The record-union., 1897-05-01
For Horrible Crimes Committed on the
Previous Evening.
Had Murdered an Old Man, His Step
daughter and Seven-Year-Old
Child, Ravishing the Latter Two,
Afterward Setting Fire to the
Home of Their Victims, Two
Bodies Being Consumed in the
Flames.
Flames

HOUSTON CTexas), April 30.-For
the murder of an old man in his dotage,
a child on it's homage and a woman in
the first flush of young womanhood,
the ravishing of the two girls, the burn
ing of the home of their victims, two
bodies being consumed in the flames,
six young negroes were last night sent
to their doom by the hands of an in
furiated mob of negroes, the victims
also being negroes, at Sunnyside, Wal
ter County.
Last fall a gentleman from Brennan
was robbed of $50. Suspicion pointed to
the four Thomas boys, and they con-
fessed to having committed the theft,
saying they had given $50 of the money
to Henry Daniels. Daniels spent the
money, and on Sunday evening last the
four Thomas boys, according to their
confession, decided to either collect
their $50 or kill Daniels. They carried
out the latter part of the programme.
Henry Daniels, an old negro, lived in
a little hut with his step-daughter and
a seven-year-old child. Wednesday
night the house was broken open, Marie
Daniels and the seven-year-old child
were ravished, and old man Daniels
dubbed to death while trying to pro-
tect those in his charge. Then old man
Daniels and his step-daughter We're
thrown into the house and the child
was thrown into the well. The house
was set on fire and the devils capable
of such a crime left, thinking that they
had covered their inhuman deed from
the sight of the world
The fire had not attracted much at
tention, but when Daniels and his peo-
pie did not show UP, the charred re-
mains of the house We're searched and
the terrible truth was soon only too
plain. The burned remains of human
bodies left no doubt in one direction,
While the blood stains about the premi-
ses indicated the commission of muir
der.
The local officers went to work with a
will, and were ably assisted by the best
citizens of the neighborhood The
blood hounds from Steele's plantation
were secured, and they were not long
in finding the right track Before night
they went straight into the place where
the Thomas boys resided, and one by
one they were secured. Fayette Rhone.
p years old; Will Gates, 80 years old
Louis Thomas, 20 years DID, Aaron
Thomas, 13 years old; Jim Thomas IA
years old, and Benny Thomas, ID years
old, were placed under arrest. The
last four are brothers. Later on Will
lam Williams was captured.
When taken they We're smeared with
blood and bloody shirt was found hid
den in Richmond's house. The blood
hounds worked splendidly and after
the boys were confronted with the evil
dence, they acknowledged the crime.
and laid the killing on Louis, the oldest.
All the seven prisoners We're under
guard last night. About II o'clock the
guards were overpoWered by a strong
body of men, and the prisoners taken
towards the Brazos bottoms, north of
here. little later forty or fifty shots
We're fired, and all was quiet
This morning, dangling from the
limbs of large oak tree, We're found
the bodies of six negroes, limp and life
less. Hundreds of people from all over
| the country are serging back and forth.
but always with the one tree as the
center Of attraction. The bodies of all
| of the negro fiends are there excent
| that of Williams, and he is not to he
found, but the shots probably explain
his absence
AT q late hours this evening the
bodies are still hanging from tn etree.
AS far as can be learned the mob was
composed of white and black men, with
the colored element largely predominant
| ing.
Tonight there is q calm after the
storm, and the opinion is almost uni
versal that if the right party is appre
hended, no harm has been done