The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-04-03
DISPERSED THE NOR.

DISPERSED THE MOB.
mere were no casualties. except from
the use of clubs. The police-all
through-have shown remarkable
bravery and GOODNESS under all cir
cumstances. This capture weakens
the spirit of the mob to such an extent
that they are not likely to rally again
during the night. During the attack
on Powelrs gun store, MT. Powell de-
tended his property and killed atisast
three men. One account saws h. led
seven.
$40 A. M.-Comparative quiet is re-
stored; the mob has dispersed. The
dead are still lying in the streets i'm
the vicinity of the conflict, and IL IS
safe to estimate the killed at fifty t.
seventy-iive people, only small por-
ton of whom have been identified or
their names procured. The rumor
about the killing of Col. Hunt and
O'Meara is false. There were three or
four slight casualties in the Jail. The
colonel of the Fourth regiment was
not able to collect his men, but Col.
Church of the governors staff is en-
deavoring to get him to join the rest
of his command.
BERNER's STATEMENT.
COLUMBUS, March 30.-Berner saws
that he was induced to make his con-
fession of deliberate murder by par
ties around the jail, who told him
that if he confessed he might get free.
Berner's associate in crime, negro
who has not been tried, is one of the
prisoners in the Hamilton county
jail.
DAYLIGHT DAWNs.
CINCINNATI, March 30.-At day
light this morning an associated press
reporter walked through the quarter
of the city where the stormy scenes of
the previous night had been enacted.
The dawninG was as peaceful and
brilliant as ever seen. Against
an an .s exquisi aedy tin. tinted SKY
walls of the burning court house were
distinctly defined with its crumbled
| window openings, looking like nude
wounds, while over the ruins of the
treasurer's Office, in the north part of
the building, the ruddy glow of fire
was still visible. and from other por.
tions the white colored steam and
smoke was still rising, as water
thrown by the engines fell into the
| burning contents. Last night when
the sun went down the occupants of
the treasurer's Office were sitting at
the open plate glass windows smok-
ing cigars and reading accounts of the
previous nights attempts on the jail
There was no thought that in six
hours these windows would be broken
and the accumulated wealth and con-
tents of that great building would be
in ruins, but this building, great as
was its loss, was merely property.
The other losses in that locality were
Of human life.
Here and there in the trampled dust or
on the brick sidewalks were to he
seen only one hour before, on Syca-
more street, before the cour thouse,
lay four or five dead bodies of drunk
en- or venturesome men, who, in spite
of the policemen's warnings, had gone
beyond the limit permitted by the
militia, when they fell under the fire
of the militia. No one dared to take
them away until the mob dispersed
and the streets were clear. Only two
hours before, at a. M, when small
crowd gathered at the drug store at
Court and Walnut, one square west of
the court house, TO see the patrol
wagon take away dead man, the
militia, mistaking this for renewal of
the mob, fired a volley, killing one,
wounding nephew of the proprietor
of the store. One ball struck the iron
facing Of the door, and rebounding,
crashing through the glass door near
the head of the proprietor, who was
using the telephone
Passing to the north side of Court
and Walnut, a sickening scene was
presented. Here apparently the
wounded had been sheltered behind
protecting building, or perhaps here
the fatal wounded had crawled to die.
Pool after pool of blood dyed the
ground. All along the curbstone, all
along the street, signs of blood were
visible, and in hallway three squares
distant on Main street, the floor was
smeared where some unfortunate had
crawled to dress his wounds or die.
| THE BURNING OF THE COURT HOUSE
was wholly aImless and malicious, ex-
cept that one might find an excuse in
the feeling that the crowd was anger
ed at the place where failure to do
justice had been so marked. 1t did
not aid at all in getting to the prison.
ers, nor in doing harm to
the militia. 1t was purely
wanton, nor was there any ex-
cuse for failure to protect this prop
erty. The crowd was permitted to go
to the very windows and break them
In without resistance, and when OPP
portunity offered, or some devilish
communist who gloried in pure de-
struction suggested it. To cast some
trivial manner in which he talked
"This will be the Paris of America"
"Sure enough" said another. With
these leaders, and with these motives,
chairs, carpets and desks were broken
and put in heaps in the treasurer'S
office and a match applied. AS this
was done the silly-headed or drunken
noodlums cheered and yelled
BURN THE D-N MILITIA OUT
Just here occurred one of the most
melancholy events of the night, the
killing of Capt. j. L. Dresmond who
had been apprised of the purpose to
burn the court house, and was sent
with squad of MALTA to try and put
out the fire. The mob fired on him
and ball crushed through his head.
AT the same time, Private Mcclure
was shot through the breast and fatal
ly hurt. Capt. Desmond was young
lawyer of much promise, fine looking
soldier, the pride of his regiment, and
one whose loss on every account is
deeply deplored.
There was no use of trying to stop
the incendiaries. They went from
office to office starting fires aud in a
few minutes, with the windows all
broken out, the inside of the court
house glowed like a furnace of iron.
The engines were powerlcss, first, be-
Cause the firemen refused to go in
without an escort of troops, and sec
ond, because the crowd could easily
have cut the hose and prevented the
use of the engines. So the fire had its
way. Office after office was reached
| by the flames, and as the floors crashed
and fell the crowd cheered.
THE BAD MANAGEMENT
of Sheriff Hawkins has been again
and again commented on to-day with
reference to the loss of this building.
An immense veranda, with huge col
umns reaching from the top of the
first story to the roof aud commanding
Main and Court streets, formed place
where 200 men in safety could have
cleared the whole space with two vol
leys, and could have made certain
the death of any man coming within
range.
The Fourteenth regiment was ex-
rected at 8 o'clock, but it was nearly
IL when it reached the court house.
The Fourth regiment was total