Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1898-06-16
MURDERER LYNCHED
]. M. Booker Hung BY a Mob at
Groat Bond, Kan.
SHERITF'S FORCE OyEUpOWERED,
The Murderer Aids In Resisting tho
NIB Finally Overcome and
Strung Up 10 ~ Tree
The Crime.

Great Bend, Kan, June 14.--John
M. Becker, the murderer OF Myrtle
lluismelster, was taken by crowd OF
indignant citizens from the sheriff
here at 8 o'clock last night, after n
bitter fight, and hanged 10 tree In
the court house square. Fully 1000
people witnessed the hanging, and a
hundred or more took part In the
bitter fight between the sheriff and
deputies and the mob. The contest
between the sheriff and the crowd,
which had determined TO hang Beck
err, lasted In one way or another for
more than an hour, and was one OF
The most exciting occurrences ever
witnessed In this section OF the state.
The prisoner himself assisted the
sheriff and fought with desperation
after he recognized that his possess
sion by the mob meant his suspension
from limb. Before Becker had sur
rendered he was simply beaten into
ins. ..-.billty by small mob, which
was cheered on to It's work by hun
dreds OF people, who had assembled
In the long drawn out fight Even
after the prisoner had been hanged
hte mob retained possession OF the
town and refused to permit anyone
10 cut him down until they were sure
abat life was extinct.
The organization Of the mob seemed
perfect. During the afternoon farm
ers began TO arrive In town, They
had learned that II change Of venue
had been granted the prisoner 10
Lyons, Kan, and that Sheriff Aber
would make the attempt TO take the
prisoner east on the Santa Fe train.
No effort was made to stop the
sheriff as he was leaving the court
house, but the mob assembled at the
depot for the purpose of intercepting
the prisoner. Sheriff Aber suspected
that an attempt would be made TO
take the prisoner, and hastily putting
him in buggy started east with the
intention of tagging the train at a
crossing after IT had left the depot.
The mob outwitted the sheriff by
boarding the train, and when he had
tagged 1t began to swarm off the
platform Sheriff Aber took his pris-
oner, and u great race was begun.
Becker showed the white feather, and
was seemingly paray2ed with fear.
In his attempt to get In the buggy he
fell three or lour times, but with the
assistance of the sheriff he was final
ly landed in the seat, and mad dash
by circuitous route was made once
more for the jail.
= The sheriff succeeded in getting his
prisoner behind the bars, but was
evidently afraid that the Jail was not
strong enough to withstand an at
tack, and when he saw what he
Thonght was an opening in the
crowd, made an attempt to dash
Through 1t with his prisoner.
This was the crowds opportunity.
The sheriff had scarcely reached his
buggy until he was surrounded. Again
he changed his tactics and instructed
dhe prisoner to break loose and run
for the Jail while he held the crowd In
check with his revolvers.
Becker was paralyzed with fear.
His legs shook and he was unable to
move. One of the men in the crowd
seized Becker, but the prisoner at last
showed signs of fight and broke away
from him. With the assistance of
Sheriff Aber, who was fighting des-
perately again against heavy odds,
the prisoner made his way toward the
Jail, and had just reached the step
when the crowd was reinforced, and
by sheer force of numbers beat back
the officers and gained possession of
the prisoner. "Hang him! Hang
him!" the crowd of 1000 people yelled,
which had by this time overrun the
court house yard. Six men took
Becker to the corner Of the court
house yard, while another came rum
ming to them with a rope.
All the while Becker was fighting
desperately, and when the moose was
put over his neck he had been beaten
into insensibility. One end of the
rope was thrown over the forks of a
tree about fifteen feet from the
ground, and three men pulled him up
until his feet were two feet from the
ground. There he swayed, and the
efforts Of the officers to cut him
down was prevented by the determin-
ed mob.
1t was 8 o'clock when the moose was
put around Becker's neck, and at 8: 10
the crowd decided that life was eX-
tinct and rapidly melted away. Dur
ing the fifteen minutes that Becker's
body was suspended from the tree
the crowd was unusually quite. There
was but little boisterousness, and the
mob seemed to be impressed with the
idea that order was essential even in
a lawless event. Public sentiment is
altogether with the mob and no con-
are likely to follow.
The crime committed by John
Becker was most brutal and inhu-
man one. He had been working but |
q few weeks for William Huffmeister,
a wealthy farmer between Great !
Bend and Ellinwood. Becker profess