The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1896-12-26
TRIPLE LYNCHlNG.
Three Kentucky Prisoners Blindly
Murdered by q Mob.
One of Them Shot Down In His Cell, thu
Others Taken 10 n Tree and Hanged
The Belief General That One of the
Men was Not Deserving OF Death.

RUssELLvILLE. KY, Dec. ia
bloodthirsty, armed mob of men from
Logan county, hall OF whom came
from Adairville, came to this town
after midnight yesterday morning and
killed three prisoners h were in
Jail waiting for trial on the charges
Of murder and conspiracy. Arch Proc
tor, who murdered Aaron and Doc
Grafton at AdairVille, October 81, was
taken from the Jail with his father.
Dink Proctor, charged with conspi-
racy in the Grafton case, and both
men were hanged TO the same tree
just outside the tUwn. Bill Proctor, a
half-brother of Dink, and credited
with being Il real desperate, who had
lerrorized the AdairviIle district for a
score of years, was riddIed with bull
cts in his cell, defying the mob to take
aim out alive and cursing them with
his last breath.
The MAI hunters were pitiless and
well organized. They refused to
allow Arch Proctor to see his mother,
who was sleeping in u neIghboring
hotel, before being deprived Of life.
The iailer pleaded with the mob not
To lynch the men and then made Il
special plea for Dink Proctor, who had
always been Il quiet citizen, the Graf
ton %murderers being the first trouble
he had been mixed up in. Bat the
only answer Of the leaders was Deal
men tell no tales"
The Adairvillc mob am into town
- - ..,,, I'D ,..a.t-,I
the Jail at 1880 o'clock. The door of
the main entrance soon gave way I'M
der their onslaught. The keeper of
the jail was forced, on the peril OF his
life, to deliver the keys to the Proctor
cells to the mob's leaders. The vic
tins had been appraised of the coming
of the lynchers and their intentions,
none of the three being in bed at the
time their cells were opened. They
faced an excited, cursing mass of
armed men, each one Of whom was
eager to lend Il hand i'll giving the
prisoners short shrift.
Eli Proctor, who was Il powerfu.
mar, showed his desperate ~cIaracte.
when broughtto bay. lie swore no
ona should take him from his Gel:
ali:c and nc one cared to engage him
in test of physical strength, So orc
Of the mob gave the signal for the
marderer to be killed where he stood
by shooting him with q pistol. A
charge of buckShot entered the des-
perado's body the next second and lie
fell. As he lay ON the floor writing
in vain Il yOlleV OF lead from pistols
was fired into the wretched man.
When he seemed to be dead Il man en-.
tered the cell and placing a pistol bar
rel at Proctor's head pulled the trig-
ger to make sure that the most feared
and murderous man of Logan county
was no more.
Then the mob turned their faces
and weapons toward the cells of Dink
Proctor and his son Arch. They were
taken from their cells without resist
ance, the ~jaiier's pleas were unheeded
and the hands OF the victims bound.
BY this lime there were fully 200 men
il the mob, and no attempt was made
to Interfere with their lynrhing plans.
The prisoners were taken to Il three
limbed cedar tree on the Nashville
road. The extra limb was intended
for Bill Proctor, and on the other two
limbs were strung father and son,
without giving either any time for
Ip2eches, confessions or prayers.