The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1913-01-08
Georgia IS a Lyrehing State.

Only tfty-twO lyncnlngS, knO"n 10 %
such beyond doubt, occurred in the UNI
ted States in the year just closed. In
previous years the number has been
much larger, 100 having been recorded
in 1894 and ITO in the following year.
The past ten years the number has BEEN
steadily decreasing. Only one Year,
however, produced fewer lynching Shan
1912. 10 1907 the record shows 81 lyach=
ings. one less than this year. In some
southern states there were fewer lynch
ings in-1912 than in almost any previous
year. The decrease is attributed large
~ to the efforts made by governors and
prominent citizens TO prevent mob vio-
lence. Many of the governors have act
ed promptly and energesically to pre-
vent lynchings, with the declared policy
OF giving the law free. opportunity for
the punishment of all alleged offenders,
white or black. Again, as in the record
Of former years, more lynchings occur
red in Georgia than any other state.
Louisiana and Florida come next in the
list. South Carolina, whose governor
has gone on record as unopposed 70 lyn-
chings in certain cases, had six cases OF
summary execution this year as against
only one in the year. 1911. Kentucky,
with eight lynchings in 1911, had a.
clean slate last year. Oklahoma is an
other state with clean record for the
past twelve months. The figures for
Texas, Tennessee, Florida and Arkan-
sas show fever lynchings than in 1911.
In Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana
the number slightly exceeded that OF
last year. The states outside OF the south
where lynchings occurred in 1912 were
West Virginia, Wyoming, Montana,
North Dakota, and California. By states
the record is as follows: Georgia, IA;
Louisiana, S: South Carolina, 6; Florida,
s; Alabama, 4; Arkansas, 5: Texas, 81
Mississippi, 8; Tennessee, l: Wyoming,
/; West Virginia, /; Montana, 1; Cali
fornia, 1; and North Dakota, l. In the
tifty-two lypchings, the victims OF all
but two were negroes. Three negresses
were included in the list. Alleged.
crimes against women or girls and muir
der of white persons accounted for prac-
tically of the cases. A singular feature
is found in the lynching of the two white
men, both Of which occurred in the far
north. In each case the victim was &C
cused of murder. In the town OF Joppa,
a short distance from Rosebud, Mon.
tana, Harry Ee5ner, alleged slayer Of
Mrs. William Merrsll, was taken from
the county jail by crowd of masked
men and hanged, despite the efforts OF
the sheriff and his deputy. The second
lynching occurred at Steele, N. D.,
where George Baker, charged with the
murder of his wife and father-in-law,
was taken from the Jail and hanged by
s mob. The ]yrching was the first re-
corded in North Dakota in more than a
decade The lynching in Wyoming was
one Of the most sensational OF the wear.
Frank Wigfall, a negro, who confessed
20 having made criminal attack on
Mrs, Esther Higgins, an aged woman
known as the "prisoners' friend" was
lynched by the convicts Of The state pen
itentiary at Rawlins. In the West Nfr-
giuia lvnching, the victim was Walter
johnson, a negro accused of assaulting
a young white girl in Mercer county.
California's one lynching was out OF the
ordinary. It occurred on the desert,
some thirty miles from the town OF Mo-
iaye. The victim was an unknown ne
gro accused of having attacked a'6-year-
old child. He was hanged by men al
legged to be employed on the Los An
geles aqueduct. The three negresses
who fell victims to mob violence were
Ann Boston, who murdered the wife OF
a planter at Pinehurst, Ca; Mary Jack
son, who was lynched in Pamela county,
Texas, for alleged completely in the
murder of white man, and an unknown
negress, who. together with three ne
+groes, was hanged by mob IN Harris
county, Georgia, for the murder of a
farmer. Tyler, Texas, furnished the
only instance OF the year where the vic
tim was burned at the stake. On May.
25,. Dan Davis, negro, who had con-
fessed to criminal attack on a young
white woman, was burned at the stake
in one OF the main streets in Tyler, in
the presence of crowd of 2, 900 persons.
The foregoing record does not comprise
cases of plain murder or cases where
the victim was killed by posse while
resisting capture.