Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-07-17
HUNTED DOWN AND SLAIN
A BLACK FIEND DRIVEN TO
DEATH BY HIS OWN HAND.

fesses His Crime and Is Given His
! Choice Between Burning and Hanging
! by His Own Hand.
! News was received here yesterday that
Jake BraswelI, a negro turpentne hand,
was lynched Thursday afternoon near
Flat Ford, on the Ogeechee, Flat Ford is
opposite No. 81 on the Central railroad.
About 8 O'Clock Thursday morning
a little 6-year-od daughter OF
! Mr.. James Woods was start
! ed to school. AS she was pass
ing strip of swamp and timber, quar-
! ter Of mile from her home, she was
seized by Braswell, who sprang out from
behind tree. Tue helpless child was
dragged into the woods and the hend tied
a handkerchief over her mouth to
| prevent her from screaming. He
carried her deep into the woods and
! brutally assaulted her. Before leaving
| the child the brute tied her hands behind
| her back and gagged her securely. Then
! he hid her body by the roots of large
| tree and partly covered her body with
! leaves and brush.
The child was unconscious, and
Braswell thought sha was dead.
He went off farther in the woods,
ana went to work chopping. An hour
| passed before the child recovered con-
seriousness. She was weak from the hor-
| rlOle reatment and hardly able to stand.
| For long time she was afraid to move.
As soon as she could she tottered out of
| the woods and on TO MIR. Curtis Martins
house few hundred yards away.
THE PURSUIT.
There happened to be two or three men
about. AS soon as they heard her story
| and a few words as to what the fend
looked like, they started out on horse
! back to alarm the neighbOrhOod and
| search the country. Braswell was at
! once suspected. He had been observed
near the scene of the crime just after it
was committed. His victim had said that
! her assallants eyes were swollen, and 1t
was known that Braswell had been stung
| in the face by bees on Wednesday. BY
midday fifty men. whites and blacks, were
securing the woods. Braswell was found
cutting wood. When he saw the crowd
! approaching he broke and ran. A dozen
shots were fired, but not one struck the
| tu gitive.
Those on horseback rode swiftly and,
making detOur, got ahead OF BraSWell.
His pursuers who were on foot spread
out in circle, and gradually closing IN,
they soon started him up again.
THE CAPTURE.
Braswell lodged the flying bullets
safely, but not seeing those in front ne ran
directly toward man who was standing
watching him with double barrel shot
gun. When within ten PAGES Of the white
man Braswell saw the gun as it waS lev
eled at him. He surrendered to the
man, who was the little girls uncle. The
negro was at once taken to hr.
Martins house and he was posi-
lively Identified by the child. Seeing
there was no escape Braswell confessed
his hellisb deed, and swOre that be had
been persuaded to commit the act by an
other negro who worked for Woods & Co.
Braswell took the party to the place
where he had bid the little ones school
books and her dinner kettle. The dinner
he had eaten himself. All the time the
crowd was increasing.
FURY OF THE CROWD.
| Whites and blacks Joined in the cry to
! lynch him or burn him. Braswell, Sc
curely bound, was thrown on the ground,
while his captors stood around and dis
cussed what they should do with him.
| There did not seem to be anything bar
barous and cruel enough TO satisfy the
mob. But the discussion did not
last long. In few minutes the leader of
the party told BrasWeu that it had been
| decided to give him the choice of two
modes OF death-buruing or hanging him.
self. The wretch cheese the latter mode.
While the talking was going on a negro
in the crowd aimed his pistol at Braswell
and fired. The bullet struck him in the
cheek and passed out Of his mouth, knock
ing out some teeth. No sooner was his
fate decided upon than the prisoner was
hurried Off to the spot where he commit
ted the crime.
MINUTE TO PRAY.
He was unbound and given minute or
two to pray. He knelt down, but he could
not or would not mutter word for the
salvation of his soul.
He showed more nerve than was eX-
| pected. He WAS ordered 80 climb the tree.
| With an oath he declared that he could not
climb. Means were found though to
make him climb, and he scrambled up.
| rope was thrown to MIN. One end he
| tied around his neck and the other
| around limb. Another negro
climbed the tree and tied the
wretch's hands behind his back just as
he had tied his victims a few hours be-
fore. Braswell looked down at the aven-
| gers and said that be was ready to die for
what he had done. He said that he had
been watching for an opportunity to
catch the child since Saturday. The
statement that he had first made imp!i-
eating another negro, he admitted was a
| lie, which he told because he hated the
man and wanted to get him into trouble.
SHOWED INTO ETERNITY.
He mace a movement as though about
| 10 jump off, but he could not screw his
courage up TO the point Of making the
| leap. The crowd would have shot him,
| but that was considered too humane. Di-
rectly long pole was cut and white
man and "A black man pushed The brute
oil the limb, TO which he chung tightly.
| The drop was ID feet, nearly enough 10
! jerk the iiend's head from his body. 1t
was not much after O'Clock in the alter
noon when he dropped. After he was
| dead several shots were fired into his
| body. No one suggested taking the body
down, and 1t was still dangling from the
| limb yesterday, with the buzzards soar
ing above the tree tops.
A BLACK TERROR.
Braswell was from Carolina. He had
not been long out of the penitentiary,
where he served a term for a similar
crime to the one tor which he was lynched.
He was % years old and was employed
by Moore 4 Co., who have a turpentine
distilery. BrasWell was a notorious
character and was feared by the colored
people OF the ueighborhcod.
The child is in very critical condition.
L. .N. D.