The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-04-15
PUT TO THE TORTURE.
The Recent Horrible Outrage Near
Rising Sun, Ind.
Experience of a Man Who Was Tor
tured to Make Him Divulge
Where He kept His
Money.

history of Ohio county, Indiana, have its
people been so thoroughly excited and
stirred up as they are at present over the
robbery and brutal outrage committed a
few nights ago near Rising Sun on John
Smith, an old citizen of the county. Mr.
Smith is an old bachelor, past y years of
age, has lived all alone where he now
resides sincs 1916. Wealthy, honest and
kind-hearted, the old man had not an enemy
in the world and was almost universally be
loved, and when the news of the terrible tor
ture that had been inflicted upon him by
heartess criminals to extort from him a
confession of where his money could be
found became known, the people who had
known the harmless old man for years became
wild in their determination to avenge the
wrongs that had been done him. To gather a
full history of the atrocities said to have
been inflicted upon Mr. Smith an EnquHer
reporter, through the kindness Of Sheriff
Mcclure, accompanied by DR.. Alden, Wis
tied the poor victim at his home, near Hart
ford, about ten miles from Rising Sun, and
from the burnt and lacerated lips of the
old man heard his statement and details
of a crime that stamps the perpetrators of
the dastardly deed as the veriest devils.
Il was sitting by the fire, reading The Gin
cinnati Enquirer about O'Clock in the even
ing" feebly whispered the sufferer to the re-
porter, 'when knock on my door called me
to it. As opened the door two masked men
leaped in. One of thrm clutched me by the
throat and hurled me to the floor, striking
me furiously in the face with brass knuckles,
or some hard substance knocking the
life almost out of me When they saw
that | was beaten into helpieSsness they
stopped their violence and demanded my
money. | told them as well as | could where
it was, but 50 severe had been the blows upon
me that | could scarcely speak or keep from
stranghng with the blood that flowed from
my face and lungs. They found the money,
but S23 in all, but this did not satisfy them,
and they said l must produce more or they
would torture me to death, pleaded with
them to spare me, that | had
told them the truth, and could not furnish
them another dollar, as they had got every
cent had about the premises, They said |
lied; that people of DiIlsboro had told them
l kept large sums Of money about the house.
and they were bound to have TT
Again knocking me down, one of them
took the copy of The Enquirer l had been
reading, lit it by the lamp, and while holding
me down with his feat held the burning paper
to Wy face and head, scorching me fearfully
This process was repeated many times
Books, papers, pillow-sips, bad-sheets, etc,
were burnt under me, while kicks and blows
were continually administered to increase
my suffering, while the wretchaS cursed and
demanded more money Thinking they had
murdered me they left me few moments
and began thorough search of the entire
house. Beds and pillows were cut OPEN flour,
meal and everything in the house emptied
and scattered over the floor. Being unsuc-
cessful in finding any money, they came back
to me where | was sitting near the door,
having crawled there to get some fresh air,
and again they commenced TO torture mo by
pouring coal oil on my head and setting fire
to it.
''Oh, the agony Of those moments, sai1 the
old man, with a shudder, dis too terrible to
speak of. | can not think about it without
feeling fresh paroxysns OF pain;' and the
burnt and blackened form Of the aged sufferer
shivered as with a chill, while big drops of
sweat moistened his bruised ana swollen
brow. After venting the full measure of
cruelty upon the old man the robbers set fire
to the house and fastened away Old man
Smith rallied sufficiently to extinguish the
spreading flames before they had made much
Roadway, and then sank in a swoon upon the
floor, where he lay until found the next N or1l-
ing by several neighbors who called at the
house on an errand The news of the outrage
spread like the wind. A brief description of
the wretches G iven by the old man led
Mike Mcclure, the shrewed and vigilant
sheriff Of the county, to suspect James Acre
and james Warner, two notori1s characte IS,
who lived in the neighhorhood as being the
guilty parties, and he proceeded at once to
the house of Acre to arrest him. Warner
was there at the time, and the sheriff with
the assistance of George Pate after a brief
chase succeeded in arresting both They
We're held in $1,000 bail to the June term of
court and there is hardly doubt Of their
guilt.
The old man presents a frightful appear
ance. His face, neck, arms and body are all
blackened, swollen and dscolored by the
burns that mark the work Of torturing fiends,
while his head and face are covered with
cuts and bruises from the blows that feled
him to the floor. He can not move or turn
upon his bed, and the torture that he under
went has SO unstruug his nerves that he
starts in terror at every sound as if he ex
Dected his Prosecutors to attack him Still,
he physicians think he will recover with
DrODpr carn