they will overreach themselves and public sentiment will have a
reaction; a conclusion will then be reached which will be very damaging
to the moral reputation of their women.

The _Daily Commercial_ of Wednesday following, May 25, contained the
following leader:

Those negroes who are attempting to make the lynching of individuals of
their race a means for arousing the worst passions of their kind are
playing with a dangerous sentiment. The negroes may as well understand
that there is no mercy for the negro rapist and little patience with his
defenders. A negro organ printed in this city, in a recent issue
publishes the following atrocious paragraph: "Nobody in this section of
the country believes the old thread-bare lie that negro men rape white
women. If Southern white men are not careful they will overreach
themselves, and public sentiment will have a reaction; and a conclusion
will be reached which will be very damaging to the moral reputation of
their women."

The fact that a black scoundrel is allowed to live and utter such
loathsome and repulsive calumnies is a volume of evidence as to the
wonderful patience of Southern whites. But we have had enough of it.

There are some things that the Southern white man will not tolerate, and
the obscene intimations of the foregoing have brought the writer to the
very outermost limit of public patience. We hope we have said enough.

The _Evening Scimitar_ of same date, copied the _Commercial_'s editorial
with these words of comment: