The State and Lynchings
October 13, 1894
Summary
White newspapers attempting to debunk the stories of Ida B Wells in England, accusing her of exaggerating her stories regarding lynchings and the relations between blacks and whites.
Transcription
The effect of Miss Ida B Wells’ crusade in England, with a view of arousing public sentiment against lynching in this country continues to be felt and many of the Democratic journals seem never to tire in the work of endeavoring to refute statements which their own news columns have long since proven to be true.
The richmond, VA, “State” in its issue of the 9th Inst, says:
“The English people are getting their eyes open and are beginning to see that Ida Wells told only a half true about lynchings in the South, and thereby deceived her sympathizers abroad.”
We were of the opinion that she could not do full justice to the harrowing subject. But that she deceived her sympathizers cannot be true inasmuch as the truth of what she says stands and the world is invited to investigate. The State says:
“When the English people fully understand that the relations between the whites and blacks are friendly and that in almost every instance of lynching, the cause is the brutal outrage of defenseless white women - more often than otherwise little children - by Negroes, then their eyes will be fully open to the facts.”
Statistics of lynchings will not bear out the assertions above expressed, and of they did, it still remains a fact that the law should be supreme.
The State well knows that the three colored men lynched at Clifton Forge, VA, were not charged with criminal assault. It knows that the four colored men lynched at Richlands, VA, were not charged with “brutal outrage upon defenseless white women.” It knows that Thos Smith who was lynched and burned at Roanoke, VA, was charged with robbing an old white woman, whom be is alleged to have struck. Facts have since come to light, which make it doubtful that he was the guilty party.
Thomas Penn of Danville, VA, rpaed a colored girl ten years of age. He has not as yet been convicted and with reference to his case, the State is silent.
Clause L. Brock, a white man at (unintelligent) rape a ten year old colored girl in Surry Co, VA and upon the aunt of the little girl remonstrating with him he shot her, firing four more bullets into her prostrate body. The murderer has not been apprehended, and the Richmond, VA, State has gone stone blind with reference to the case.
A white man who killed a colored girl in Southwest Virginia because she would not come to live with him and be his mistress has never been apprehended. These are beastly examples of depravity, and against such, all good citizens should unite.
The state declares its own lack of confidence in the law in the following language:
“Whenever these crimes shall cease as bas been so often stated, then, and not till them, we fear, will lynchings cease.”
It is not that crime shall cease in order to eliminate the evil, but that a strict impartial punishment of the lynchers will accomplish the result. Lynch law must go!
The richmond, VA, “State” in its issue of the 9th Inst, says:
“The English people are getting their eyes open and are beginning to see that Ida Wells told only a half true about lynchings in the South, and thereby deceived her sympathizers abroad.”
We were of the opinion that she could not do full justice to the harrowing subject. But that she deceived her sympathizers cannot be true inasmuch as the truth of what she says stands and the world is invited to investigate. The State says:
“When the English people fully understand that the relations between the whites and blacks are friendly and that in almost every instance of lynching, the cause is the brutal outrage of defenseless white women - more often than otherwise little children - by Negroes, then their eyes will be fully open to the facts.”
Statistics of lynchings will not bear out the assertions above expressed, and of they did, it still remains a fact that the law should be supreme.
The State well knows that the three colored men lynched at Clifton Forge, VA, were not charged with criminal assault. It knows that the four colored men lynched at Richlands, VA, were not charged with “brutal outrage upon defenseless white women.” It knows that Thos Smith who was lynched and burned at Roanoke, VA, was charged with robbing an old white woman, whom be is alleged to have struck. Facts have since come to light, which make it doubtful that he was the guilty party.
Thomas Penn of Danville, VA, rpaed a colored girl ten years of age. He has not as yet been convicted and with reference to his case, the State is silent.
Clause L. Brock, a white man at (unintelligent) rape a ten year old colored girl in Surry Co, VA and upon the aunt of the little girl remonstrating with him he shot her, firing four more bullets into her prostrate body. The murderer has not been apprehended, and the Richmond, VA, State has gone stone blind with reference to the case.
A white man who killed a colored girl in Southwest Virginia because she would not come to live with him and be his mistress has never been apprehended. These are beastly examples of depravity, and against such, all good citizens should unite.
The state declares its own lack of confidence in the law in the following language:
“Whenever these crimes shall cease as bas been so often stated, then, and not till them, we fear, will lynchings cease.”
It is not that crime shall cease in order to eliminate the evil, but that a strict impartial punishment of the lynchers will accomplish the result. Lynch law must go!
About this article
Source
Location on Page
Lower Left Quadrant
Topic
Contributed By
Carlos Serrano
Citation
“The State and Lynchings,” Black Virginia: The Richmond Planet, 1894-1909, accessed October 9, 2026, https://blackvirginia.richmond.edu/items/show/1489.