River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1892-03-17
LYNcHEo a YOUNG GIRL,

A Masked Mob in Louisiana Hangs a I5-
hear-oid Negroes who Had Poisoned
Nine Persons of Her Victims VIII
Die.
RAYvILLE, La, March 14-The life
less form of eolored girl was found
dangling from tree on the road lead
ing to this place Saturday morning. II
was identified as that of 15-year- old
servant of w. r. IIelmer, who resides
on the Greenwell place, 20 miles from
here.
She became offended at the action Of
colored man also Inployed in the
house, and in seeking some mode OF
revenge she decided to put rat poison
into his coffee. She put the poi
son into the coffee intended for the
family. About nine persons drank the
concoction, and all came very nigh
unto death. The girl acknowledged
that she intended to kill the man and
she did not care particularly who else
suffered.
The neighbors who had been called
in to attend the sick people and who
had discovered the guilt OF the young
colored girl locked her up over night
in storeroom, which was guarded by
strong locks, and Saturday afternoon
two of them started with her TO Ray
vile, the county seat intending tc
place her in Jail here.
In the meantime exaggerated re-
ports of the attempt at poisoning had
spread through the country around
and greatly excited the residents,
among whom the Helmers were de.
servedly popular Orc report had it that
there was ar organized plot among
the negroes, who are numerous in
Richlard parish, to kill the whites,
and that the poisoning on the Helmer
plantation was the first attempt
to carry it out Another story con-
Tected the girl with gang of voodoo
ialSirs who lately have been stirring
up the blacks and predicting that
n deadly pestilence was soon to
strike the white population unless it
divided its property among the ne
groes
These stories, circulated by word of
mouth Friday afternoon and Saturday
morning, increased in the telling until
finally they assumed startling proper
tions, and it was said among some OF
the more ignorant of the whites that
there had been a general uprising OF
the negroes and they must band them
selves together to oppose it.
II was little after noon Saturday
when the two guards of the girl Ella,
one of whom was but boy of Il
years, started on their 20-m;le ride,
which was to end at the Ray.
vile jail. All three were on
horseback, the prisoner on a
small pony between her two
captors and was in no ways
bound. In fact that seemed and was
totally unnecessary, SO Indifferent did
she appear to her crime and careless OF
its results. The little party had gone
about half the distance when out of a
clump of cottonwood trees by the way
side rode band of masked men. some
twenty in all.
Her two guards made no opposition,
neither did the girl herself offer any
defense or remonstrance. With.
out saying word the men
led the pony to the side OF
the road where huge cotton.
wood tree stretched out stout
branch. One of the mob threw rope
over the limb and fastened the end &c
fence rail, while another put the
moose which had been made in the
other end around the young girls
neck.
Then a sounding blow was given the
pony upon which she sat The fright.
ened animal sprung forward, and the
body of the would-be poisoner was left
dangling in the air. With her hands,
which were not bound she at.
tempted to grasp the rope, but was
unable For moment or so her legs
were stretched in and out convulsively,
as if attempting to find a supporting
place. But it was all useless, and in a
few minutes she was dead.
Then the mob of masked men rode
away in one direction, her former
guards in the other and the body was
left dangling to be viewed by the
planters on their way to church or
town Sunday morning The people
whom the dead girl poisoned will re-
!