The American Missionary — Volume 42, No. 10, October, 1888Various
Religion
The American Missionary — Volume 42, No. 10, October, 1888
Various
Congregational churches -- Missions -- Periodicals; Home missions -- Periodicals
But last Sunday, Dr. Stith, one of the exiles, went back to Marion on
the morning train. He had heard that his wife was sick, and he said:
"If I am a man I must go to her." He was promptly arrested by the
patrol force at Marion and lodged in jail, where he is likely to
remain until next January meeting of court before he can have a trial.
There is nothing brought against him aside from his having been once
associated with the "offensive partisans." He had at one time been an
active politician, but more recently has devoted himself to his
profession, and was already known as a successful physician. Like
Odom, his character is not assailed: but he was educated, and
influential among the people.
Two young ladies, teachers from Memphis, one of whom had taught last
year at Marion, went thither soon after Dr. Stith's arrest, to make
inquiry about a situation for teaching.
They were closely watched, and in an interview were warned by a
reporter of the Memphis Appeal that it was not safe for them to remain
in Marion. They had reason to think that they were being watched as
spies in the interest of the banished; hence their stay was very
brief.
When the Clerk Ferguson had vacated, a "white citizen" was at once put
into that office. It is a remarkable fact that, aside from a few hints
about the necessity of maintaining order and proceeding according to
law, the general tone of the press here is to the effect that this
occurrence, though unfortunate on account of its effect at the North,
was really justifiable.
The cruel wrong inflicted upon those who have no crime laid to their
charge, no personal reproach of character, is treated as though it
were but little more than a joke. If the two officials were guilty of
drunkenness no one doubts that they could have been legally removed
from office. If the colored people at Marion are divided into
factions, then the whites could the more easily combine forces against
the officials in question, or any political ring which may have
existed. But there was a general Negro uprising threatened, and in
order to save their own lives the whites made haste to get into the
field first. This is the avowed excuse. But it is certain that no one
believes there was serious danger of a Negro uprising. The men
arrested and banished were unarmed, and taken by surprise. If they
were in any sense desperate or dangerous characters they turned
cowards suddenly, making no resistance. Indeed, there is but one
excuse for their bloodless surrender. They display to the world the
utter groundlessness of the charge of a conspiracy. No dynamite bombs,
no loaded weapons, no evidence of organized bands were discovered.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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