Evening star., 1898-11-10

yer-said he thought the demands would
be met favorably
Last night was ANXIOUS one for the
citizens in the residence section. About
o'clock a street car came into the business
section and reported that negroes had fired
into it and that the passengers Rad return
ed the fire. In less than three minutes an
other car. loaded with armed men, was
speeding to the scene of the trouble, ard
messengers had been scattered to give the
alarm. The offenders escaped. and there
was no more trouble; but the entire eastern
end of the town was aroused.
l went through the section and found
armed men on every corner With patrols
on the dark streets, and armed guards en-
the street cars. The ladies and children
were on the verandas and every house was
alight, while every one wanted II know if
the negroes We're up. 1 shen went over
into the negro district-to the center of it.
J found group of thirty or forty young
negroes assembled. but they were not
armed and not violent. Passing on to the
printing house, which was destroyed today
it was found to be deserted and dark
1aIklns with some of the older negroes of
the quarter, they told me that they did not
children We're taking to the woods and that
they sincerely hoped for peace All night
long the whites kept guard about the busi-
ness and resident sections, but no incident
occurred to disturb the night.
Return to the Armory
After destroying the printing house the
Inarchers returned to the armory where
they had left a rapid-fire machine gun
mounted in a wagon, ready to be dis
patched to the scene if battle should
occur.
Upon an occasion several months ago the
negroes had massed in front of this office
to prevent the threatened expulsion of its
editor, and it was not known today whether
they would offer resistance or not; but no
resistance was offered and not a negro
raised his hand or voice to protest Those
in the immediate vicinity of the burning
structure packed up their furniture to move
out, but no one molested them.
The leaders of the expedition saw that II
was not intended to burn the building as
there was negro church on one side and
light frame dwellings on the other They
say the fire was the work of rash men or
an accident. and was not set with the con-
currence of the committee of Twenty-Five
mayor and chief of police 10 resign, in ac-
cordance with the suggestion of yesterdays
mass meeting. This action will be taken
during the day
At 1870 o'clock the scene of excitement
shifted to another section of the city.
Scarcely had the Earchers dsbanded at
the armory before the word passed along
that the negro laborers of the great cot
ton compress, 800 or 4G1 in number, who
were engaged in compressing cargoes of
cotton for several foreign steamships had
knocked off work and were assembling
The armed men hurried to the river front
and took positions at the head of the
streets leading down to the docks The
negroes were gathered in groups of fifteen
or twenty, huddled together and appar-
emily very frightened. Their wives had
run to them reporting that the whites were
burning the negro quarters and shooting,
and begged them to come home, the
whole force quit work. The leaders told
the negroes that no harm was intended
them, and advised them to return to work,
but they were thoroughly frightened.
The negroes freely expressed themselves,
saying that they were hard-working men
and that the whites ought not to stir them
up and terrorize them in that way.
Panic Among the Negroes.
Within an hour the negroes were in such
a state of panic and fear that some of the
more conservative citizens thought best to
try to calm them. Colonel Sprunt, the
owner of the cotton compress, took one of
the boss laborers in his buggy and drove
him around town to show him that no
harm was intended to the negroes. They
seemed TO have the idea that the whites
were burning and numbering all through
their quarter, and were afraid to go back
to work. There was not the least move of
aggression on the part of the negroes.
There was no violent talk threats in the
gatherings on the river front, but, after a
while, the negroes worked themselves into
a state of mind where they believed they
were to be sacrificed to some racial cause,
and said they were ready to go if they had
to.
In all this disturbance the local authori-
ties have made no show OF asserting them
selves. Not policeman is around, and the
of sight. The preservation of order is prac-
ticaIly vested IN the committee OF twenty
five, and they are now trying to quiet the
situation and 10 hold in check the reckless
element among the whites, which would go
to any length The saloons are TO be
closed. The rapid-tre machine gun, on "a
wagon, drawn by two horses, and manned
by crew, armed with Winchesters, was
brought down in front of the post office,
but on advice of the leaders was halted
there.
The killing Begins.
Soon after II O'Clock word was brought
that reinfo:ccInents were needed at 4th and
Harnctt streets, in the negro section OF
Brooklyn. The men were sent. Twenty
minutes later the news was brought tnat
there hal Leen collision between the
whites and blacks, and that two degrees
had been killed, one wounded and two white
men wounded. More men have gone 10 the
scene vita the rapid-fire gun.
Three unknown negroes are lying dead i'm
the middle Oh tie stree; at 4th and Harnett
Cne white man, name Unknown, wounded in
shoulder, anG another white man, William
Mayo, shot in stomach, will probably die.
The negroes rttreated after the firing and
the whit IS are holding positiun at ,fI and