Evening journal., 1902-03-26
PULLMAN PORTER
HANGED BY MOB
His Body Then Was RiddIed
With Bullets
OUTRAGED AN OLD WOMAN
Mob StOrmed Court House Where
Negro Was Locked and Secured
The Victim
OUTRAGED An OLD WOMAN

La Junta, Colo, March 26.-W. H.
Wallace, a Pullman sleeping car por-
ter, was lynched at O'Clock last
night in a corner of Court House
Square, being hanged to an electric
light pole by a bowling mob of 1000
persons, who had been hunting for
him all day. After the hanging the
body of the negro was riddlel with
bullets. The prisoner made no resist
ance to the lynching and died protest
ing his innocence.
Mrs. Henrietta Miller, a gray-haired
woman, aged 67 years. going from Los
Angeles, Cal, to Denver to visit rela-
tives, was brutally assaulted in the
Santa Fe railway yards here Monday
night by a negro porter on a Pullman
car running between Denver and La
Junta.
After leaving the Chicago limited
train here, Mrs. Miller asked a porter
whom she met on the station plat
form where the Denver sleeper was.
The man offered TO conduct her TO
the car. After going with him con
siderable distance, Mrs. Miller be-
came suspicious and started to return
to the station. She was then knocked
down by blow on the head, and after
q struggle with her assailant was
choled into insensibility. When she
regained consciousness about an hour
later she crawled back to the station
and gave an account of the assault and
a description of her assailant. Wash
ter, was arrested in the car of which
he had charge. He was identified by
Mrs. Miller. Bloodhounds were brought
from Canyon City, and they trailed
the man who accompanied Mrs. Miller
through the yards to the car in which
Wallace was found.
Fearing a lynchihg, Sheriff Farr de
cided TO take the prisoner TO PuelGO
When his intention became known the
railway employees declared that he
could not travel by rail. as they would
refuse to operate the train out Of La
Junta with Wallace on board. The
sheriff placed his prisoner in a car
riage and started for Sugar City
Meantime an armed party had left Ii
Junta to overtake the sheriff and hii
prisoner The carriage was tinall!
'se5evertake ken, ndssh aIi faarr lnstee. ~
resistance sand .Walasse' did 'hfsts al
for meFcyA The earrihge was turRe,
back toward La Junta. A peace ele
ment asked the privilege of trying t.
get confession from Wallace. Thi
was granted, and the negro was takel
into the court house. After half al
hour or so the word went out that tn
court house doors were locked, an
that the committee would try to pre-
vent a lynching. Immediately pand6
monium reigned. Stones were hurle
at the building until every window wa
broken. Then, with a telegraph pol
for a battering ram. the crowd brok
in the doors and Wallace was take
out
A boy was sent up a telegraph pol
with a rope. Il was thrown over tn
cross-bar and then dropped into th
crowd. A hundred hands grasped
and in an instant the negro was in tn
air. Hardly had the boy climbed ol
of danger when hundreds Of pistO
were drawn, and before the negro
body reached the top of the pole
was riddled with bullets and the ma
was dead.
Sheriff Farr said last night that Wa
lace steadfastly declared his inn
cence. But the police claim that whe
he was arrested there was blood al
gray hairs on his clothing and 9th,
evidence which convinced them he WI
the guilty man.