The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-29
WHITES AND BLACKS AT WAR.
DANGER OF A BLOODY OUTBREAK
IN ARKANSAS.

Portion of the White People OF
of Negroes ON Account of Recent
Outrages-Notice Posted Warning
the Negroes to Leave or he Killed.
The Negroes Reported Organizing
for Mutual Protection.
Little Rock, Ark. Jan. 2S.--Trouhe has
broken out again between the blacks and
whites IN Loanoke county, and a race war
is threatened, which. when once started,
may outrival anything of the kind in the
South in recent years.
The Jrouole has been brewing for some
time, and the feeling between the races is
so bitter that the first spark may cause
an explosion.
The center of the trouble is Loanoke,
Ark, a town of about $500 population. A
portion of the white people of that town
have been trying TO rid the place of ne
groes. as outrages have been frequent in
the past.
Several negroes have been killed by
whites and others have been driven out
OF town. There has been no disturbance
by the blacks UP to this time, but they
are now organizing for mutual protection
and clash is almost certain to produce
serious results. Trouble is expected TO
take place within week or so, for notice
has been served on the negroes that they
must leave the country or suffer the con-
sequences
The following notice, bearing the date
OF Jan. 2S,was tackled on the door of nearly
every negro in The town of Loanoke:
You are hereby notified that you and
other negroes in Loanoke must leave with
in thirty days and never come back again.
II you don't go you will be hung to the
hmb of tree and your black carcasses
filled with lead"
The notices were not signed but are
adorned with a skull and crossbones. No
tees were also posted on the doors of ne
gro schools warning the teachers to close
the schools and get out without delay.
Many negroes have taken their families.
ana all of their belongings and moved out
OF the town, and some of sthe schools have
been closed But some OF the negroes an
nounce their intention of remaining in
their homes and defending themselves at
the cost of their lives If necessary.
one prominent citizen, In an open letter,
advises the negroes to protect themselves.
He says; THE negroes of Loanoke must
them no protection. Negroes have been
shot down and their white murderers go
unpunished. The law is in the hands of
men who perpetrate these crimes. Arm
yourselves and protect your lives and
your homes. When the negroes of I.oa-
noke county have killed about twenty-five
OF these lawless white men, the outrages
against the negro race will stop, and not
until then"
Last summer a colored normal school
while in session at Loanoke. was broken
up by a mob and one of the instructors
beaten. A few moments later the dead
body of a teacher was found perforated
with bullets
Just before Christmas a negro merchant
at Loanoke was fiogged by a mob of
masked white men, who told him that
they were going to lynch him. The ne
gro broke away. A reward of 500 was Of
fered by Gov. Jones for the arrest and
conviction of the members of this mob
but no arrests were made.
"a white man of Loano1ke shot and in
stantly killed a negro and was promptly
acquitted by justice of the peace These
outrages have excited some of the negroes
into desperation, and they are determined
to resist to the bitter end the attempt "a
drive them out Of their homes, and should
the threat contained in tho notices be car
rled out, general uprising of the blacks
is believed to be imminent
The situation is regarded as critical A
prominent citizen of Loanoke was i'm Little
Rock in consultation with Gov. Jones en-
the situation to-day. What took place be-
tween them In the interview Is not given
out.