Evening star., 1961-07-11
Arrival Of Riders Stirs Little Rock;
U. S. Court Delays Mississippi Suit

LII LIE NUN, ARK, July IL
CAP).-A shouting crowd of
about 300 white persons yes
terday greeted the first Free
dom Riders to reach Little
Rock, where violence erupted
over forced school integration
in 1857.
When the five riders from
st. Louis arrived at the Midwest
railways bus station yeSter-
day, there were taunts but the
crowd never became unruly.
Police Chief R. E. Glasscock
arrested two Negroes and two
white persons when they re-
fused to leave the white wait
ing room. The fifth, an 18-
year-old Negro girl, was picked
up by police outside the waiting
room and later released.
The four were charged under
a 1859 State law which makes
it a misdemeanor to act in a
way that causes or threatens
a breach of the peace. Maxi
mum penalty is a $500 fine,
six months in Jail, or both. The
laws constitutionality is being
tested in the Arkansas Supreme
Court.
The cases of the four were
delayed in Municipal Court
today until tomorrow to per-
nit their attorney, Thad Will
liams, to prepare a defense. Mr..
Williams said the four would
remain in jail and no attempt
would be made to raise bond.
Faubus Urges Quiet
Earlier yesterday, Gov. Orval
E. FaubuS had said he hoped
Little Rock residents would
ignore the Freedom Riders,
who announced in advance
when they planned to arrive.
IF they were completely
ignored it would be the worst
disappointment they could
have" Gov. Faubus said.
The Freedom Riders also +
suffered a temporary setback
at jackson, Miss, where 227
Negroes and white persons have
been arrested since May "a on
breach of the peace charges
for trying to desegregate bus,
train and air terminals.
A three-judge Federal panel,
with one judge dissenting,
postponed until August Z a
suit seeking to halt arrest of
the riders in Mississippi.
Despite objections of Chief
Justice Ebert Tuttle Of the
United States Fifth Circuit
Court Of Appeals, the panel
agreed to the postponement be-
cause Of the illness of a MisSis-
sippi assistant attorney gen.
eral.
Suit Filed by NAACP ,
The court action was filed
by the National Association for
the Advancement of Colored
People. The suit attacked what
it called unconstitutional State
laws requiring segregation in
railroad cars, buses, rest rooms,
waiting rooms and other areas. I
The Justice Department L
joined forces in a friend of the
court" brief which asked for
an injunction to stop Missis- /
sippi from enforcing nine State
laws calling for racial segre-
cation Of travellers. The brief
called such laws clearly uncon-
stitutional. :
In City Court at Jackson,
Judge James Spencer convicted
"a riders in two trials, the larg- =,
est mass convictions to date.
All were sentenced to 5000 fines
and four months in jail. The
action brought to 224 the num-
Der convicted on breach-of- :
peace charges. Three riders
arrested July 7 were turned !
over to juvenile authorities.
Minnesota DisOwns Riders
The office Of Gov. Ross Bar
nett Of Mississippi made public '
a letter from Minnesota Gov.
Elmer Andersen saying that L
violation of State laws by the c
riders strikes "at deep funda- {
mentals in our American way
of life" Ii
If a law is wrong or bad, Gov.
Andersen wrote, there are I
proper ways to seek to change I
it. At no time can we con- I
done deliberate breaking of any l
law" {
He thanked Gov. Barnett for