The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-05-25
ALTGELD'S GUILT.
The Governors Sympathy
With Crime the Incentive
of a Mob of LYnchers.
TWO MISCREANTS HANGED
Sequel Of the Atroeious Assault
on Miss Barnett at Dam
vile, Ill.

DANvILLE, ILL.,, May 25 1S95.-Early
this morning a mob which had been IN
possession of Vermillion county's jail
for several hours succeeded in locating
john Halls, Jr., and VIM. Royce, IN
their cells, took them outside and hang
ed them for assaulting Miss Laura Bar
nett.
From midnight, when the crowd nrst
made its appearance at the Jail doors,
until the victims were reached, it was
the determined, desperate struggle OF
frenzied mob to mete summary justice,
battling against heavy oaken doors and
iron bars and occasionally halted by the
grim stand of a little band of defend
OF Sheriff Thompson.
After repeated efforts to break down
the outer Jail door with a telephone pole,
which produced little or effect, the crowd
for a moment desisted in their efforts
to break into the Jail. Ed McCusker
stood on the jail steps and addressed
the mob, begging them to desist. They
laughed him down. Sheriff Thompson,
his wife and Deputy Sheriff James Sloan
also besought the mob to disperse.
F. V. Barnett. the father of the in
jured girl. said to Mrs. Thompson
Madam. you never had daughter as
saulted. and her blood demands ven
geance.'' His reply was wildly ap-
plauded.
AT two o'clock Sheriff Thompson sent
for Judge Bookwalter of the Circuit
Court, who addressed the crowd from
the Jail corridor He made an earnest
plea to let the law take it's course. He
assured the men that Halls and Royce
would receive a severe punishment if
found guilty; that the trial jury would
among the most prominent men, in the
county, Replied
ALTGELD THE CAUSE.
eyes. we know the jury will convict
them ana give them a severe sentence,
but Governor lltgeld will pardon them
out He recently pardoned three brutes
you sent up from Champaign county
for twenty years, and he will pardon
these men. If any other man than
Altgeld was Governor we would not
lynch these men. But we are determined
h will hQI n
them loose"
With these words they again COM
menced work at 2:30 o'clock.
Sheriff Thompson, finding himself
powerless to control the mob -tele-
graphed the Governor asking that the
militia be sent to his aid.
Fir ally after some desperate work the
cells We're reached. where the two men
were secreted. Royce was located
crouching and shivering with fear His
cell door was quickly battered down. A
score of hands dragged him uncerenon-
iously from his hiding place underneath
the wooden bench which serves prisoners
as their bed. Half dragged and half
pushed he was hustled into the dining
was placed over his head, and while part
of the mob kept close guard over him the
Others continued the search for Halls un-
til he was discovered in another and more
remote portion of the Jail.
At 3.15 the mob secured both of the
prisoners and started toward the bridge
with ropes about their necks.
They were hanged almost upon the
scene of their crime.
The criminal assault was made at 7:3O
o'clock Thursday evening on Miss Laura
Barnett by Halls and Royce. Miss Bar
nett, in company with Lillian Draper,
was walking on the vermilhon River
bridge at the foot of Main street.
When accosted by the two men the
knocked Miss Barnett down. Miss
Draper made her escape up Main street
Her shr.eks collected a crowd which
started in pursuit of Halls and Royce.
The latter dragged Mss Barnett with
him. They passed John Downs an old
man, who attempted to interfere. He
was knocked down by Halls. The two
assailants took the girl through the
fields to the river bottom, where Miss
Barnett was found at 1880 in an un-
conscious condition.
Halls and Royce were arrested, waived
preliminary examination and were bound
over to the Grand Jury in the sum of
$1,000 zach. Both young women belong
to respectable families.
Thought 1t Good.
He-"Who is this a portrait of" She.
tits a picture of me-" He-"Oh, is it?
Its an excellent one. don't you think
No Improvement at All.
The best grade. of typewriter and the
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