Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1893-05-09


which they had come to the support of
the court, and especially compliment
ed the young men of Brookhaven on
their loyalty and courage.
The magnificent courage and deter
mination displayed by Judge Chrisman
were complimented on all sides, and the
Judge, with one consent was proclaim
ed
TIL HERO OF THE OCCASION.
Gov. Stone was present at the meet
ing, and was unanimously invited to
return to Brookhaven yesterday and
address the citizen of the county on
the subject of law and order, which
he did.
Friday Morning
comparative quiet had been restored,
and Judge Chrisman reconyened the
court and proceeded with the civil
docket until noon. 1t had been agreed
that the sound of the fire-bell should
be the signal to arms in case of the re-
turn of the mob. At II o'clock it rang
out with startling peals, and in less
than three minutes there were over
one hundred well-armed men, includ-
ing the Brookhaven military, on the
streets and going at dOuble-quick to
the court house.
1t was soon learned that the cause of
the alarm was the report that the
White Caps, several hundred strong
were between here and Bogue Chitto
and advancing to renew the attack
The armed citizens, with needle guns,
Winchesters and dOuble-barreled shot
guns were stationed in the court house
and colored school house near by
Judge Chrisman told Sheriff McNair
that the time for parleying with armed
mobs who had come to intimidate the
court and arrest the due process of law
had passed, and the sheriff according
ly gave orders to his men to open fire
on the mob as soon as they came with
in reach of their long range rifles
and for every man to shoot to kill.
However, the report about the move
ments of the White Caps proved to be
unfounded, and the whole afternoon
was spent in fruitless watching, when
quiet was once more restored.
Saturday passed without special in,
cident, but all law-abiding citizens
kept their arms at hand, ready to re-
spond at a moments notice.
A Times Democrat correspondent
last Saturday visited the men in Jail
indicted as white caps. They were
! asked for statement as to whether
they knew anything beforehand of the
attack on the Jail, and whether or not
it was done with their consent. The
white caps are all countrymen and
bear the impress of their, avocation of
farming. They we're willing to have q
statement published, and thanked the
reporter and the Times Democrat Mr.
Aleck Reeves, an uneducated but ap-
parently intelligent, man was selected
as spokesman, and made a statement
which was interrupted frequently by
mods of approval from the men and in
which they all acquiesced. Mr.. Reeves
said that they had been as much sur
prised by the mob as any man in Brook
haven. He said the men in the mob
were undoubtedly friendly to the in
generated white caps, but the mob
came without the knowledge or ap-
proval of the men in Jail. When the
mob came, Mr.. Reeves says, he and his
men could have escaped without any
trouble by scaling the fence during the
excitement. They not only refused to
do this, he said, but yelled out to a
number of their friends to go home
and be peaceable. One of the men in
the Jail had a brother in the crowd and
he said he yelled to his brother to go
home for Gods sake. Reeves, who
seems TO be a leader among the i'm
prisoned whitecaps, said he not only
refused to allow his men to try and
escape, but he persuaded them all to
>go back inside of the Jail and thus
lessen the excitement. All of the