The silver blade. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1895-1903, 1895-08-31
THEY CLEANED OUT THE JAIL
Assassins Held for Trial Suspended to
Rail Stretched Between
TWO Locust Trees.


were taken out of the county Jail by a |
mob of $50 men at o'clock this morn |
ing and lynched. A band of citizens, |
fearing that the law would not be car
ried out, and angered over the atrocity
of recent crimes, determined to take
matters into their own hands. The
lynching was chastity climax to the
reign of lawlessness which has pre-
vailed in Siskiyou county for some
months past.
One Of the victims was Lawrence
Johnson, who on the evening of July
% sta bbed his wife to death in the town
of Etna. Another was William Null,
who shot Henry Hayter in the back
with a rifle near Callahan's on April
q. Louis Moreno and Garland Senior,
who are supposed to have killed George
Sears and Casper Meirerhans at Bailey
Hill ON August S, were also hanged.
At II o'clock last night farmers from
all the surrounding country began to
drive into town, and by midnight the
mob was ready to march to the county
Jail. Before taking step, however, ev-
cry precautiOn was taken to prevent
the plans Of the lynchers from being
frustrated by the officers Of the law.
The sheriff and one of his deputies
were decoyed to another part of town
by two members of the mob. who were
engaged in a sham fight, and the fire
bell was muffled to prevent an alarm
from being given in that way. When
tho foil n
all of whom were masked, awakened
Under Sheriff Radford and demanded
the keys. He refused to open the door,
telling them If they broke the doors
he would blow their brains out.
Finding that Radford was deternin-
ed not to give them the keys they went
across to the Jail and got on top of the
stone wall which surrounds the jail
Deputy Sheriff Henry Brantlacht, who
has been sleeping in the jail since the
commitment of so many murderers
thinking that some one was escaping
from Jail, fired two shots out Of the
window to alarm City Marshal Parks
and Deputy Sheriff Radford. He ther
opened the doors and was held up by
the mob, who took the keys from him
and entered the Jail.
GOT TWO VICTIMS.
Having no keys to the different cell:
they were compelled to burst the lock:
with a sledge hammer, which they pro
ceeded to do. Lawrence Johnson wa'
the first to receive the attention OF tn
mob. They broke the lock from tn
door of his cell, and placing rop
around his neck, led him out of jail
across the street, to where an iron raj
was laid between the forks of two 10
Gust trees. Johnson pleaded for mercy
but the silent gathering gave no hee'
to his appeals, and he was quickl.
strung up, dying from strangulatiol
in a few minutes.
The mob then returned to the jail
and next broke into the cell of William
Null. Null desired to make statemen
but time was too valuable to perm
any such preliminaries, and he wa
soon hanging alongside of Johnson.
Louis Moreno was then taken Irol
his cell and was soon swinging wit
johnson and Null. The last and young
est Of the four murderers to pay Tn
penalty of his crime was Garland Sem
Ter, aged 10. The rope was place
around Seniors neck and he was lie
from the jail in his bare feet. His laf
words were: 'Tell my dear old mothe
am innocent of this crime"
About this time Sheriff Hobbs, HAY
ing been notified, arrived on the seem
and starting for the jail door was CON
manded to halt, the command bein
emphasized by the display Of sewers
revolvers. He wss told that the 10