding off the
execution. Recently there was an
other horrible crime in Florence, and
a most brutal and outrageous murder
in Chester-negroes killing a white
man. Now, just upon the heels OF that
comes this awful tragedy in Hamp-
ton. We wonder the deputy sherln
of Chester, the home of laW-abid-
ing and peaceful people, who seldom
are aroused to that pitch where they
take law into their own hands, begs
to be allowed to bring his prisoners
to this city to be placed in the penl-
tentiary, on account of fear OF lynch
ing.
How long the white people OF SouIn
Carolina are going to stand this con-
dition of affais, don't know. When ne
groes assault heir women, when they
burn their property, when they mur-
der their neighbors, they sit by as
law-abiding g citizens, and allow the
law to take its course, as they are ad-
vised by the great upholders OF law
and order to do, and the course of the
law is delay, delay, delay. Negro So
cieties take up collections for and con-
tribute to the defense Of those who
assault white women, murder Whlte
men. or burn white mems property.
LAWYERS are found who go beyond the
scope of an honorable attorney, and
accept this petty chicken change as
fee to defeat or to delay what they
know to be justice, even where the
issue is between the white women and
the negro brute. Then, when the
white people, realizing this fearful
condition, not knowing what moment
the crime of all crimes most terrible
may be brought home to their wives
or daughters, or what moment their
lives may be taken or their proper
ty may go up in smoke, get aroused
and take the law into their own hands,
the newspapers and others come out
and yell, "The murderers, the hood
lums, the anarchists, take the law into.
their own hands,
81 know that it will be charged, as