Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1903-03-13

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From the Hutchinson News, of the
7th, We take the following account of
the killing of ssBum" Hatch, well
known here as a tough character, the
"solid man" of Maize Brooks:
Bum Hatch, a notorious negro,
was shot and killed by Len Lewis, a
dissolute white man, about / o'clock
this morning at the home of Mrs.
Hatch, his mother. Len. Lewis, his
slayer, is in jail, with a revolver
wound in his leg. John Powers,
another white man, is in the hospital
with the flesh half. burned off his
body. The series of tragedies is the
result of a drunken revel at the
Hatch home last night.
Len Lewis and his wife, Nellie
Lewis, were only released from the
county Jail few months ago.
They have remained in or near
town, but lately had planned to go to
Oklahoma and yesterday with Frank
Golden, who owned team and
wagon, made arrangements to start.
1t was decided to bid farewell in a
supper at the Hatch woman's home
and there these three with John
Powers, white man, formerly cook
at the Brunswick hotel, gathered last
| night. Whisky flowed freely and the
more that was consumed the higher
rose the spirits of the jewelers. Bum
Hatch's wife, mulatto woman, was
in the party, and Lewis began paying
her attentions. This offended the
Lewis woman and she insisted that
Bum Hatch should interfere with the
couple. Bum did so and this caused
Lewis to shy saucer in merry jest at
his life-partner. Then she scrap
began. 1t is said that Mrs. Hatch,
the mother of Bum, got action first
and shot Lewis in the leg. Lewis
then went to the wagon and got a
shotgun and returned to the house.
| He fired in through the door but no
one was hurt. Bum jumped up and
slammed the door to just as Lewis
let drive with the other. barrel. The
load went through the door and
struck Bum full in the body. He
1 Was hilICu dlii1OSl
| Lewis then made his escape, and
went, as Mrs. Hatch supposed, to
the wagon. The mother began to
plan revenge. She crept to the
wagon, it is alleged, and seeing the
figure of a drunken man in there, she
supposed it was Lewis and decided
to burn the wagon. In any event,
the wagon was set on fire, and the
man was severely burned before he
awoke to his danger.
| When he did awake his clothes
were all ahame In his drunkenness
he. sprang from the wagon and start
ed to run. The wind only famed
the flames and before he fell, in a
faint from loss of strength, his face,
hands and feet were cooked. The
police found him an hour later almost
a mile from the wagon. This after
noon the coroner began an inquest.
The evidence brought out the fact
that it was Bum Hatch and not his
mother who had fired the shot. Also,
that Bum Hatch fired first and that
he was in the act of protecting Lewis
wife when the latter went for his gun.
1t came out, too, that before Lewis
had gone out for shotgun Bum
Hatch had already left his brothers
house to get weapon. Both men
carried razors also. A razor was
found on the body of Bum Hatch
after he was killed.
| Those who testified in the case up
to the hour of going to press were:
Johnnie Coleman, who was not a
witness to the tragedy; Coroner Taylor
who viewed the body; w. H. Johnson,
who told where the body was found;
Mrs. Hatch, the wife of the murdered
man, and Charlie Hatch. The testi-
mony of the last was the most i'm
portant as he witnessed the tragedy.
He said his brother had offended
Lewis by assuming the role of pro-
itector over Mrs. Lewis and that when
the quarrel finally eliminated his
brother fired the first shot. He said
four shots were fired from the revolver
in the hands of Bum Hatch before
Lewis fired at ALL