The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1901-06-11
SHERIFF PROTECTS NEGRO
FROM MOB VIOLENCE.
FIRES ON LYNCHINC PARTY
One Man Killed and Two Others
Badly Wounded by Jail
Guards.

Carrollton, Ga, June THE nerve
OF Sheriff Joseph Merrill today upheld
the law of the state and saved the life
of a negro from a mob.
In protecting the negro, who was
saved from the gallows only a few
hours before through the efforts of
his lawyers, one life was lost and two
men wounded.
h arrival of the state militia
averted threatened trouble tonight,
and at 8 O'Clock a special train bear
ing the negro was speeding toward
Atlanta under guard. The man killed
in attacking the jail was George Ben
nett, of Carrollton, and the wounded
men are Thomas Smith, also of Car
rollton, and an unknown man, pre-
sumably a farmer. Thomas S. Word.
father of h murdered boy, who was
in the front rank Of the raid made
by the lynchers, vas not hit. AS Ben
let fell, Word jumped upon a window
sill and exclaimed, dramatically:
"Shoot me, Mr.. Sheriff, 1 would as
soon die now as any time Only
nine shots were fired and the walls
of the Jail show marks of the bullets.
None of the sneriff's posse was hit.
Williams, the negro, who caused
the trouble, was tried and found
guilty of numbering Otis Word, Jan
uary 1. 1901, and sentenced to be
hanged today. He was this morning
refused a new trial by Judge Harris,
but his attorneys filed a bill of ex-
ceptions and carried the case to the
supreme court. A large crowd of peo-
pie had come OF town to witness the
hanging, and when it was learned that
an appeal a been taken to the SUI
preme court, delaying the execution,
there was much excited talk which
crystaliZed soon afterward in the for
nation of a mob. At noon the mob
made an assault on the Jail. They
battered down the outside door, de-
spite the warning of the sheriff, and
entered the building. They made a
demand on the sheriff for the key to
the Negroes cell, but were refused.
The mob advanced upon the sheriff
and his deputies. They were told to
stop or they would be fired on, but
the order was not obeyed. AS they
advanced down the corridor toward
the sheriff the order was given to
shoot. Bennett fell. dying almost in
stantly.
liams' victim, who was in the front of
Cl1C l1OU, Wdo Oouly SAOC, 40 was ol0O
an unknown countryman. The ley
pected firing Of the sheriff and his
little posse frightened the mob anu
they retreated outside of the Jail.
Here they broke and ran and were
soon divided into little groups discuss
ing the event. Sheriff Merrill at
once consulted Judge Harris, of the
county court, and it was decided to
call upon Governor Chandler for aid.
The governor was communicated with
by telephone and said he would send
two companies of militia from Allan
ia as soon as they could be assembled.
During the afternoon the mob tele-
phOned the situation to friends in ad-
joining towns of Villa RIGA and TEN.
pie, and made an appeal for more men
to get possession of the negro. This
was communicated to Governor Chan
dler also, and the governor soon
wired a proclamation to the sheriff.
1t was read from the steps of the
court house at 4 o'clock by the may
or. The proclamation ordered the
people to dispense and said the en-
tire military and civil forces of the
state would be used to enforce order
if necessary. The reading Of the
proclamation apparently had a good
effect, as many people were seen to
mount their horses and leave town.
The sheriff was then directed to take
the prisoner out of the county for
~safekeeping. The Atlanta militia, I'M
der command of Major Barker, ar
rived tnoight and escorted the negro
and Sheriff Merrill to the train, which
was Don speeding southwark to At
lanta.