Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1898-03-03
That Reformatory Horror.

That Reformatory Horror.
Hutchinson's journalistic guttersnipe
has again broke loose. Not, however,
through the columns Of any local paper
nor even through the one he usually
writes for direct, but in round about
route. His excavations first appeared
in the WELLINGTON Mail, possibly for the
reason that his tale of horrors was so
OutrageOusly extravaganza that no rep
utabe paper would receive 1t unless
coming from better authority. How
ever every large daily in the State re-
produced it over flash headlines, such
for example, as these from one OF the
fairest of them, the State Journal:
"Re6 Hot Irons. Story comes through
the Wellington Mail that they were
used to subdue prisoner at the
ReformatOry. Officers stood outside of
the cell door and jabbed the rods in
the victims body"
The story relates to the methods used
to subdue Wade Thomas, a very ex-
ceedingly bad Niger who was a ter
ror to Morse's administration, was i'm
ally sent to the penitentiary, and some
how was lately returned here. He is
born criminal, few degrees above an an
imal in anything and in some respects
worse. He got on tear in his cell, set
his blankets on fire, broke up his bed,
and armed with two foot piece OF gas
pipe, one and One-fOurth inches in d.
ameter, with an elbow on it, which he
had torn out of his bed, he nearly bat
, tered his cell door down and stationed
in the narrow doorway with ample
room for good swing for his weapon,
stood ready to brain the first man that
appeared. The officers did not want to
shoot him and in the pitch of rage he
then was, that was evidently what
would have to have been done to take
him out without strategy. Accordingly
under orders of the superintendent, an
iron rod was heated and with it he was
driven into the corner of his cell He
then backed around where they could
not reach him and again he de6ed them.
The rod was then bent and brought
round to where it burnt his clothes.
He grabbed the iron, as he supposed,
above where it was hot. 1t burned his
hand and he gave up. The tale sent
out by the guttersnipe, says:
"As quick as the mob returned with
the hot irons, the negro began to beg
and plead for mercy. He instantly Of
fered to calmly surrender and even to
put his hands through the cell door so
that he could be handcuffed before the
door was opened.
amidst the most fearful oaths and
imprecations of the ten officers huddled
around that cell door, Hopkins and
Riggs commenced jsbbing their hot
iron rods into the helpless negro
Wherever they touched him they
burned through his light clothing
through the skin and deep into the
flesh. They burned him on the neck,
the shoulder the side and the back.
They got him cornered and held their
sizzling hot irons to his stomach until
they were buried in his frying flesh. In
his agony he grssped these red hot irons
with both hands and they were burned
deep and often. His condition
is critical. The sickeninG OdOr Of his
burning flesh filed the whole cell house
and still clings to it. We learned these
facts from an absolutely reliable
source"
The negro was seen Sunday by a rep
resentative of this paper and the only
scars or hurEs be had to show for his
cussedness were two on his hand about
the size of pennies which are now al
most healed.
These stories have gone all over the
State and already letters from parents
of boys there are coming in, who are
worried about the safety Of their sons.
However they often seem to know