The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1897-01-09
Another ANONYMOUS Letter.


Editors Conservator:
ga TRUE REPORT OF THE HANGING OF
JESSE WINNER AND JAS. NELSON"
son the night of the 9th of Decem-
Der, 1896, mob of 33 men organized
with full determination of hanging
Winner, Nelson and Lackey. The
mob got together at r. & l.. junction,
went down to the place on the st.
Joseph branch where the fire boxes to
engines are cleaned out, and sent a
man from there to the river to see if
they could get any way of crossing the
river. The man soon came back and
told the captain of the mob that the
crowd could soon be crossed, that he
had secured two skiffs and two men
thst knew how to row them across.
"The captain gave orders to march
to the river and everything was ar
ranged for crossing. 1t was then II
o'clock and the captain made short
speech and told them all to be careful
and not hurt any good man while the
work was going on, and not to be hurt
by any one, and ordered the mob to
make every man they met come into
the crowd and stay with them until
they got their prisoners. The captain
then put his men four abreast, after
crossing the river, and marched to the
first street going east after passing the
gas house, then went one block east,
then south to the Jail. All the men
soon surrounded the Jail, and the door
was opened, and about ten men went
in where the guards were, before they
knew the mob was there. | don't
know hardly what the guards were
doing. 1t seemed us if they were pass
ing the night awry playing cards to
keep awake. The one-armed man was
asked to give up the keys, and he said
he didn't have them, thai he was not
the jailer, showed who the jaIler was,
and the jailer refused to give up the
keys.
1.-The captain gave orders to dIsarm
the sheriff, and two pistols were taken
from him, and the night watch was
soon brought into the crowd. No stir
was going on in Lexington, except by
the mob, and they were very still about
their work. The guards, of course,
refused to give up the prisoners, but
would not hurt any good man to save
them. So, after few words were
passed, and the captain saw that the
jaller would not give up the keys, tell
ing the mob that if they could make
dead man get the keys, they could just
kill him and then get them, the captain
spoke up and told him we didn't come
here to hurt any good man, and we are
not going to unless we have it to do,
and told the men to open the cell door
and get the prisoners, and not fool
away any more time, it was getting
late.
s'Two men opened the cell door, and
were hut short time doing it. Jesse
Winner and James Nelson were stand
ing about the middle of the floor, and
when the boys stepped in to get Win
ner and Nelson they were ordered to
put their hands behind them and they
did so, and were tied and led out, and the
other prisoners were told by the mob
that if they attempted to escape they
would be attended to. The sheriff's
pistols were then returned to him, and
Winner and Nelson led to the river,
put in skiffs and brought to Ray
county.
s.Winner was taken from the crowd
/ by two men and asked if he was guilty,
and he said no, and plead innocent to
the last OF killing his wife and little
children Then he was talked to be-
tore the crowd and plead innocent.
Then Nelson was asked some ques-
tions and he said about the same as
Winner did, and said he was an inno-
! cent man and stuck to until the last.