The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1872-09-13
LYNCH ia q /. ALBANIA.
yihhEfs Men HUNG b AZ MOB Els At
THE ExEeUTaos.-a MAN HUNG WHO
{ had KILLED SIXTEEN MEN. &c. 6c.

s iatAD hhL'1f,D sixFEEN MEN. DC. &c.
| The telegraph has noticed the hanging, by
the citizens, in Lauderdale, Ala, on the 18th
instant. of Thomas Clark and two burglars,
Clark had in his career murdered sixteen
men. The Lauderdale Times of the 9Th
instant gives an account Of this affair. the
most remarkable case of lynch law Oh record
in this country. 1t says:
| Tuesday evening n gentleman of Athens
came to this place and brought information
that on the night previous nine houses had
been burglariously entered in the town OF
Athens and much valuable property stolen
therefrom. He said that tile parties sun.
posed TO have committed the burglary were
coming towards this place. and advised the
citizens to be OH the alert But no one
thought anything of 1t, and all retired, az
usual, little suspecting burglars in our quiet
| town. During the night the houses of Judge
Arlington, James Hancock, and II. T. Simp.
son were entered and gold watches stolen
from the latter two.
| About haf-Iast , O'Clock that night two
men wer' seen on the streets driving Il sorre]
mare to Il buggy. Suspicion was at once fixed
upon these rs the guilty parties, and at sun
rise yesterday morning four men went in
| pursuit. IL WAS aScertaincd that they had
| gone i'll the direction of Waterloo.
THE CAPTURE
of the robbers WAS effected by McSsrs. Will
liam +. Blair Getty marshaD William Banks,
| William Joiner, and w. b. Wason. The
| robbers had stopped for dinner and were
about unhitching they were travelling in Il
| fine top-bugsy drawn by sorrel mare) their
| nj r hp IF
pool, few miles below Gravclly Springs.
They offered little resistance, but expressed
much surprise as Mr.. Blair and others rode
| up. The marshal demanded their s,Irren-
| der, aid, telling them that he intended
| to Ego through them like Il dose of salts" q
search of their persons discovered thing
hut on examining the buggy the pin of Il
breastpin was observed sticking through
the lining of the buSgy-.op. The party i'm,
| mcdiatcly went sup stairs in the language
of one of the gallant gentlemen, and found
there eight watches and handtuls of breast
Plus, &c. OnOpcninga 'drlmmers satchel.
| which was in the buggy, files, saws, and
| other burglariouS instruments were found.
amongst which was Il Dlurdcrous slung-Shot.
| At tniS part Of the game the colInteilanccs
of the robbers fell. They seemed to give UP
all thought of escape and to make up their
minds to suffer the enalty Of the law il they
could not Ivy some ingenious trick manage to
break Jail. Their arms having been taken,
they were placed in the buggy, and, with
| their captors before and behind, turned to.
ward Florence.
Just above Grayelly Springs the party was
joined by one of the many ubiquitous candi.
dates now canvas>ing the county, and further
on by the marshal of Athens and his cGm.
| mnion. The prisoners. who were elegantly
dressed, expressed much annoyance at the
| beat and dust. seeming not to care much for
anything else.
Florence turned out en- mdSse is the party
rode in towu. Much excitement prevailed
| AT night it illuminated i'll
THE HANGING.
The jail being insecure. Sheriff Hudson
| had summoned eight men in addition to the
| TAILOR to guard the prisoners. About mid
| night great crowd came to the Jail and de-
| mandcd the keys. The guard refused to
give them up. and fired on the mob. 1t is
| said that the fire was returned. At any rate.
| the inil doors were broken open aud the
! Guard disarmed. The cells wherein Tom
| Clark and the robbers were confined were
also broken into. and three men taken out
and carried Immediately to an adj ,ininy
square and hanged Ivy the neck until they
were dead. The three were suspended from
| Il tree which stands in the rear of the site of
| the old Masonic Lodge.
| In the morning the citizens found them
| there. One was Identified u.s. Tom Clark;
one was Il short, stalwart man, with the ini-
| lialS +. Il. auu Il star, in Indan-ink, OIL bis
| right ami. and two hearts pierced Ivy an
| arrow On his left hand; and one is supposed
| TO be Gibson. We understand that one of
The robbers directed his portion of the 500
in money. which was found on their persons.
to I've sent tn his sister. Miss Kate Schiiec, OF
indianapolis. indiana. The nun attempted
! TO escape. was shot by some person unknown,
rccapturcd. and hung with the others. 1t is
the opinion of Dr. Ilanuum. who examined
his wound, that death would have resulted
from the pstol-shot. The younger robbcr
marched up boldly to the tree and requested
the cyr,.llioucrS to hold him up and drop
him. instead of drawing him up. The
prayers of Clark were agonizin", and were
heard by the citizens living near. Clark is
said to have killed sixteen men during his
life.
TIE BURIAL.
The indignation of citizens ut the out
| RACES Of these men was so great that the
ladies Of the community and many of the
! colorcd people requested the Mayor to have
the bodies buried outside Of the cemetery
Esquire Rice. in accordance with this re.
quest, has ordered that the bodies be inferred
in one OF the old fields near our town.
McS>rs. Hancock and Simpson identified
their watches among those found in posses.
sion of the burglars.
| We hope that people ut Il distance will not
accuse our citizens of lawlcssncSs for this act
We are as law-abiding MS any people in the
land, and only when driven by the highest
law OF natures God-Seli- preservation
would our community take the law in their
OWN hands and mcte out to these murderCrs
and robbers the just punishment for their
enormous crimes. II ever mob law was
l.justifiable, it was in this instance. Tom
Clark, who boosted that he had murdered in
cold blood sixteen men, deserved hanging
sixteen times over. The Others no doubt
would have Slain their scores If they had
found it necessary to cover their vllainy.
| They were murdcrerS mt heart. and entered
your dwelling with the formed design to say
every man who might he awakened and at
tempt to defend his household.
| These men have only met their deserved
end. Let all such take warning. This was
| no kukluN affair, but simply the legitimate
effect of ind gnant and outraged public
f cling. FtarfuIly and quickly has the hand
| of Rctribution Overtaken them, but it WAS
of the most hc:rtless villains that ever cursed
! the world. We are opposed to mob law,
but these men met death richly deserved,
aud over their fate we she'd no tears.
~ y.