The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-27
ALONG THE COAST.
An Attempt to Lynch
Two MurdererS at
WeaVerVille.
SPIRITED FROM PRISON.
When the Mob Enters the Jail
1t Finds the Cell
Empty.
ACQUITTAL OF EDITH ELDER
The Stockton Woman Found Not
Guilty of Murder-Arrival of an
Overdue Schooner.
SPIRITED FROM PRISON.
ACQUITTAL OF EDITH ELDER

. WEAVERVILLE, CAL, April 26.-An
attempt was made at u O'Clock last night
TO lynch Charles Williams and Moses
Williams. The former is serving a life
term in Folsom and. was brought back to
testify in the Hart murder case. The latter
was yesterday acquitted OF the murder OF
Hart.
Charles Williams confessed to the crime
and implicated Moses Williams in the
murder at his preliminary examination,
and pleaded guilty at his trial before the
Superior Court. When put on the witness
stand to~testify against Moses Williams he
refused to say a word about the case,
and instructions were given the jury to
ecquit the defendant, Moses Williams,
Thepeople became incensed, and mob
was organized. Two ropes were taken
from a neighboring butcher-shop and the
mob went to the jail, but when they en-
tered and made their way to the cell
where the WilIiamses were confined they
found them gone. After vain search the
mob dispersed.
Night Watchman Field had received an
inklng Of the proposed lynching, and told
Sheriff Bergin, and the two officers quietly
stole to the jail, unlocked the cells and
took the two men out. Young Williams
was lifted over the fence and taken up the
creek back of town, where for several
hours he. was guarded by the Sheriff and
the watchman. Moses Williams, who in
fear had preferred to stay in the jail, was
told to get out and hide himself He did
so,.and passed out through the mob, not
being recognized
Roth mon hoI fric
mob was determined one, and but for the
inkling given the Sheriff there would have
beentwO unsightly objects hanging in front
OF the Courthouse this morning.
The crime for which Moses Williams has
just been acquitted was a fiendish one.
Last EoYember John Hart, an old man,
was enticed from his home near Hay Fork
By young man named Charles Williams,
is years Of age, under the pretense Of help
ing Williams carry in a deer he said he had
killed. While on an old trail in a secluded
spot Williams shot Hart in the back with
rife and left him for dead. Hart regained
consciousness, and, with great difficulty.
crawled back to his home, where he in
formed the household of the circumstances
of the shooting. Hart lived only few
hours and young Williams was promptly
arrested.
During his imprisonment Williams was
greatly troubled and spoke of seeing the
ghost OF old John Hart, which he said was
with him always. The officers finally pre-
vailed upon him to make a confession, and
he told the story of the killing in a cold
blooded and braggadocio manner. He
implicated Moses Williams, who is no rela-
ton of the young man, as being the insti-
gator of the plot. Moses Williams is about
20 years Of age, and young Williams said
that the elder Williams had entered into
an agreement with him to kill Hart, he
to receive some hogs, a young colt
and 800 for doing it. It was also
stipulated that a young woman with
whom Hart was living was also to be killed
After shooting Hart young Williams re-
turned to Hart's house for the purpose Of
killing the girl, but, as he said afterward,
she looked so innocent that his heart failed
him and he dropped his rife.
Charles Williams pleaded guilty, and
. only his youth saved him from the death
penalty. He was sentenced to life i'm
prisonment at Folsom. The elder Will
liams was arrested at his home and
charged with being an accomplice in the
murder of Hart. The two old men were
neighbors and there had been i'll feeling
between them over the right to a mining
claim, which was the cause of the murder.