The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1902-08-01
ANA. !. ". i Full 1 SCENE.
A5 Man Curses and Raves on the
Scaffold
just BEFORE DETNG HUNG
For 4 Brutal Murder. A SAD
warning 70 Young Men
TO let Stron. Drink
lone.

Alone. 5y q,
At fnrty-onc minutes past eleven
O'Clock Tuesday morning Ashley Cooke Z
and Tom laldcrdalc, the murdcrcrs
Of Engineer Wray, cxpiated their
crime upon the galows at Grccnville8
Miss. Il s8J
Cooke died cursing everybody Sin.
GrccnYillc. and the onlccrs OF the law,
laudcrdac met5hiS fate calmly. $ s2 2SE.
At early dawn great throngs 0f5peO.
pie began to arrive I'M the city3and BY,
10 O'Clock the place was crowded Il to ]
iic utmost capacity. ISL !, 4
Sheriff Hunt had sworn in d large
number Of deputies and every precanssl n
ton was taken to prevent any possible
trouble. "a Cooke aud sLauderdale, ar
ter q good nights sleep, awoKe 8atSi75
o'clock. breakfast was offered them
but bOthsdeclincd to eat. 8 q i y
Cooke was Visited by Rev., Cunning.
ham, who tried his utmost to induce
the doomed man to embrace religion.
but all to no purpose. \, a h s II
At II O'Clock the two mon Were
brought into the corridors Of the tailS
where the last farewclls were said q " ;G
'Ihey we're then taken to the Scaf-s
fold aud in full view or thousands &c
people both we're hanged. Lauderdales
remained firm and quiet throu6hontS
but Cooke ayed like a madmatl, curs-
ing everything and everybody I'M
Greenyille and finally when the black
cap was adjusted he uttered a feafful5
oath at the sheriff and his deputies.
There was no semblance of|tr0uble.
STORY OF THE oR1ME.s S js %
The crime for which Ashley Cooke
and Tom Lauderdale tuesday paid tho
death. penalty on the gallows Commit
ted on q Yazoo and Mississippi Valley
train about 3 O'Clock on the morning i
of Dccember 80, 1901, between sthes.
towns Of Leland and Nljasibeth in
Washington county. m q. ,33;s5
Ashley. CQclce, yaon Lauderdalo,t
VIII Blackburn and G. M. Phipps, re.5
siding In Bolivar county, boarded
the northboumd passenger train at 8
o'clock In the morning for the purpose
Of returning to their home at Shelby.
q. nj. Wray, an engineer, was a pas
sengcr on the car entered by Cookie and
his party. Cooke and his three COM
panions were all more R or less,S under
the influence of liquor. phipps fell
against Wray who was asleep on seat in
the coach. Wray asked Phipps what
he meant and reply came from Cooke
that 1T meant that he (Wray) must
leave the coach. NYray having fully
awokc realized that the men were
drinking and told them that it was all
right and that he would leave the car.
AS Wray started to walk out Black
burn said to Cooke: M
What shall we do with that fellow?
lie says that he has done nothing, but
is willing to apologize" ais#
VOTED no KILL HIM.
i vote to kill himl'' replied Cooke
PhippS at this time sank into a seat
and was not with his companions.
Cooke, Laudcrdale and Blackburn
then began shooting at Wray as the
latter was trying to leave the coach.
Wray was riddled with bullets and
fell dead in the aisle Of the car. While
Conductor McLauchlin, who ha1 stop
ped the train, was looking for officers
to assist him in the arrest Of the three
men, tho trio got oil and went to tho
engine and forced the engineer to un-
couple the engine and proceed at once.
to Shelby and the engineer obeyed the
instructions at the point Of Il gun.
At Shelby, Cooke, Lauderdale and
Blackburn were arrested and brought
to Greenyille on a special train, every
prccaution being taken to prevent a
lynching which was threatened by
many citizons. The men were indict-
ed for murder in the first degree.
Cooke and Lauderdale essaycd to be
tried together and after ono Of the
most bitter legal battles in the history
or the country, they were convicted
and sentenced to be hanged on March
q, 1902. Notice of$an appeal \, was
filed, which stayed the execution.
Later Blackburn was tried found gull
ty. He was sentenced to imprison-
ment for life, his previous character
having been proven eptionally good, |.
| The supreme colrt reviewed the
case OF Cooke and Lauderdale and aftel3
an exhaustive examination or $3 tho
record aalrmed the decision / OF Il tlGe
lower courta md fixed Tuesday, Idly
%, as tho day for the execution. 81
GREAT LlcGA Il BATTLE. s.i 81 3s5S
Then began a mighty effort to save
the two men from the scaffold. \. i} 1: a.
fiuential relatives and friends Of Cooke
and Lauderdale, and especial C0cke,
who is highly connected Il in three & Or
more states, presented strong petitions
and earnest appeals to Goyernn(odr:5
Longlno to commute the death sent ]
encc to imprisonment for life, bubStflc3
governor deeply synipathized Ritlithes
family and relatives Of THE two mon, Z
remained firm and declined to inter
ferc. Attorneys at the last IN mornents
went to Narragansctt3j j Pier, r. ], with
q petition to Mr.. Justice WbiteSo or the
supreme court of tfiss United States &
and begged that the u eXecut Nj lbeS
stayed on constitutional grounds.
Justice White, after reviewing & the
papers, also declined to Interfere, and
tho mandate OF the law was cargiefiI
out. the two men q yi.ng on tho same
81 q, Poisone d u smily. slss
tuesday night tho family OF coz
nelius Nc Kenal D, ored s, oiety sIill.,
was ta ken seriously Ill from tho cffccts