Columbia courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1902-1905, 1903-08-07
MURDERER WAS lYkCHED
HE HAD CONFESSED TO HIS TER
RIBLE CRIME.
The British Murderer of Little Mabel
Richards Near Asotin, WASH, Was
Taken From the Jail and Strung Up
to Telegraph Pole-Lynchers Well
Organized.

Organized. y
Asotin, Wash, Aug 5, 12:45 a. NJ
William Hamilton, slayer of little
Mabel Richards, is swaying from the
end of rope thrown over guy wire
and his body no longer attracts notice.
The british murderer Of an innocent
child was lynched shortly after mid
night.
At - a. m. 20 masked men, their
faces concealed with handkerchiefs,
marched in orderly manner up the
street toward the jail Hamilton, af-
ter Is minutes delay, was dragged out
Of the cell and down into the yard.
Meanwhile another company of
masked men, about so in number, had
marched up the street and taken po-
sitions about the entrance to the jail.
All were masked and all were order
ly. With these men none attempted
to interfere.
Soon there came a procession from
the Jail yard. On either side of the
doomed wretch was masked man,
clutching the murderer's arm and
hauling him along.
Evidently they had their program all
mapped out. When the lynchers and
Hamilton reached the corner Of First
and Fillmore streets, they halted un-
der guy wire which crosses the
street and joins electric light poles.
Here one of the leaders asked Hamil-
ton If he wanted to confess. He did So.
Hamilton is about feet inches
tall, weighing 1856 pounds, with light
blue eyes, rather sharp features, reced-
ing forehead. and weak face. He has
thick shock of stiff, bristly hair, red
dish gray in color. He had all the ap-
pearance Of a half witted moral de-
generate. At first he was unwilling
to talk of the tragedy. He said:
Eyes, l killed the girl. met her in
the woods half mile from the Parrish
mill; asked where she was going, and
she said to Sunday school at Kelly's
schoolhouse. l got off my horse, put
my arms about the girl and Rugged
and kissed her. Then l asked her to
come with me away from the road into
the bushes. She asked me to let her
alone, as she wanted to go to Sunday
school. l folded both arms about her
and carried her about rs feet from the
road into clump of bushes. There
l threw her down and pulled off her
clothes, but failed of my purpose. She
did not call out or fight, but did not
seem to know what l was trying to
do. She was badly frightened and
could not tell her name or age. When
l desisted from my attempt she prom
Used never to tell what I had tried to
do"
cat first I thought I would let her
go. After talking with her several
minutes became afraid she would tell
and l started to choke her. She got
black in the face and her tongue stuck
out of her mouth. l let go of her throat,
went about 10 feet and got club, with
which struck her on the right side
of the head. She gave little outcry,
then lay still. struck her on the left
side of the temple, then rolled her
over with my foot and struck her in
the back of the head. After watching
her for few minutes knew she was
dead. Getting my horse rode on into
the timber mile further and began to
pick huckleberries. | picked a five
gallon can of berries and then rode
home to my fathers place near Ana
tone, passing on my way within rs
feet of where the dead body of my vic.
tim was lying"
Hamilton spoke in an exceed
ingly low tone, not being heard
more than 10 feet away. Final
ly he asked that his jewelry-
some trifing trinket he had in
his possession-and his watch be given
to his father and mother and the
promise was made him.
Some one produced black mask
like that used in legal hanging and
it was put over the head of Hamilton
1t reached down to his shoulders. The
rope was then produced, placed about
his neck and thrown over the guy wire
being seized by powerful men, the body
was lifted off the ground and sus
pended at a height of about four feet
The doomed wretch began to gasp fol
breath and his efforts were plainly
observable distance of two blocks
so quiet was the crowd. After Hamil
tons body had been held by the lynch
ers for time long enough to make
certain he was dead, the rope was tiet
to the telegraph pole and the body
left suspended. The crowd, when they
| wgra satisfied tho wretch had breat h or