The Meeker herald., 1893-08-05
MURDERER LYNCHED At DENVER
AN OLD SOLDIER AVENGED.
A Big Mob with Little Dimcuity cap
lures the County jail and
Hangs Dan Arata, an
Italian Murderer.


] italian Murderer.
Denver was dlsgraced by lynching on the
night of Wednesday the Goth. 1t can be said
| however that the victim OF the mop was
/ guilt, and tchlr deserved his fate
/ The man iynched wds Dan Arata Who on
the day previous while partially intoxicated
| foully murdered Benjamin c. Lightfoo,
hirhlv respected citizen and member of the
G. A. r. Iightfoot was killed in Arata's
saloon near the Union depot, without any
proyocation whatever Arata, who is an
Itaiiau, had been ugly all day and was look
ing for some one to wreak vengeance upon
! when Lishtfoot dropped into the saloon ior a
drink of beer on his way home from WORK
Arata shot and pounded Llghtfoot 70 uea'h
and threw the body into an alley. lie was
arrested but denied committing the crime
| Arata had killed a man before and had oeen
] cieated by All abb sworn to by Italians
There were r,imors Of a lyhchins during
the day, and at S o'clock party OF army
veterans and others formed at Eighteenth
/ and Larimer streets and started for the jail
for the purpose of avenging Lghfoots
death As the crowd progressed it was aug
( mented by thousands OF men, crying "Hang
/ the Dago.n
A. Fourteenth street the excitement be-
came SO intense that the crowd began to rum
and then the rush 10 the jail became perfect
race, each man apparently In the greatest
alarm lest some others should get there and
rob him OF the privilege OF assisting at the
hldeous task. To get to the jail In the snort
l est possible time became erytody's aim
| and breaking from the original mass great
| parties OF 800 or more swept along every
street, each taking the way that occurred to
I It as the shortest.
AT shortly after o o'clock the square about
the jail was thronged by an excited mob oil
more than 10, 600 men. The leaders lost no
time in speech-making Without moments
DELAY four OF them dashed up the steps TO the
north or main entrance. They were met
there by Captain Crews, who demanded what
they wanted.
"Wew that brutal iiend OF Dago you've
got here" replied the spokesman in low
voice you'll give him upf'
] II will not was all the jailer said, but his
tone evidently meant business and the door
closed with clang.
"Then well take him." yelled the leaders
Of the mob, and they explained as best they
could to thelr pushing, struggling eompan-
tons below what Captain Crews had said, and
the task that was before them.
] When the actual work OF breaking In was
decided upon, a state Of things developed
that showed clearly the spontaneous growth
of the movement In the whole mob there
was not tool OF even the dimensions OF a
tack hammer No one had given thought
to Il thing beyond the simple getting of his
", ,ha nf ri
few moments all was confusion and uproar.
"A sledgel sledge!" a hundred threats
would yell. Bring a crow or sledge,n
would come the echo from thousand or
more, but TO no one did It seem to occur TO &c
and get the tools himself. Then principally
for want of other occupation those on the
porch began to tear down the storm doors.
In an instant Constable George Welsh was
among them, cutting and batting them right
and lief, with bi. fist. and kicking the whole
dozen or so OF the steps altogether. His
fearless pluck and determination EVIDENT,
awed the mob, and had It been followed up a
once ny resoIutc action OF even n dozer
Others, the mob, big ne 1t was, could probabl,
have been dispersed without, further trouble
But the support did not come, the proper op
portanity was allowed to slip by and from
.
able.
A strongly-built hcavy-sct man, evidently
mechanic, appeared with crowbar and with
him companion bearing a sledge. Withou
a word these two tramped up the steps an,
the next minute dull thud. followed by
ringing clank OF metal against metal, an
nounced tina, the first actual blows wer'
struck and the crowd fairly shrieked with de
lighted satisfaction.
Then blow after blow echoed and re-echoet
in a way that told plainly that the sledge wa
being welded by men who knew how to us
it. All this time the guards within the jail
had been keeping very quiet, but now thel
could be seen through the windows, runnin.
about, evidently preparing for defense. Tn,
first result of this movement became npparcn
when the light on the porch suddenly wen
out, leaving the workers in darkness-thc ga
had been turned OF inside the jail. For
few moments this caused n lull in the sledging
but then candle was produced, and soon
kerosene lamp, and the banging OF the ham
mer started up again with redoubled vigo
! amid tremendous yelling by the crowd.
, The entrance at which this attack was be
ing made is peculiarly strongly situated 70
defense. 1t is perhaps ten feet above tn
ground, reached by flight of dozen step
and porch not over five feet wide. Thl
: gave the attacking party very scant room 70
work The door itself is double, the cute
one being OF iron and steel bars, the inner @
solid iron. The outer or cage door had G
i course to be overcome first, and the sledgng
b for all It was kept up persistently and wit
c vigor had very little effect. The crowd 500
J began to be impatient, and ironical shouts @
, "Goin' TO be all night about that doorp wcr
going up on every side, when all at ono
there was change. A big brawny miner ~
S pcared on the porch. and he had his miner
> pick with him. With wave OF his hand h
! got the other workers out of the way an
4 struck n scientific blow at the stoncwor
r about the hinges. The splinters and chip
: few In every direction, and 1t was evident |
nmoment that a very few more such stroke
, would settle the door. The guards inside c'
identity appreciated this as we'll as anybody
. for they at once ceased their Fabian tactic
and, throwing open the solid inside doc
. turned the fire hose on the lights Of the a
!. tackers. This caused another delay, Will
! the illumination was relit only to be e1tir
i guished In the same way once again. tn
= next time the light-holders lit up they pr
$ their hats before the lamps and candle
!, while others tore off one Of the storm dool
4 and pressed 1t against the grating to brca
III. force If the etream from the Iacea of III