The Lexington intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1901-1949, 1902-08-16
8ALYER8 AND GATES HANGED BY A MOB.

Just O'Clock Tuesday morning Charles Sayers
white and Harry Gates colored taken from the county
Jail by mob and carried Edenview church, and
half miles south Of town. and hanged to the church
yard
About half past o'clock without any signal that
noticed by the inhabitants the mob together the
of the house yard Eleventh and Franklin
marched promptly the JAIL which they ensrsd the
side by breaking in the door 1t only wooden door
and furnished resistance The mob mperfecy masked
Of the having only handkerchefs tied their
faces Sheriff Oscar Thomas, Deputy Charles Kncad and
Prosecuting Attorney Horace Blackwell tried to speak to the
mob but attention paid to them
There many Of them to resist and it plain to
that their organization perfect and that every
detail prearranged They refused the keys Of the
CELL but being provided with ches and hammers they pro-
ceded the rive the locks Of the cell doors
They first secured Salyes who quaered up stairs
the southeast corner Of the jail Then they down stairs
and opened the door to Gates cell in the way. Few
words spoken They had system signals and corps
Of officers They had pcke everywhere and newbo could
not be identified by the pickes permitted
After leaving the jail the larger body Of the mOb formed
Franklin street moved Thirteenth street. and there
joined by the part Of the crowd that had gone down Main
this point they the road Edenview
church where the prisoners asked they had any state
ments to make They made conflicting statements Each
acknowledged that he present the killing Of Mr. George
W. Johnson Just week ago almost TO the hour but esch
charged the other with firing the shot
Salyers said that he had make except
equest that his mother told that he Innocent of murder
composed and told his story consistently He
said that Mr. Johnson fired he wounded and fell and
for few minutes he unable to get up He said that
ayers rushed the road and struck and shot Mr. John
son. Both said that they made these statements with full
ton of begging off.
The conflict Of their statements led to alteration between
the cupris Gates calling Sayers by familiar told
him that he dying with lie his lips Salyers replied
by protesting his and requesting that his mother be
told Of his dying They drawn up smutan
eousy to the same limb and the mob quey dispersed the
cross roads, going all directions considerable number
Of the people from the tried follow the mob Some
were back by the guards Others gave up when they
saw how far they had 60 Twenty twenty-five reached
the spot.
The difficulty Of gaining accurate sn4 full information
augmented by the fact that the lights went out at
about go ocock-just before the mob formed Complaint
was made too that it impossible to communicate by es
phone for than hour
Some Of our citizens who followed the crowd the place
Of execution say that both died game While the ropes
were about their necs they each accused the other Of doing
the shooting There apparent excitement
about either While the door Sayers cell being broken
open walked up his bunk rolled cigarette lit it
and smoked it as though he unconcerned.