Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1891-08-20

Reddy resist arrest at Devils Lake. OAK,
one Of the toughest kind Of towns, and
the town marshal, assisted by half
dozen citizens, every one with gun in
his hand, failed to pull him, until one
Mckenney, q reformed member of the
notorious Younger brothers. gang, came
TO their and and quietly informed the bad
man to throw up his hands and drop his
gun, "or will have to wing you myself,
and you know I would hate to do that,
Reddy," said McKenney. And he did as
ordered. But on this fatal occasion there
was no fight in him. He allowed a little
man who didn't weigh over lis pounds to
put the rope around his neck without
struggle. He didn't bsg for his life, how.
ever.
He still had trace of the fierce man
hood left in him that had characterized
his turbulent life. But he did plead
most piteously to be allowed to write a
last line to his old mother IN Maine,
begged for pencil and paper for just one
moment. That bowling mob OF "human
beasts" as Mr.. Taine termed Partisan
cattle, wouldn't listen to the request.
One particularly vlndictive wretch cried
out: "Give him nothing that he wants;
he didn't give poor Tom Cowen q think
that was the dead marshal's name) q
chance to tell his folks good bye"
The doomed man was ordered to ''arise
and walk" but before he had time an
hundred pairs of impatient hands grasped
the rope, the moose of which was around
his neck. and hastily dragged him from
the Jail. In pulling him around corner
in the corridor his head struck star
nd of ho IN
next day 1t was learned that this blow
fractured bis skull The now dying body
was dragged halt mile into the woods
beastly work, some of the more brutal
dangling corpse, and the lynchers dis
persed to boast of their individual
achievements during that hour of horror.
u returned to town and in collecting
the particulars of the afternoon trouble
which led to the shooting, learned that
the identity of the man was in doubt.
Most of the local walking encyclopedias
insisted that he was different "Big
Reddy" from the one I thought him to
be, and as 1 had not gotten good look
at him during the excitement of the
lynching, determined to go out, inspect
the body, and thus satisfy myself on this
important news point.
"Ihad prided myself upon the supposed
fact that there was not spark OF super
stiticn remaining IN my composition
that nineteenth-century enlightenment
had wholly eradicsted this relic of the
primal race. And so, without the faintest
suspiciop OF any uncanny awe. started
out over the unfamiliar ground. While
around over the uneven
ground in search Of the stiff, caught
sight of 1t unexpectedly. The moon had
risen and was shining through an open
ing 10 the forest full upon the suspended
body. In dragging him over half mile
of rough ground bis trousers had been
pulled down from his hips and were hang
ing from his fee;, leaving exposed the
dead white flesh OF great, long legs. The
flesh had been rubbed from his hip bones
and shoulder blades, and streams OF blood
trickled down the bare lower limbs. The
rope forced his head to one side, bis
tongue was out about q foot, it seemed,
both eyeballs protruded from the sockets,
and the moon shone directly upon this
appalling spectacle. Now I still maintain
that am not euperstitious in the least,
but at that moment, somehow or other.
my legs got the best OF my judgment. l
turned and started for town, smashing
the quarter horse record over half mile
through brush, fallen trees and ravines.
knew it was foolish thing to do. and
mentally joshed myself for thus making a
stupid coward of myself, but my motive
power couldn't bs induced to listen to
reason. However, I had found out that
it was the Reddy with whose antecedents
1 was familiar.
''Next day. after these people had
sobered up from their paeslon-drunken
spree, it was learned that the killing OF
the police officer was clearly accidental.
Reddy was shooting at another man, one
as worthless as himself, and had he been
sober enough to shoot straight. would
have been thanked for rendering the
community a service.
"Well, if there is nothing more coming,
I'll 20 home."