Richmond planet., 1900-01-13
WARNED OF raE DrNoalse.

Men are gathering on the street.
corners in kocketts, and I think there
will he trouble." said Orange. Being
sn of1icer of the law, thought i would
come over and tell you about It,"
Officer Booker was still incredulous
be cav no signs OF q disturbance and
did not believe that there was any
danger of such thing as lynching in
Newport News He WAS unpleasautly
corrected in this opinion about half an
hour later.
1t was about ten minutes after A
e'elock. A gentleman, who rooms
just across Lafayette avenue from the
Courthouse was awakened by q noise
the sound Of men talking in the street.
MEN WITH MASKS.
He got up and went to the window
aud saw n knot OF men, with white
masks on, standing in front of the sta
tion house. He counted seven OF
taem, and saw but seven. They eli
entered the gate and went into the
corridor of the statiophouse There
che witness lost sight of them for
awhile.
In few inmates, however. he saw
them returning with the prisoner
Two OF the men were in front, one
man was on either side OF the doomed
man, three were immediately behind
him. They went on down Twents-
NTH street and disappeared.
~HE SCENE IN TIE STATION HOUSE.
On duty at the time were Station
Keeper henry Booker and Tom Sally,
the young man who did such clever
work last evening in arresting Watts.
! When the mob reaehed the courthouse
three men with masks over their faces
and with revolvers in hand, advanced
TO the door OF she station, while the
rest of the large crowd remained out
side Of the iron fence. making not q
sound but ready to lend the leaders
assistanes the instant they were call
ed upon.
The three men who were evidently
the moving spirits, and whose identity
is still unknown, entered the room
where the Station-Keeper usually
stays, and where the records of she
Police Court are kept. Mr.. Booker
had stepped out q few minutes prior
to this, and Tom Salley was alone in
the room. The young man was imme-
diately covered with revelvers and q
dc mand was made for the prisoner.
COVERED WITH REvoLvERs.
About this time Mr.. Booker entered
the corridor, and two of she imen GOV.
cred him with revolvers, demanding
that he deliver up the prisoner.
At FIRST MIR. Booker hesitated
about complying. according to his
statement, but he was quickly disarm-
ed, and with the pistols pointed nb his
head he was compelled to open the
door leading into the station, and also
the door of the cell in which the pris-
.oner was confined.
BTGeED FoR KERoY.
Watts, who confessed his crime last
evening, begged for mercy and plead
ed with the leaders of the party not to
shoot him. He WAS hustled outside
where the other armed men took a
hand, and started on run with their
prisoner out Lafayette avenue.
Ar. Booker and Mr.. Sslly then gave
the alarm, and Chief-of-Poliee Har-
wood and several other officers at
tempted to follow the mob, but they
had not been notified in time and
were too late to interfere. In fact
the body was not found until after Z
O'Clock this morning, when 1t was 10
Gated by o policeman tied tc Q ssplinp
about two hundred yards beyond the
railroad tracks running to Old Point.
The lynchers were evidently in O
hurry to get the Job over with, as they
did not string the prisoner up to .
limb.
THE NUMBER or SHOTS FIRED.
Accounts OF the number OF shots
fred differ. Persons living in Orrville
heard the shots. Some say there
were about seven and others that
there were ten shots fred.
One gentleman, who was leaving his
house on Thirty-fourth street, and
heard all of the shots, said he thought
there we're seven, although he did not
count them.
According to one man who saw the
proceedings at the station.house, there
were only seven armed men who did
the work.