Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1900-12-19
ARE SHOWN NO MERCY
Indiana Mob Lynches Two Colored
MurdererS.
Batter Down Jail Walls at RockpOrt
The CuIprits Taken Out and
HanEed-BOdies RiddIed
with Bullets.

Indianapolis, Ind, Dec. ia special
to the Sentinel from Rockport, Ind,
says: Two negroes, Jim Henderson
and Bud Rowlands, who waylaid, bru-
tally murdered and robbed Hollie
Simons, white barber, early Sunday
morning, were lynched in the jailyard
by mob of 1000 frenzied citizens Sun
| day night. The negroes were arrested
early and. although Rowlands' clothing
had bloodstains on it, the men claimed
they were innocent of the crime. In
the meantime Sheriff Clemens, of
Union county, Kentucky arrived with
a trained bloodhound in response to a
Geographic summons.
Traced by n Bloodhound.
When the dog was placed on the trail
he followed it until he reached the
house where Rowlands lived, six blocks
| from the scene of the murder, and went
| baying to the bed the negro had occu-
| pied. This was enough for the excited
citizens. Within few minutes a mob
of thousand bowling, bloodthirsty
! citizens, with sledge hammers. ropes
and guns, were running to the Jail.
Sheriff Anderson and his two deputies
made a stand and attempted to protect
| the prisoners. The officers were seized
! by the leaders of the mob who dis
armed them. The sheriff was then
locked in a room and placed under
| guard, but he stoutly refused to give
up the keys or tell where the prisoners
were hidden.
Failing to get the keys, the mob
made a determined but unsuccessful
attempt to break in the Jail door. By
this time the would-be lyncners were
in perfect frenzy, and. securing a
telegraph pole, they used it as bat
| tering ram and caved in the side wall
of the Jail. The door of Rowland's cell
was then quickly broken in with
sledges and he was dragged from the
| jail to the east side of the courtyard,
where moose was placed about his
neck. He was given time to make a
statement, in when he implicated Jim
Henderson and another negro. Row
lands then begged piteously for mercy,
but the mob swiftly swung the con-
| fessed murderer to tree and riddled
| his body with bullets.
| Leaving the body of Rowlands
dangling from the limb of the tree,
| the mob rushed back to the Jail and
attempted to burst open the cell oc-
cupied by Henderson, but before the
steel bars yielded to the blows of the
| sledges some one in the crowd fired
upon the terrified negro as he
| crouched in the corner of his cell
A few moments more and the door of
the cell was broken in. The negro.
| more dead than alive, was dragged at
| ropes end to the courthouse yard
and swung on the tree beside the
body of Rowlands.
Firing a parting volley at the swing
| ing bodies, the mob, eager for an
other victim. hurried away to catch
the other negro implicated by Row.
lands in his confession. He was found
at a hotel, where he was employed
as a porter. The negro escaped to
the roof of the building. and Manager
| Debruler succeeded in convincing the
mob that the porter had nothing to
do with the crime, proving an alibi
for him. The mob then dispersed, ap-
| parently satisfied with it's awful work
| of vengeance.
| Their Crime.
The negroes victim, Simons, was
waylaid and murdered in the most
| brutal manner one square from the
main street of the city, as he was
| going to his home from his barber
shop, at two o'clock in the morning.
AS was customary with him, he car
ried the receipts of the day at his
| place of business. The negroes were
aware of this, and evidently laid their
plans accordingly. Crouching behind
fence, they awaited their victim and
jumped from their place of conceal
ment and attacked him from behind,
striking him over the head with a
heavy club with large nail driven
| into the end Of it.
Although terribly beaten, Simons
made. desperate fight, and his cries
| and struggles soon attracted two boys,
who went to his assistance, but they
| were moment too late, the victim of
| the two negroes had succumbed to the
terrible beating, and was lying dead
| at their feet. The murderers then drove
| the would-be rescuers away, and ac-
complished their original design-that
of robbery-securing bag containing
something over $40 from the PROSTATE
| form of their victim. and made their
escape Simons was terribly beaten;
his skull crushed in, his head and face
| beaten into pulp. Four gaping
wounds showed where the spike on the
club had punctured the dead mans
| skull. and penetrated his brain.
| Walter Evans, one Of the young men
who attempted to save Simons' life, and
! who afterwards assisted in the remov-
ing of the dead mains remains to his
home, was greatly affected. and almost
| suffered nervous collapse. He wit
messed the lynching. and he is now
| raving maniac.
More Bodies Recovered.
-Dunkirk n Y Dec 17LBOdies Of