The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1875-10-02
LYNCH LAW IN OHIO.

know anything about the planet Nuican'
LYNCH LAW IN OHIO,
There was most shocking case OF
rape and murder near Belefontaine, ONO,
last week, ending with the lynching OF
the supposed criminal, man named
Shell was a tenant on the farm OF veal.
thy man named Laughlin. Shell had a
bad reputation among the neighbors, ana mao
been suspected of various crimes, but thus
far nothing had been proved against him.
and he seems always to have had the conn
dence Of Laughlin Last Thursday Shell ar
ranged to take his wife and two little girls to
thicket in the neighborhood TO gather
plums. Miss Laughlin, the daughter OF
Shells landlord, very handsome and engag'
ing young lady of sixteen--proposed and
was allowed TO go with The Shells. The par
ty went to dense thlcket near mill pond
Mrs. Shell, not feeling well, says she remain
ed in the wagon, while her husband, Miss
Laughlin and the children scattered in vari-
Gus directions. In the course Of three or
four hours, when 1t was time to think about
returning home, Shell returned to the wagon
and told his wife Miss Laughlin was lost.
He pretended to hunt for her until night, and
then the party returned home without her.
All that night and the next morning hun
dred neighbors turned out and assisted IN the
search for the missing girl. At last she was
found hidden in derse underbrush, her
clothes nearly all torn from her body, seven
teen stabs from sharp knife on her person,
and her skull crushed in apparently by a
boot heel. Suspicion at once fastened on
the coroner's inquest his wife was called as a
witness, and she made an astonishing revela
ton She SAID that when il was settled that
Miss Laughln was to be one of the party to
the plum thicket She'll who for some reason
had conceived a spite against Laughlln, had
told her that he intended to ravish Miss
Laughlin and kill her afterwards; that their
ride on Thursday was planned for that pur.
pose, and that her husband threatened TO kill
her if she followed him when he went into the
bushes with Miss Laughlin. She says he re.
turned in about two hours stating that Miss
Laughln fought SO hard he did not succeed
in ravishing her although after lie had stab
bed her, she said Don't kill me, Jim; |
won't resist any more" but he feared she
would tell, and so he killed her, threatening
also to kill his wife if she told of it. MIS-.
Shell also testified to other crimes committed
by her husband.
The affair, of course caused the most in
tense excitement, and that night FRIDAY,
Sept. 24th) several hundred citizens surround
ed the Jail at Belefontaine, took Shell out
and hung him to a tree,-Shell, d Iring the
whole affair, solemnly and vehemently pro-
testing his innocence.
Ill.consldered, hasty and unjustifable as this
sudden wreaking of vengeance ON the sup
posed criminal was the affair would doubt.
less soon passed over as of no serious conse.
quence, if it had not since transpired that
the man was perhaps in reality, as he so en-
ergeically protested to the last, innocent In
Miss LaughliDs hand, on closely examining
her body, was found bunch of hair which,
In the violent struggle she evidently had had
with her murderer, she had torn from the
roots, and tins hair had not been torn from
the head of Shell. 1t was softer, silkier and
a foot longer than his hair, and of different
color. Indeed the hair correspondent exactly
with that of his wife, and the theory is now
gaining ground that the wife, who had on
several occasions, they say, exhibited signs of
Jealousy towards Miss Laughlin, committed
the murder herself, and not Shell.