Milford chronicle., 1902-09-19
BRUTENEARLY LYNCHED
Saved by Officers After a Fierce
Fight With Frenzied Mob.
MALTREArED sIx-YEAR-oLD GIRL

Mob stormed the Butler, Pa, Jail and
Battered In the Door In Their eff
forts to Secure the Brute-several
Persons Injured.
Butler, Pa, Sept. 15.-Shortly be-
fore midnight Saturday night fren-
zicd mob of about 1000 men surround
ed the county jail, clamoring for Jo-
seph Bennett, a well-known character,
who brutality maltreated the 6-year-old
daughter of John Wagner, a tailor,
who lives near the West Penn depot.
Bennett was discovered with the lit
tie one in his arms, and was only saved
from lyRching at the time by the op-
portuRe arrival of a number of police
men. Bennett was safely lodged in
the Jail, and the maddened crowd de-
ternlined to take him forcibly from
the prison and hang him. During the
exciting hours that followed, a door
Of the Jail was battered in, one man
was shot and several others were in
jured.
The story of Benefits crime and the
res16eqat occurrences are about as
follesB Bennett, who has been in
troub& RNny times before, had been
drinking all day Saturday, and in the
evening induced the child to accom-
pany him to a store, where he bought
her candy. Bennett was finally locat-
ed by Lewis Patton, under box car,
in a dark corner of the yard. Patton
took the child from Bennett and had
her sent to her home. She was terri
bly, abused and is in a serious condi-
ton. The clothes of the brute were
sufficient evidence of his guilt. A
large crowd soon collected.
The streets were crowded with peo
The streets were crowded with PEG
pie. and all seemed to join the moi
in the middle of the street Shouts Of
| Lynch him." Get a rope" were
raised Then the mass of people
| crowded around the prisoner and be
gan beating and kicking him. Aftei
struggling for half an hour the Off
GERS succeeded in getting their mar
1 llGlAG tiE lAloOns nG DcAillGu AlOi
then. with one accord, yelled: "Smasl
the Jail" The cry was echoed and re
echoed and it seemed but a momen
until probably 25 men came through
| the crowd with a rush, bearing
heavy timber, which had been Sc
cured at a new building nearby. Will
cheers rang out as the people divinet
that an effort to force the prison wa
| about to be made.
The crowd had rope ready and hal
selected a tree near the jail to whicl
it was intended to hang Bennett.
rush was made to the side door of tn
prison, and before the officers wer
aware of the intention of the mob tn
| door went down beneath a fierce bloN
from the battering ram. Deput
Sheriff J. Rainey Hoon was inside thi
door, however, and with drawn re
volver prevented a rush into the iai
In the rush made upon the Jail Del
uty Sheriff Rainey Hoon was struc
on the head and rendered unconscious
but recovered quickly after being cal
ried into the sheriff's private apar
ments. The sheriff himself had RI
ceived a number of cuts and bruises
Policeman Joseph Dougherty wa
knocked down and sustained a nun
Der of deep cuts on the head and bod.
Louis Hill had his right leg broker
George Klein, who was among tn
mob, was shot in the leg by one of tn
guards. None of the wounded al
seriously hurt. During the night tn
mob made three separate attempts
get into the prison. but when the Las
attempt was made the fierceness
, the attackers had materially d
, creased.