The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1902-05-21
BATTLE ROYAL IN.ATLANTA
Trouble Between Negro Desper-
ADDE'S and Officers in a Suburb
of the City.

AhO"phS DSI"SSh ANSisIo DeSpef-
ADDE'S and Officers in Suburb
of the City.
In an effort to dislodge Will Rich
ardson, a negro desperate from his
store in Pittsburg, suburb between
the city of Atlanta and Fort McPher-
son, in which he had taken refuge
after assaulting aud nearly killing Ex.
Policeman S. "A. kerlin, three police
men and one citizen met instant death
Saturday morning. Three negroes were
killed, while four white men and one
negro are probably fatally wounded.
Richardson, with several other ne
groes, attacked Kerlin Friday night
near his home, in Pittsburg, and beat
him nearly to death. Richardson fired
five shots at him, but none of them
took effect. The matter was reported
to the county police and they found
Richardson IN store at the corner of
Mcdaniel and Amy streets. They
called on Richardson to come out and
surrender. He fired on them, seriously
wounding Owen Heard, member of
the posse. The officers drew off little,
waiting for daylight to rush the build
ing. When morning came, the officers
made another effort to capture the ne
gro, and in a few moments four persons
had been shot down by Richardson,
who was pumping lead from Win
chester with the accuracy of a sharp
shooter. Henry King, who was with
Richardson when he shot Owen Heard,
came out, and was forced by the officers
at the point of revolver, to crawl To
the building and fire it. The house
was burned, and Richardson's dead
body, charred beyond recognition, was
| found.
The crowd which surrounded the
house was immense, and the negro
firing with the deadly accuracy of q
sharpshooter, was picking off officers
rs fast as they showed their heads.
The officers attempted to arrest five
negroes suspected of having beater
former policeman S. A. Kerlin nearly
to death Friday afternoon. The nc
groes resisted arrest by entrenchlne
themselves in a house and the fgh
ensued. The vicinity is thickly set
tied with small negro cabins. There
are outbuilbings and barns and shrub
berry over the entire neighborhOot
which provides such shelter that it wa.
possible TO escape from house to house
and dodge between fences without be
detected. AS soon Dis information Of
the fight between the negroes and tn,
police reached the city. wagon loads o.
policemen heavily armed were hurried
to the scene of action and Gov Cand
ler ordered out detachment of tn,
State militia.
The shooting was followed by ,
speech from Sheriff Nelms, of Fultol
County, advising calmness on the par
, Of the crowd, and the efforts of officers
thereafter were directed towards con
, trolling the temper of the white mel
who were walking the streets of tn
suburb with drawn weapons.
DETAILS OF DESPERATE STRUGGLE
Az o'clock Saturday morning tn
4 group of officers who had been watch
!, ing the house al night approached tn
y place and called upon those within I
2 surrender. The answer was volle
of shots and County Officer Battl
Q dropped dead. The attacking part
p retreated some distance and from bt
O hind trees and telegraph and trolle
4 poles commenced firing into the stcr,
In few minutes the door of th
L house wa thcown open and Will Kinl
negro, ran out and gave himself u
Is 10 the officers. Inside the house Ricl
o. ardson had an unobstructed view
. three directions. One block away p
liceman Tom Grant stepped from h
u shelter to fire into the house. A sh
NJ from the besieged house killed him b
10 fore he could fire. The attackiI
. party sent word to police headquarte
~ and Chief of Police Ball dispatch
40 the reserves to the scene in sever
es patrol wagons.
IL The officers to whom King h