The pioneer press. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 1893-190?, 1895-09-12
A MOB OF LyNCHERS.
Jessie Casterline, Of North Hand Co.
Taken From Home by a Mob.

On Tuesday night, Sept. Sd, a mob
OF a dozen men entered the home of
Jesse r. Casterline, of Carleton town
ship, this county, and forced him to
accompany them over into Beadle
county, near Hitchcock, and about
forty miles from his home, with the
avowed purpose OF hanginghim. For
some reason however, theyweakened.
AS near as can be learned the cir
cumstances OF the affair are about as
follows: A month or more ago, a
! man named Palmer, living near the
town OF Hitchcock, stopped in Miller.
He said he was out looking for four
horses that had been stolen from his
| pasture, and claimed to have evil
| dence that J. K. Casterline and one
Bill Jennings had stolen his horses,
He stated that Casterline and Jen-
nings were seen near the pasture-or,
as he qualified it afterwards a boy
| saw two men answering their de-
scriptiOn. Also that a farmer saw
the two nell leading the four horses,
two Norman gray mares, Il big bay
mare, and a brown trotting mare,
towards CasterIine's place. Palmer
sent a couple of men to Casterline's
but they did not find their horses,
although they examined his place, on
which Mr.. Casterline has from 70 to
100 head of horses.
This was Palmer's story, as told
in Miller, and those with whom he
talked say he was very much excited
and was too deeply brooding over
the matter. 1t appears that these
| reported conditions or circumstances
led to the arrest of Casterline and
| Jennings. They were tried before a
Hitchcock Justice and acquitted.
This did not satisfy Palmer, and it
is supposed he got a lot of his neigh
bors in Beadle and Sphinx county ex-
cited oyer the affair, and they deter
mined to do something desperate.
So, on the night above mentioned,
the crowd of q dozen men called at
| Casterline's place and took him from
| home, it is said without hat or coat,
| and threatening to- hang aim. They
started east with him, bu they seem
ed undecided, held frequent whispered
consultations, and some of them de.
serted. Once. Casterline jumped out
Of the buggy he was in and made a
dash for liberty. but after several
shots were fired at him, The mob cap
tured him again without injury, and
took him to a Justice ca st OF Hitch
| cock, where a warrant wassworn out
for his arrest.
In the meantime NJ rs. Casterline
hitched up a team, DIR Owe to neigh
bors and got several men started af-
ter the mob. They got to the justice
just as they were preparing to take
Casterline to jail at Huron. H. G.
Hurd, Mr.. Gates and other neighbors
demanded that Caster line be released
and furnished $500 bail required by
the Justice.
Nh. Casterline came home and i'm
mediately took steps to bring his
| prosecutors to justice. About nine
or ten of them were carlght by Sheriff
Strut, and on Monday they came up
before Squire Butterfield, of st. Law
| renee, for a hearing. States attor-
ney Fredericks prosecuted and Attor-
ney Pussy defended. The only Hand
county man arrested with the crowd
was j. w. Heltibridle, of Burdette.
| At the trial he turned states evidence
and the whole outfit were bound
over. AS their is no grand Jury sum-
moned for next weeks circuit court,
it is presumed these cases will come
up on information from the states
attorney, under a law passed by the
recent Legislature.
The man who did the shooting was
named Gage, and skipped out for
Nebraska. Another member of the