The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1884-05-02
Judge Lynch Spares the Courts
the Trouble Of Avenging
the Woods.
Two of the Murderers Taken From the
Officers and Artistioally Hanged
to a Tree.
Shurlock is Rescued and Furnishes a
Full Confession Of the Crimes Of
the Trio.

CHARLESTON, w. Va, May Last
night news reached here that Scott Hill,
Brown Hill and Charley Spurock, who
! fatally shot A. J. Woods and instantly
killed his son, Alvin, young man
eighteen years old, near st. Adams, this
county, last Monday night, had been
caught. Upon arriving at st. Adams at
a late hour last night the Hill boys were
| hanged on an elm tree on a hill one mile
west of town by mob of 500 men, who
were unlnasked. The mob captured the
Hill boys from the guard at the hotel,
took them to the place named, fastened
one end of half-lnch cotton cord
| around their neckS, threw the other
end over convenient limb and sent for
the Rev Mr. Stump, who questioned the
desperadoes as to stheir crime. Scott
Hill confessed that he and Jack Dobson
on last Saturday night visited the home
of eX-Sheriff Adkins, of Boone County,
demanded his money and were refused
Hill then shot him and left him for dead
The two robbers went to Spurlock's resi-
dence, on the Main Mud River, on Mon
day, where Dobson was ,left. The two
Hills and Spurlock visited Woods resi-
dence where they expected to secure
s., 500.
THEY BLACKENED THEIR FACES,
entered the house and demanded his
money, but were refused. One robber
was knocked down by old man Woods,
who was shot three times by one of the
robbers comrades. One bullet entered
Woods back; the other two struck him
in the face and neck. The robbers were
then shot at several times by Miss Woods,
who had been attracted to her fathers
room. The villains could not stand fire
and fled They saw young Woods going
across the field and believed he was after
help. Scott Hill said he shot at young
Woods fifty yards away. When he was
found a few hours later, young Woods
was dead, with bullet through his heart
and a wound in the arm.
AFTER THE CONFESSION
Rev. Stump was asked to pray. When
the religious services We're over, stout
men took hold of the ropes and pulled
the bodies of the two Hills three feet from
the ground, fastened the ropes and re-
turned to the village, leaving the bodies
dangling in the crisp night air, warning
to eyil-dOOrS. The bodies were left hang
ing two or three hours, when they were
cut down and taken to the village and
| placed in an undertaking establishment.
They were viewed by hundreds of people
! to-day. They did not die game, but
were heard asking for mercy. The mob
was orderly. Not loud word was spo-
| ken, and none were drunk.
sPURLOCK WAS RESCUED
from the mob and brought to this city
this morning, where he is in Jail. Much
excitement prevails here and in St. Al
| bans, and it is feared that the mob will
make an effort to take him cut tonight
and hang him. The officer who brought
him here, together with the prisoner,
walked twelve miles TO reach the Jail.
! SpurlOck's confession subStantiates Scott
Hills statement, but adds that he did
part of the shooting. The band
is composed of over one hundred men,
bers, who are sworn to protect each
other, He says he, and the Hills have
been operating for two years and have
killed four men and wounded several.
He has a wife and children, and his house
was the meeting place Of the band.
Old man Woods cannot recover. The
robbers were identified by Mrs. Woods.
Spurlock had lived a number of years
near Woods and knew he had money in
The house.