The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-10-18
The NAvAssA RIOT.

nate Negroes.
PHILADELPHIA, Oct 1.-THE British
steamship Dorian. which arrived here last
night brought six of the white officers Of
the NaFassa Phosphate Company. against
whom the attack was made on that island
September II. They are DR.. C. d. Smith,
c. w. Robey, b. A. Jones, q. n Vail,
John O'Rourke and John jacobson. They
brought with them three colored men who
were among those who assisted in pre-
serving their lives. They sailed from
Jamaica September 90. having been res
cued hy the British man-of-war Forward.
upon which they sailed from the island of
Navassa to Kingston. Jamaica
c. W. Robey is an elderly man of robust
physique. He was the first one of the
officers of the company assaulted by the
rioters. Re was hit on the head with
clubs and left for dead in a ditch where
the negroes were working at the time. He
has thirty stitches in his scalp where it
was torn open by the blows, aud the fact
that he is alive seems almost q miracle.
Il. a. Jones has his face SCARED with
ugly cuts and bruises and his scalp has
likewise been sewed up in many places.
He is young man whose people live in
Baltimore. He was attacked by the riot
ers white attempting to arrest one of the
ringleaders under orders from Dr. Smith,
Knocked down. stamped upon, kicked and
nearly dubbed to death.
DIR. Smith said: ave had no warn ling
of the outbreak whatever; we did not
even suspect it There are 1877 darkies
employed in the phosphate mines and they
were all sent from the city of Baltimore.
The worst element of them were shin
hands. who had been arrested for deser-
ton and other off4nses and sent there bv
the United States shipping commissioner
instead of being sent TO jail, so you eau
see that they were pretty hard class of
men and up to all K nds of viciousness
when the opportunity presented ITSELF Ii
they had been unsophisticated natives of
that region it might have been an easy
NJ utter to subdue them, but being co.ored
laborers picked ~ in an American city
they were entirely different
class TO deal with. There are no
natives on tine island OF Navassa.
1t is entirely barren. The house
took refuge in when the attack was made
was no protection whatever from bullets
The doors were only made of mosquito
netting and the walls wer. a mere shell of
thin boards. Before we got into the house
1 fred into the mob that had Jones on the
cealed themselves behind trees and stones,
so that our fire had little feet on thAm
The dynamite bombs they threw weighed
a pound apiece and 1 suppose the only
reason the building was not shattered to
pieces was because they were thrown on
the piazza instead of under it. None OF
our party had lost their lives up to this
point although several OF US were prettv
badly hurt There were eleven of US,
comprising the white officers of the
company. When we were com-ellei
to abandon our shelter to escape
being blown to pieces by the blasting
cartridg IS we made a rush, but the blacks
gathered around US and closed n upon US,
using knives, clubs and revolvers. The
men who fell were Thomas o. Foster,
Joseph Fales and William T. Shea Tue
blacks Ii orally butchered them with
knives and clubs. Mr.. Foster was the
superintendent We reached smtl
house in which we had for safety for the
time. and in the interval the negroes ram
sacked and pillaged the superintendent
house, in which we first took shelter. Tue
shooting of James Mahon was one of the
most bloodthirsty acts of the day. The
negroes came to our hiding place ami
promised US safety from attack if we came
to supper. We came out and found that
some of the darkies were disposed to inter-
cede for us. We marched along in Indian
file, when one of the villainous blacks
known as George 5. Key stopped and
fired a revolver within six inches of Ma
hons face, the ball going through his
cheek. As he fell the fiend fired another
bullet into Mahon's back. which pierced
his heart. With the smoke curling from
the barrel of the weapon Key then
stepped up to Jones and said: Il settled
that t." Jones felt that his time had
come, but If it lad been the negro's.inten-
ton to shoot Jones something caused him
to hesitate and the mans life was spared.
The English brig Amorette was living Off
the coast, but heavy storms were prevail
ing and we had no means of communal
eating with her. l. however. got a note
to the captain and he sailed to Jamaica
and sent the British mau-of-war to our
assistance. When the vessel came to the
island the negroes We're thoroughly
frightened. part of them were
still thirsting to finish the job by killing
those of us who had survived. The cap
tain of the For ward got his Calling guns
ready for service and threatened to shell
the island unless every one of US was
turned over in safety. We were taken
aboard the vessel on Thursday, after be- 4
ing in imminent peril OF our lives since
the previous Saturday when the insurrec-
ton took place. As we assembled the stems
up the side of the vessel the officer pai
us the compliment of hanging the Ameri-
can flag over the side. We We're treated
royalty by the officers of the man-of-wa~
They took US to Kingston where
We were taken to the cub hou &c and en-
tertained as if we were distinguished
people, and put safely aboard the steamer
Dorian. destined to this port. We have
been treated like princes since the mo-
meut of our rescue bv the English cruiser.
There was only one sad accident to mar
the journey. Samuel March. one of the
men. who Ia d his head frigutfuIly brui-e
and cut. died on tn. way to Jamaica"
The accounts of Robey and Jones were
in the same vein as that of Dr.. Smith.
The survivors left by rail in the afternoon
fo- Baltimore.
A Cronin Witness Captured
CHICAGO Oct. 1l-Dan Carroll. the run
away witness in the Cronin case. wa
brought to the city last night by The po-
lice. After Masking his escape the man
FASTENED back to Riverview and Ie-
entered the employ of Con Sullivan.
Carroll's story is that he got tired
Of only walking around the streets, going
to the theaters, Sleeping and eating and