Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-02-27
LYNCHED AND BURNED.
Horrible Fate Of a Negro Murderer at Terre
Haute Indiana.

Terre Haute. Ind. Feb. 26-Georso
Ward q years old, a coloreu no"' lo
WIS arrested today and according TO IN,
police has confessed having murueIso
ida Finkiestein, the school teacher Mio
was found diving last evening III " si'N'
Ward had recently been discharged
from an insane asylum as cured AppaI-
emily he was demen'sui, In n n,s tann,ea
hinn ahnut his color and then struck nun
in the face In a fit OF anger ne shut heI
and then cut her throat. a hiooo-Stalneu
knife found in ms ioche' ''ii"pot'''"
Ward when first captured strenuously
denied his guilt but severely questioned,
finally confessed
If IN. county Jail where Ward was con-
fined and battered down the outer doors.
J.til.r Lawrence ODonnell appeared with
n shot gun and iired over the crowd IN a
vain effort to stampede them.
Three deputy sheriffS We're wounded by
shots from the crowd
Word of Ward confession was passed
through the streets and the crowd, rein
forced by hundreds Of recruits redoubled
its attack ON the jail.
AT u 10 they succeeded in reachlhS
Wards cell. He was quickly dragged oit
To the street and lynched.
The sheriff was absent when the moD
descended upon the Jail. His deputies
nut up vigorous resistance ana AT mrs.
:tppeared to have successfully beaten OF
the crowd. but on the second onslaught.
the mob, variously estimated at two 10
three thousand in number, SWEPT away
all obstacles.
Ward was dragged from his cell, rope
was placed around his neck and he was
dragged down the street 70 Wagon
bridge spanning the Wabash river.
on the way to the bridge, three blocks
distant, Ward was beaten with CLUBS ana
repeatedly shot AT. tie was UNCONSCIOUS
and in all probability dead when the zoos
md Of the rope was tied to a timber %
The bridge and his body swung out over
the stream. y strand of the rope SUD
denly broke, and the leaders fearing tlel
urrV might drop into the river. hastily
drew the body back upon the bridge. II
was dragged across to the west side. =
mig, bonfire. was quickly built, the body
was thrown upon the pNrt ana IN a Slot'
time was burned TO crisp.
Wards body was laid across the ire
tie feet projecting from one S!de ana tiit
head from the other
Members of the mob We're dissatisfied
with the contla grafton, however, aH'
quantities of oil and tdrpehtihe W'lt
polred upon the pile The flames leapto
in the air and in snort Tune niue "ds
left of the negro. =.
a vast crowd witnessed the final act il
1ns lynching When the mob dragged
Ward to the bridge and prepared to hans
him a great crowd collected along th'
river side This kept on increasing II
liz. as thousands OF men. women ans
children hurried to the scene. After !
was determined to burn the negro a bal
,vaS nIar.d across the bridge to proven
rh,a crowd from pressing closer ana Whti
ne fir. was lighted and the body thrown
INTO the flames, the east bank OF the rlN
.r, the bridges up and down stream an,
hundreds Of houSetops were black VIII
Those who took an active part in the
lvnching made no attempt 1T disguise;
The certainty that the wretch was dra'
ala not app.aSt. the anger OF the mon
With grim determination tney red th'
flames ANA watched the flesh shrlNtl Y
tiudprS ana the bones Crunblr ana Dufl
Souvenir hunters were on hanC IN loTct
ana fragments Of the body are now scat
tered broadcast one man. while the Zee
prutruded from the flames "fler'd u 10
toe from the Niger io"I EelI
turesume youth drawing his KNIFE IRON
his pocket made a dash for the prize. H.
quickly amputated 4 toe. delivered lh'
goods and got his money Ns the bohv'
hogan TO crumble and fall apart the traS
ments We're drawn from the fire are car
ried away
At o'clock there was nothing left 2
the body except a small section OF ~
trunk ana the back Of the head.
Busy hands Kept the burning iagg"t
piled on the roasting segments. An OF
stump with spreading roots was place.
on the apex Of the pyre ana was 500
aglow ~, .a,ra
and eIbowed their way into the inner ell
ole. of spectators. undeterred and appaT
entity unmoved by the horror OF the spec
tacle At about 80 o'clock the barrlcad
was removed from the west end of tn
bridge and the crowd streamed acros
and surrounded the fire. They watche
ana waited and came and went while IN
flames did their work.
Ward was p ears old and leaves a wit
Nv and two children. He came here NJ
wears ago from Circleville. ONO III
statement that he was one time in an II
sane asylum is denied by his wife. II
served a iaii sentence in 1889 for larceny
The leaders of the mob are unknown
and as public sentiment upholds III
.k,t,