The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-10-18

was understood, were making preparations
for the explosion. In mingling with the
crowd in the street the Journal representa-
tive found the man who was to lead the ex-
ploding party, and succeeded in elicting
from him statement of the details of the
scheme, and was given the assurance that If
the plans were executed, the explosion
would occurr about an hour before daylight.
The sheriff had greater fears that some at
tempt would be made to blow up the jail
than that it would be attacked by mob.
Peter Messenger an officer of the Fowler
Grand Army post and whose occupation IS
tlat of an undertaken, it was understood was
the man who was to lead the exploding
party. He was approached on the street
shortly before noon by the Journal repre-
sentative, and was asked why the explosion
bad not occurred as expected.
Simply because" he replied, there were
not five men in all that crowd of seven or
eight hundred who had the grit to do the
work. l offered to be one of five men to ex-
plode the building but no one could be
found who would volunteer to join me-"
What kind of explosives did you intend
TO use?' was asked.
I'VE would have used Hercules powder.
We had eight pounds of it, but we could find
no cartridges in town, and the nearest place
where they could be obtained was ten miles
away. We expected a cartridge to arrive,
BOWSNGT, Oh IU6 Train LnlS morning dl D
o'clock, which would have been an hour be-
fore the time fixed for the explosion. 1t
was the intention to blow the thing up
about daylight, when everything would be
quiet and the guard would not be expecting
anything."'
rs there any probability that an attempt
will yet be made to blow up the jail?"
There is certain to be. Nothing will be
done now for several days, and probably will
not until few days before the trial is to be
held in November but that man Nelling
will certainly be killedr'
rs there any organized body OF men who
are to lynch him?'
Eyes"
'If there is determination to lynch him,
why was it not done last night when the ex-
element was so highP'
Because the men who were here did not
have the grit. After that crowd assaulted
the Jail at 8 o'clock, a mob of thirty-fve men
was organized to take Nelling out of Jail Just
after the arrival of the o'clock train, when
reinforcements of the mob were expected
from about Oxford and Templeton. Jerome
Waddle was to have met the mob at the
stock-yards, south of town, at 3 o'clock. He
came promptly at the time, and had the rope
for the hanging under his arm, but was the
only man who was on hand We have got
men of grit, though, who will attend to this
thing at the proper time"
There were Others in town who talked free
ly about lynching. None OF the men who
were in the crowd that assaulted the jail last
night made any attempt to disguise them
selves, and one of the notable things in con-
nection with the attempted lynching is that
no one who was in the mob seems to realize
that there is any danger of prosecution for
lawlessness. Duncan Williams, a well-known
citizen of Oxford, who deprecates the idea of
a lynching, also stated yesterday that he con-
fidently believed there was an organized body
in the county which would yet attempt to
mob Nelling.