Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1888-01-06
HUMAN TIGERS LYNCHED.
All the Kelley Family Except
the Oh Man Suffer the
Death Penalty.

the Oh Man Suffer the
Death Penalty.
WICHITA. Kan. Dec 80 1887 -
Swift and awful retribution has over
taken the Kelley family They wer,
summarily despatched by posse 0
incensed citizens in Texas. fifty miles
south OF Oak City, the scene of thei
atrocioas crimes. The murders of the
many travellers who, while seated a
their table, were precipitated 'hrouyf
a trapdoor into a snb-ceIlar aud ther
foully done to death are now aveng
ed.
1t was ascertaiaed that the fugiti
yes had taken south ward course
snd the pursuers started on their
trail. The posse had travelled only
very short distance before they dis
covered that they were on the righ'
track, and their efforts were rewarded
by finding the parties they were after
The family were found in camp
The first call for a surrender wss q
sigoal to battle, for the Kelleys made
desperate resistance, fighting like
tigers. The mother aud soa were
shot to death. bat the old maa escap
ed. The son, Bill, was captured and
promptly strung up
The crimes for which the Kelleys
paid the penalty recall the juvenile
stories of the giants who, in ancient
times, established themselves in some
lonely spot and fed upon the bodies
of unhappy travellers.
The Kelleys were believed to be
respectable, honest aud harmless
people, and their ranch being on the
public road travellers stopped there
almost every day to get something to
eat or perhaps nights lodging The
family consisted of Kelley, his wife,
one son and a daughter, both growo
up. Although illiterate thew were
certainly cleaniy and evidently indus.
trious.
The news of their bio ody work was
first brought to the outside world by
MIR. Charles Randolph, of Chicago,
who gave to correspondent the fol
lowing account of the fading of three
bodies in the basement of the house
The residence" he said is located
ten miles ftom Oak City.in No Mans
Land, and is dugous with oae room
10 it ln the centre OF the floor they
had constructed trapi)or, which
opened into basement underneath.
Their practice seems to haYe been to
sound their victim and ascertain as
far as possible the extent of ais cash
in hand They then deliberately, it
seems. prepared to dispose of him.
Either The father or the son, or, in
some cases, the daughter. who was
not bad looking girl, carried on a
with the guest while the
mother prepared the meal
"Everything being ready for the
sacrifice he victim was seated at the
table, his chair being placed on the
trap. At the given signal the spring
was touched aud the unhappy travel
Ter would be thrown down Into the
basement. where in the dark-if the
the fall did not break his neck-he
could be dispatched at pleasure. This
is supposed to have been the modus
operandi. for no one is known to haye
ever escaped from their clutches
For several months" continued
Mr.. Randolph, mysterious disap-
pearances had been quite common in
The vicinity of Oak City. But al
though they had caused considerable
comment no attempt was made to
trace the missing persons, their ab-
sence being attributed to the bullet of
} hlghwayman or Desperate. No
80 far as | could learn.
were ever directed to the Kelly fami
y. and when they too disa, peared
aothing Was thought of it.
But week or SO later number of
men, by mere accident, happened to
enter the deserted dugout. When
they opened the door they were al
most knocked down by the sickening
stencil which met their nostrils
There was nothing in the room to
'xcite suspicion except the stencil,
and they we're rather mysti6ed until
'ne of them noticed the trap door. 1t
was but the work of moment to
throw up the trap; procure light and
enter the dugeon of death Almost
underneath the bole through which
he kelly'5 allowed their victims to
irop was the body of man. He
had doubtless been killed by the fall
Continuing the search the astouaded
explorers found two other bodies 10
advanced stages of decay in one col
aer OF the basement, but all were too
ar gone to be recoguiz able Return
ng to Oak City they reported their
ind.
This was as far as the investigation
had been carried when MIR Randolph
eft that part OF the country. But
ast Saturday Mr.. s T. Gregg,
RUNNER for st. Louis h)use, who
Was direct from Oak City, gave the
particulars of further discoveries
which entitle the Kelleys to the first
place 10 the list of fendish and afro.
,iOus murderers.
IL have stopped at the Kelly
House to get meals g number of
INES" said Mr.. Gregg, "out [ never
saw anything suspicious in the ac
ioas of the family. I was there
sbout the 10th of November and
missed them, bat it was not until
ny last trip that | heard of their
crimes. 1t seems after the ia ding of
he three bodies in the basement a
arge party was organized to Look for
,ther victims. A short distance from
,he hut was stable aud buried un-
ierneath this they found the bodies
Of four other persons, one of them be-
ng that of a woman. Tue ground
OR rods around was then dug into
,oar the barn at depth of about 3
'eet A body was found which was
supposed to be that of a man by the
lame of j. S Taylor, who had been
Missing for some time.
"A few feet away from this the
body of another man was discovered
Ind at the corner of the stable they