their mouths before this great outrage. They do not see that by their
tacit encouragement, their silent acquiescence, the black shadow of
lawlessness in the form of lynch law is spreading its wings over the whole
country.

Men who, like Governor Tillman, start the ball of lynch law rolling for a
certain crime, are powerless to stop it when drunken or criminal white
toughs feel like hanging an Afro-American on any pretext.

Even to the better class of Afro-Americans the crime of rape is so
revolting they have too often taken the white man's word and given lynch
law neither the investigation nor condemnation it deserved.

They forget that a concession of the right to lynch a man for a certain
crime, not only concedes the right to lynch any person for any crime, but
(so frequently is the cry of rape now raised) it is in a fair way to stamp
us a race of rapists and desperadoes. They have gone on hoping and
believing that general education and financial strength would solve the
difficulty, and are devoting their energies to the accumulation of both.

The mob spirit has grown with the increasing intelligence of the
Afro-American. It has left the out-of-the-way places where ignorance
prevails, has thrown off the mask and with this new cry stalks in broad
daylight in large cities, the centers of civilization, and is encouraged
by the "leading citizens" and the press.




4 _The_ MALICIOUS _and_ UNTRUTHFUL WHITE PRESS