THE LYNCHING AT JEFF
Item
-
Title
-
THE LYNCHING AT JEFF
-
Source Type
-
Newspapers
-
Publisher
-
The Journal
-
Publication Place
-
Huntsville, Alabama
-
Publication Date
-
5/21/1897
-
Transcript
-
THE LYNCHING AT JEFF- Lynch law is always to be deplored. It cannot in an enlightened country like ours be justified. There are Instance ui wbich it may be oomioued. TliK U par'icularly true when the crime l one sgaint the aacrod Vlitoe of wo-manhood. Hot lu such a caa a that which oecuriHl at Jeff, Ala., Jt.rday 'vr hero two belpli- negro girls were numinarily strung op withoot trial, there can be neiUier Ju.uUcutiou liul oomlouatioD. Acoor Hug to the details receive I and publinhed in yeeterday' New the vto-linis were suauectwl of having aduilu. itereil poiiuiii to the Kelly family three dlnVrt lit occasion. As the result ciii'i death had occurred aud mauy poo-ile hail been rendered daugoroDMlr 111. The detail of tun Holmmlng have been published from time to time a they occurred, and everr Alabamtaa who read I hem no doubt felt iudiguant that suoh foul crimes should be perpetrated In enlightened community. Aaoordlng the alleged coiiu'ssiou of oue of tbe vio tims. both girl, who appear to bare been in the employ of the Kelly family were implicated tu the crimes. The motive which prompted them Is not nta'ed but It is commonly nppoed that their deeds were instigated by an enemy of the family prtbably a discharged negro lauorer. The crimes were cold bio- ded and revolting. Hut even theee oiroamsianoes did not tastify the citizen iu taking tbe law into their own bauds and dealing on death to two ignorant and dcfeimele feuiule. If the girls were guilty it is reasonable to snpposo that their oonvio tiou would have resulted at their trial It is probuble, tK, that had they been jailed Iher oould have been indicted tried, aud. if found guilty, seutenced and executed all within three or four months, had p-rper effort been made thev were without money or influence, so that they coul i have been no nndue olixfruction placed iu the way of Justice The Jeff lynching, therefore, is inex disable. To have allowed the law to take its course and permitted the guilty oues to be legally hanged would have b'l-n a f , r more impressive lesson. There is an underlying cause, other tlmu Hie cri nes climeed Against the victims, for lynching nch as occurred in Madison Comity yesterday. It is the same which cheapens human life and pronogates lawlessness in Al ibana. It is tie frequency with which justice is delayed or miscarries. S ich instances impress the necessity for prompt trials and for a more wholesome regard on the part of good citizens for jury duty So long as the best men in a communi ty shiink jury service and leave the measuring out of justice to the ignorant and prejudiced, there can be no assur auce that the nds of justice will be met. Not nntil courts are productive of fewer delays and good citizens toe the mark of duty will the State cease to be d'sgraced by crime. Birmingham News. We are forced to admit the loglo and truthfulness of what the news sayp, Truly was it an ngly affair, a disgrace t'our county. It was only a few weeks ago when The Tkibcnk and other city papers condemned a Jackson County tucb for shooting a negro man while absolutely confined within the iron grates of a prison ce.l. Thii negro man was not more helpless so far as escaping justice than was the two ignorant young women while' in the hands of a mob of enraged white men. The farce came last, the ridiculous featnro was where a so call coroners jury representing the law returned a verdict that the women came to death by hanging at the hands of unknown parties. The whole truth of the busines i is, we are suffering from a lack of civilization, a lack enforcing the law.a weak a dofective executive power. We don't mean by this to reflect upon our sheriff, for had been on the ground we don't believe there would have been a hanging, for has demonstrated his courage and faithfulness to the trust imposed upon him when he on a former occasion rescued a prisoner from a mob at Madison. But if this order of proceedure is endured we must admit that no man has protection to his life, no guarantee a fair and impartial trial in the state Alabama. We are second to no man our esteem for the late Joshua Kelly sympathy for his worthy and bereaved family, bnt the law must be maintained, fair trials must be given, life most be protected, and no one family class should be excused for crime. If guilty the women shonli have been hnug by the due process of law, but mob violence is a disgrace, and we candidly repeat that the hanging of two ignorant yi nng negro women upon a confession possibly obtained by either threats or hope of reward, w s a degree reckless violation of all laws which entails disgrace to Alabama Tribune.