The Omaha guide., 1935-04-27
Southern Officials and Defense Grid
For ScOttsboro Fight
BY John Brock
Associa, e Editor, Crusader News Agency.

Fast moving developments, subsequent to the
momentous decision of the Supreme Court, point
D a stiff struggle for the freedom Of the Scots
boro defendants.
Lieut.. Governor Thomas E. Knight has taken
persosal charge Of the case for the state of Alabama.
He has announced that prosecution will continue
"to the end" Steps for re-indictment in the cases
have already been made by The state.
Editorials and news stories appearing in the
southern press can be taken as a reflection Of the
official mind. These empha, ically reveal a not-too-
restrained Impotence with the recent decision and
the mass campaign to free the defendants. Both
through newspapers and official spokesman, plans
and Investigations are expressed to rob Negroes of
the RICH 5 set forth in the Supreme Court ruling.
An editorial in the Montgomery Advertiser" is
an example. We quote in part:
Boys Called "Gorilas."
''The Supreme Court Of the Uni. ed States tells
Alabama in effect, that it is not primarily interest
ed in Otherwise credible evidence demonstrating
human depravity, but it is primarily interested in
the academic political 'righ,s' Of a politically dis
possessed race.
1.-The Advertiser may be dumb-but to save it.
self it cannot see what the poll, zeal rights and privi-
leges Of Negroes in Alabama have to do with the
guilt or innocence Of the gorillas who are charged
with criminal assault upon two women, it being
agreed that rape is a felony under the law in this
backward State.
1T seems to the t'Adver ,iser'' that if the Su-
preme Court Of the United States presided over by
Charles Evans Hughes had a more sensitive regard
for The victims actual and potential-of felonious
assault her the Advertiser repeats the lynching
accusation that Negroes are prone to rape'-and
less regard for the politically dispossessed in the
home state of these victims, it would not devote an
entire opinion to an academic political discussion,
but would offer some comment on the evidence by
which the gorillas aforesaid had been convicted
The entire editorial was reproduced on the front
page of the jackson County Scottsboro Sentinel.
In a letter to all trial judges in the state, Gov
ernor Graves instructed the revision Of jury boxes
He also added:
I" Intend to ask the Legislature to enact such
remedial Legislation as will be needful along the
Il intend to ask the Legislature to enact such
The nature of the remedial legislation" has
been announced by Senator ]. Miller Bonner, Of
Wilcox County, Alabama. The Senator has pre-
pared a bill limiting jury service to qualified
electors" He states:
"While there may be o,her remedies to meet the
situation caused by the Scotsboro decision, this one
will 60 far to protect the Black Belt. "Take my
couny, for instance, we do not have a single Negro
voter. only a small percentage of the Negroes in
the state are qualified electors, while under the jury
law, in view of the recent Scottsboro ruling, a vast
ly larger number might be qualified for jury serv-
ice.'
Senator Bonner thus admits that his bill is de-
signed to maintain all white juries in the Black
Belt where the Negroes are a majority of the popu-
lation.