The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1917, 1915-08-05
THE .yEFFERSoNEAN

lie could sit around IN the shade smoking
cigarettes, and contemplating with serene
equanlmlty the spectacle of the work gangs,
out in the feld-the poor, friendless devils
who had not enjoyed the distinction Of muir
dering a woman in cold blood; and as he
sat, with legs crossed and hands folded, lcok-
ing upon the striped convicts toiling under
the burning sun, OF in the bitter cold, it must
have filled his soul with nexpressible salts
faction to realize that he had at length
reached one consecrated spot, in Georgia,
where money does not count
Now let us look at another Macon muir
der case, where a Gentle boy shot Jew
who offered to Keep the boys SISTER.
William LansberG was the name Of the
man killed; and he was brother to jim Lans-
berg, aoh0 attempted to rape a Gentle
qconaan, was sentenced to serve twenty years,
never really served at all, and accs per-
d0aed
The facts in the case of murder arc given
me by Macon friend who never fails me-
and who never misleads me:
On the evening of April 14th, 1884, j. Rhodes
Brown Danforth of Macon, Georgia, shot and
killed one William Lansberg, the killing taking
place in the office of the dry goods establishment
OF NJ Nussbaum Co., of which firm William
Lansberger partner, being a brother-in-Iaw
of Nussbaum. DanfOrth, at the time filled the
position of entry clerk
The that finally resulted in the killing
were about follows:
Danforth, who had dependent him aged
mother and sister applied to Lansberg for
raise in salary, stating that the salary paid him
was too small to support him. his mother and
sister. It is said that Lansberg, who known
of the most domineering arrogant Jews
at that time in Macon, replied to Danforth
follows
81 will not consent to any raise in your salary
and if the present salary is not sufficient to sup
mother sister mother
the poorhouse, and will support your sister,
Danforth (who was very peculiar boy, seldom
seen with anyone, seemed to attend to his own
business, quiet, unassuming, but at the same
time most competent MANI left Lansberg after
the above conversation, went home, and, after
supper came back to the office to finish his days
work. Finding Lansberg in the Office, he, with
out word shot him four or five times, killing him
almost instantly.
He tried in the April term Of the Bibb
County Superior Court; was convicted and recon-
mended to the mercy of the court. The Supreme
Court of Georgia affirmed the sentence and on
the 18th day of June, 1885, he was sentenced to
the penitentiary for life.
He served quite number of years of his
tence at the lumber camp of the Gress Lumber
Company, at Greston He was finally pardoned
moved to Brunswick, married. and later COM
mtted suicide, leaving note with the request
that he be buried at sea, which request his wife
carried out.
Of course, I do not know on what line
Danforth was defended, but it should have
been-and probably was-that the sight of
William Lansberg was unexpected to the boy,
that night, and this unexpected meeting
with the man who had so intoierably insulted
HMM the absence Of retractiom and
apo1ogy-was renewal of the insult.
No man on earth is expected to take an
atfront such as the rich Jew put upon this
Gentle boy-any more than we expect
man NOT to strike, when some one splits in
his face.
In the Danforth case, the Gentle had to
serve at one of the convict lessee lumber