Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1881-02-26
Particulars of the Springfield
Lynching.

Five oftheseven negroes who were
taken from The Nashville Jail, back
to Springfield, to stand their trial,
for the murder of Laprade, were la
ken from the bands of the law there
last Friday evening, the 18th, and
lynched. The other two, Murphy
and Duffy, who had turned states
evidence, and had been released,
made their escape, or else they
would have shared the same fate.
The Americans special correspon-
dent, gives the following detailed
account of the horrible affair:
SPRINGFIELD, Feb. 19.-The mob
has now gone home. There must
have been two hundred men. They
met the sheriff at the courtroom
door, with presented pistols, took
the prisoners from him and ordered
the lights all out. They then car
ried all five of the negroes to the
east door of the rt-hOuse, where
ropes were awaiting them, and they
were drawn up by willing hands in
the veranda above.
They all died without struggle,
except Jim Elder, who mad to be
thrown down, tied and then raised.
Hundreds of shots were fired, but
none at the prisoners.
The mob guarded the bodies until
they were sure they were dead, and
the leader gave the order, "disperse
my men, to your homes" and they
Immediately departed, going in
three directions.
They came in on horses, but went
to the courthouse, on foot and were
not discovered till they met the
prisoners at the door.
1t is thought that the cause of this
trouble tonight, was the releasing
of Bill Murphy and Anthony Duff
fy, at u O'Clock last night. When
released they went right back into
the vicinity where they had COM
mitted their terrible crime and were
seen there to-day. The people,
fearing the prisoners would appeal
from the verdict of the jury, and
then, if the case was sent back, the
state would have no witnesses, and
determined there should be no escape
for, beyond a doubt, they were gull
ty. This is the verdict Of every
citizen who heard the testimony.
1t is also thought Murphy and
Duffy will be caught and lynched
tonight. 1t was not generally
known that they were released, but
when they were seen to-day, the
news spread rapidly, and the people
came in tonight and wreaked Il ter
rible vengeance upon the remaining
five.
There was no whisky in the
crowd, and they were under strict
dicipline. The only demonstration
was a deafening yell and the dis
charge of fire arms, when the five
were launched into eternity. No
outsider was allowed to approach
the scene until all the negroes were
pronounced dead, and then it was
announced that the man who cut
them down did so at his peril.
When / went to the square the
second time, l had no trouble get
ting to the courthouse, and exam
ined the bodies. They are all sus-
pended from the small varanda,
close together. Higgins and Ell
der, in their death struggle, got
their ropes twisted and they now
hang seemingly from the same rope.
This makes ten men lynched in
Springfield within the last two
years, two of them Sadler and Pear
son, it is believed, were innocent.
Ramsay WIS killed for shooting a
young lady who is now alive, but
the last seven were guilty and de-
served their fate, and l believe
Jury would have said so had they
bren given a few more hours time;
but an outraged community could
wait no longer, and tonight put to
death the perpetrators of the most
horrible crime that ever blackened
the records of our country.
J. E. p.