Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1894-05-04
Brutal Negroes. Double Crime
This Time Right at Our Door,

nifty was greatly sio'N0N
lay morning upon hearing t'aI
Young white girl had been or 7
" murdered. About 7 o'clock Law
ence Spiller, a Negro over SIX fess
tayl. was arrested by Policemen
Hamilton and Simpson as the rev.
isber and murderer and locked up
in Jail. He was found at the house
Of his paramount, who was burning
some of his clothes in the stove. On
Saturday night there WAS a party
at John Rowe's house near the Nat
ional Cemetery, in the settlement
known as "Pincntown." Lottle
Rowe, daughter Of Joe Rowe was
there and left for her home with
Charles Bradford about midnlghS'
Spiller was at Joe Rowe's house
and left about the same time. he
met the boy and the girl, the latter
aged about Is and took charge OF
her, knocking the boy from the
small railroad bridge there and'ren-
dering him unconscious. lie then
dragged the poor child through a
barbed wire fence and, it is said, as
saulted her. The ground showed
many footprints and fragments OF
the childs clothing hair-pins etc,
were found. The wretch choked
his victim and beat her on the head
with stone and a stick, killing
her. Next he dragged her over am
other wire fence and a stone wall
and laid her mangled and bleeding
body on the c & O track to be run
over by the 4.33 am. fast train
The train was late and four colorec
men by the light of dawn saw tht
body and pulled it aside before th'
cars came. When Bradford regail
ed consciousness he went to Jo'
Rowe's house, thinking the Gegro
whom he recognized had taken Lot
;, = tie home, and joined her father an
l Marco Doom in searching for hen
r. Sheriff Watts and Squire Kline
! found the woman burning clothe
u and saved most Of them, The
! were Spiller's. Talk Of lynchin
" was heard and the Sheriff and judy
' cs had Iargenumbcr Of guards swor
l.. in, armed and prepared for troubl
~ After night the w. A. Guards we
p ordered out and the HarrisOnbul
{ Guards, 33 men, and Monticel
% Guards. 50 in number, reached NJ
~ between 1890 and am and we
10 on DUTY. AS another precautl(
u" 81 the Mayor ordered all places whe
ll' liquor is sold to be closed until III
- Their notice.
-, Just before / pm, Yesterday t
IN special grand jury, q. N. Cushlr
r. foreman, brought an indictme
* * against Lawrence Spiller. TT
W bill. From venire already SUNNI
ny ed for yesterday the jury was ma
u up after the court was reassemb
IT. at 3 o'clock and the trial of the
ar dicted murderer was begun. I
'lu Is swift work and is as it should
'', At the time our report closed
'ao corners inquest had not been G.
Guided, but that could only res
I"S in a verdict saying Splller IS
man.
our + Spiller came here from VIII
OIL ing VIVA, with the Bodley Wa
ass Co as their blacksmith and
lo ' a number Of men working vi
'ny y him, some of them white, we h
Mr. Beck, the manager, is quote
IoN' saying that they got him on his
my lease from a fve-year term IN
re- penitentiary for assault and bait
'ae He had said several times, acc
men ing to Mr. Beck, that a Negro
ach- would assault white woman OF
'eo IL to be hung. Mr. Beck says
e H. Spi Her always got drunk
APE work hours,
SION Lottie Rowe, the dead girl,
push buried on yesterday near Mi
rom brook, we learn. Augusta Co.
The gas, May list.
The
,ders The case closed Tuesday IL