The leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1895-1905, 1900-08-29
LYNCHING NEAR MORTIFIED.
Irwin Love, ColOred, Hung for
Burning Joe Sasser's House.

Mr.. Sasser and family we're attending
church at Gum Grove. A few days
later certain circumstances pointed to
Irwin Love, young negro about 20 or
Il, as the guilty party. Love. disappear
ed, after having been seen in Bogue
Chitto offering to trade pistol which
was afterward identified as one Mr..
Sasser had left in his house. Last
week he was located at Fernwood.
where he had gone to work for the
Enochs Lumber Co., and Mr.. r. l..
Brent, of Bogue Chitto, went down
and effected his arrest and brought
him back.
On being arraigned before Justice r.
K Albritton, of Beat 4, last Wednes-
day on the charges of burglary, theft
and arson, it is stated he plead guilty
and made a full confession. In his
confession, he declared that the burn
ing of the house was an afterthought
and not originally intended. He no.
ticed Mr.. Sasser and family leave home,
he said, the Sunday the dwelling was
burnt, and then slipped into the house
for the purpose of committing robbery.
He took a revolver, razor and bot
tie of whisky, and was about to leave,
when he noticed some fat lightwood
lying on the hearth; whereupon the
thought occurred to him that if he
would use this and set fire to the
house, the theft would not be discov-
ered-a thought that was promptly
carried into execution. He gave away
a part of the whisky afterward to some
friends, and offered to trade the pistol
in Bogue Chitto, as above stated, and
this led to his pursuit and capture.
On pleading guilty, Love was COM
mitted to Jail in default of bond. By
this time the news of his capture and
confession had spread and there was
no little suppressed excitement and
indignation among the people living in
the locality of his crime. Justice AL
britton, fearing he might be foully
dealt with, if he started him to Brook
haven in charge of Acting Constable
Moak, locked the prisoner in a back
room of his residence and directed the
Constable to telephone to Sheriff APP
plewhite to come down and escort him
to Jail, as he feared violence. The
LEADER learns from Sheriff Apple
white that he received this message be-
tween 3 and 4 o'clock Wednesday af-
ternoon, and promptly took the can
non ball train here at 4;10 for Norfield,
where the train made special stop to
allow him to get off. The Sheriff says
he was met at the Norfield depot by a
young man who informed him that the
negro had already been taken by mob
from Justice Albritton's back gal
lery," and that he was too late How
ever, he lost no time getting in bug
gy with Mr.. Hodges, who was awaiting
him, and proceeded at once to go to
Justice Albritton's. After passing Mt.
Pleasant Church, and when in about a
half mile or three. quarters of the JUS
tees, he was met by stranger, claim
ing to be messenger from Albritton,
who informed him that the negro was
to be taken and hanged by the mob at
point near Brister's dummy line on
the Bogue chitto road. where a negro
had been hung some five or six years
ago. On turning about and proceed
ing to this point, the Sheriff found the
pretended messenger from Justice Al
britton and two others had already
preceded him apd were apparently
awaiting the approach of the mob. On
waiting awhile and no mob appearing,
it began to dawn on him that he was
being played by friends of the lynchers
for sucker, and he and Mr.. Hodges
then took the road on which the
mob would approach, ii they came, and
returned to Norfield, reaching there
about o'clock.
Subsequent developments showed
that very clever ruse had been play
ed on Sheriff Applewhite, and that the
mob did not really get possession of
the prisoner until about the time the
Sheriff got back to Norfield from his
trip up the Bogue Chitto road, JUS
tice Albritton had indiscreetly made
public the fact that he had sent for
the Sheriff and expected him down
that evening, and therefore friends of
the mob were on the alert to mislead
him in the way outlined above.
Next morning the negro was found
suspended to gum tree, with piece
of 80 inch grass rope, on the Summit
road, few hundred yards south of the
Mt. Pleasant Church. Sheriff Apple
white proceeded to the spot, with Cir
cult Clerk Oliver, Acting Coroner, and
after jury was empaneled and as full
an investigation had as practicable, a
verdict was returned that the deceased
had come to his death at the hands of
parties to the jury unknown.
Justice Albritton testified that the
negro had been spirited away by un-
known parties from the room where he
had him confined, while he was at sup
per, the door being unlocked from the
outside. There was no means of ascer-
tanning the size of the mob.
10
was troubled with severe female |