Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-10-21
THE RED MEN.
Some IRsIde Workings Of the West
Virginia Gang.
interviews With the Two Recently Con-
fined in Jail Here, and With the
Sheriff Who Conducted Them
Hence.

OF BARBOUR county, IOOA hVih AS
Fed Men, John Watkins and Tom Warner,
who were placed in Jail in this city for sale
keeping. They were required in Barbour
county to testify in a misdemeanor case,
and Sheriff Heatherly was sent after them
On the train was vasrant newspaper man
who had talk with them and with the
sheriff, which is given a. follows In Fits
burg paser: --.,.-.--,
The sheriff of Barbour county has just
removed from Wheeling jail several mem
hers of the order o. "Red Men, which or
der was for long time the terror or Bar
bour county, and of most OF West virginia.
Tc- day your correspondent succeeded IN
interviewing one Of the prisoners IN pro-
cess Of removal, who told the following
story:
RED MANS STORY.
81 live in Tucker county, this State,
where have large family. was arrest
ed early last July upon caplas issued Dy
Jndpe Ice. of Barbour county, where was
charged with being engaged in whipping
several citizens and belonging to an organ
izatiop known as Red Men, Yes, do De,
long to the order, and / am not ashamed
for IL You want to know about 1t? what
was Ii formed for? Well, l don't MIND
telling YOU. For years and years we have
been ANNOYED by worthless persons VINO
would stick fire in the wild lands IN
the mountains, burn up the fences
destroy hay stacks, steal axes, farm
ing utensils and do other acts OF
deyilment. We had no redress, and
finally in sheer desperation we organized
what was al first mere local order; whose
sole object was the correction OF these
abuses. We adopted uniform, which was
a false-face and an oiled red calico robe
reaching from head 10 foot. We elected a
President and other officers, appointed
various committees and reduced the thing
to the best possible system, and at once
proceeded to do business. A man, or sew
eral men, would be reported to the order
as guilty of excuses; for instance abuse OF
his family, burning haystacks or other
misdemeanors. We could direct our COM
mittee to inquire into the circumstances
and report at the next meeting. II the
charges were substantiated We would vote
whether to whip him, or, as we put 1t,
trim him. II majority voted 70 trim
him, he was trimmed. The men to whom
were delegated the work would tie him to
a tree and whip him twice, each taking
turns. When it was thought that sufnclent
punishment had been given the man was
released and allowed to 60, with caution
for the future. Quarreling among neishbors
has also been discouraged by the occasional
trim of a confirmed scold. We did nothing
by halves. Nothing was done by hearsay.
The President would be notified, meeting
called, evidence taken, and all the Judicial
preliminaries gone through with before q
trimming was resorted to. Spies were also
sent out to ascertain the truthfulness OF
reports, as we would not take Tom, Dick
and Harry's word for anything"
There certainly must have been large
number of the order in this State?'
Now you are shouting" said the Red
Man; ito my certain knowledge it was up
in 1000, and we have among our members
some Of the
BEST MEN IN THE STATE,
men whose names would not only astonish
you, but the Governor and even the Sheriff
here. We had our regular grips, pass
words and night signs, so that everything
worked to a charm. Our main object was
the promotion of morality. am farmer,
and the organization is largely composed
of farmers. We were no respecters OF per-
sons. We would whip our own members
lust as quick as we would outsiders. Our
usual places of meeting would be aban.
doned buildings, school houses and
the woods, any unfrequented
place, III short, that would be safe. No, we
did not use tar and feathers We generally
found the trimming process satisfactory.
There were lots OF things done in our name
and blamed on us. 1t seems to me that
society of this kind would be good thing
in Wheeling, for it is worse there than it is
in Barbour county" said the Red Man, re-
lapsing into silence that nothing could in
duce him to break.
THE sHERIFF's STORY.
"What has that fellow been saying to
you?" demanded Sheriff Heatherly, who
had the prisoners in charge and had been
sitting opposite to us while the dialogue
had been going en-.
have briefly recapitulated the substance
of the talk, to the truth of which the
Sheriff assented, but took exception to some
of the statements of Warner.
at is true that the Red Men were organ
lied to break up stealing and TO remedy
other evils, but they long since ceased to be
an element of good in this locality, and for
wears have been q source of terror to the
whole country in which live. They had
their passwords, signs OF recognition, night
words, &c. This was their sign of recogni-
tion," said the Sheriff, taking his nose be-
tween his first and second fingers in Pc
culiar way. "Their grip was locking the
forefingers of right hands. At night they
would know each other by the inquiry,
Are you going to the Centennialp
The crimes that have been perpetrated
by these men in my county are almost in
credible. Men have been whipped and
almost flayed alive, others have been tar
red but not feathered, while the majority
of punishments have not been parallelCd
since the Inquisition. Some time ago
man named Stenple was working for his
brother-in-law, Garner, near Philippi.
Stemple had been accused OF adultery and
had been warned by the Red Men but had
been able to elude them for long time.
At length one night they found him at
Gamers, and, breaking down the door OF
the head of the stairs and defied them,
swearing that the first man who
would dare come up he would shoot. This
threat held them at bay for a little time,
but they finally seized Garner and forced
him up the stairs ahead of them, thus pro-
tecting themselves from the weapon Of
Stemple by the body of his relative. Stem
pie did not shoot, but jumped from the
second story of the house into the garden
below, but his clothing caught on paliug
in his fall and stopped him for o moment.
The Infatuated mob followed him, sending
volley after volley after him, several balls
taxing eHeCL upon MS OOuy, some
striking him in the head and one
on the hand. Brought to earth
they rushed upon him and stamped him
until they thought not vestige OF life was
left. Then they returned to Gamers and
told him to go and get his dead brother.
Stemple recovered gradually, but he has
never been so strong as he was before that
terrible night. 1t has since transpired that
several of the Red Men were admirers of
the same woman with whom they &C
cused Stemple of undue intimacy. They
would post notices on the doors OF fam
lilies near Phillippi containing warnings
of the most terrible nature. To such q de-
gree was
THE COMMUNITY TERRoRIZED
that frequently families would go together
and pass the nightat one house, which they
would strongly fortify, returning home
through the day. No grand jury could be
found to indict any of them, and it was be-
lieved that the very judge on the bench
was in sympathy with them. But as soon
as they began to shoot and attempt murder
a revulsion of feeling took place and arrests,
followed by punishment, succeeded each
other 50 rapidly that they quickly
aAI