New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-01-01
THE Law STARTS TO TAKE ITS COURSE
An Armed Mob Interfere, and Lynch
the Accused Woman.

The Baton Rouge Advocate of yesterday
contains horrible account of attempted
crime, and as criminal sequel In brief it
is this:
At the house of Mr. Andrew B. Booth, on
Christmas day, after dinner, thirteen ps--
sons were taken Ill. DR.. Gardner was called
and treated them as afflicted by poison. All
were relieved, but some are still i'll. Those
who drank from vessels filed with rain
water in the morning were not affected;
those who used it from vessels filed after
twelve o'clock were the ones affected, A
negro girl, Araminta Smith, said she knew
what made them sick; that Levy Spriggs
tried to make her leave Mr. Booth, and
threatened to Xix" her and the family #
she did not; that Lizzie Richards threatened
to poison the family and showed her
arsenic, saying Levy Spriggs had given It
to her. Both Lizzie and Levy were arrested
on q warrant from David Jones, justice of
the peace, Tuesday, the twenty seventh,
and on that day committed by him TO the
parish prison.
Such crime as this is almost beyond
precedent. The evidence even thus briefly
detailed, is sufficient to warrant an indiet-
ment. If unoontradicted, a jury would be
justified in finding the parties guilty Only
the providential sparing of the lives Of the
intended victims would save them from the
gallows. But in all countries, savage, bar
barian or civilized, the meanest criminal is
given the one chance of life by disproving
| the evidence of crime, Only among law
less people is accusation taken as equivalent
| to conviction.
The constable, Alexander Cooper, re-
questeG that Messrs. Booth and Burnett,
| two of those who were poisoned be sworn
| in as his deputies. That being done, the
| three started to escort their prisoners 20 the
| Jail. In a law-abidipg neighbOrhoos, one
would have been enough, for no one would
| Interfere save to prevent an escape. In
Baton Rouge if he had had ten times ss
many they would not have been sufficient.
| They were met by ''posse' of armed men
who disarmed them, drove them back and
took their prisoners away. They never
saw them again. Later, Justice Jones
says he saw the woman hanging to tree.
The man has not since been heard from.
Here is one person, woman, and
probably another, without absolutiOn or
| prayer if guilty; without the consolation OF
friend if innocent without word said in
their defence, or an opportunity to prove
the falsitY of the charge while in the Gus
tody of the law, on the unsworn statement
of frightened woman, with whom they
were never confronted, deprived Of the
lives that God gave them by armed fanatics
who will only ans wer to Him for their acts
The crime of which these unfortunstei
were accused is a horrible one; it raises &
suspicion of danger in all minds. Blu
could not these "fOrty or fifty" armed ant
masked men have so guarded the prisoi
and the courthouse, so watched the sheriff
SO assured the equal administration of jus
tice, so assured law abiding citizens Of tht
certainty of punishment for crime, that thu
execution would have been credit instead
of disgracel Is there no remedy for sucl
infractiOns of protectionl Admit theL
guilt plead the expense of trial; grant tina
they had no defense; excuse the violene
chances the adroit criminal has for escape
are these enough to justify such an act
Where, if all this and more be true, is ia
chance of justice tor the innocen.'