The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1903-04-16

these five men had believed that the
man killed was the man who had COM
nltted the murder. would they not nave
reached their verdict accordingly?
UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES
WAS THE MAN KILLED.
The man killed, Albert Washington,
was in railroad cut of the X C. s.
about five miles from Shreveport. He
was walking briskly. He was CARRYING
his coat. He no doubt had espied some
of the policemen who were scattered in
that vicinity. Under a mental strain he
was easily inundated. and when halted
by the officers who confronted him. he
became excited. and when asked about
blood as alleged being on his person. he
started on a run, pursued by the officers
by whom he was shot and, killed.
OFFICER SUBSTITUTED.
Under the circumstances the officers
were justified in law and reason to shoot
1t is to be regretted that they could not
take him alive. The officers acting under
authority of the law could not permit
the escape of man who they had every
reason to believe, especially by his run
ming away, was the man they were seek
ing, If under the same circumstances
the negro had been met by a sheriff's
posse and had ran away he would doubt
less have been killed. Viewed therefore
from every reasonable standpoint the
officers are justified. Had they permitted
this man to escape they would have been
CenSurable But to emphasize how easily
and readily a negro may become in,ini-
dated and stampede under the strain of
fear, it may be recalled that soon after
Mr.. Foster had been murdered a squad
of armed men appeared in sight near
Bossier City, In a stable was an old ne
gro, who, on seeing the crowd, jumped
out of the stable and ran away. When
called to stop he only increased his
speed. He was fired at and shot, and then
taken to Schumpert's Sanitarium He re-
covered and is attending to his func-
lions as usual in Bossier. He had no
connection whatever with the crime, but
lost his senses and stampeded at the
sight of the armed men, The sense of
stampede is uncomfortable, and some
brave men have been known to run away
when stampeded
BLOODY HAND AND FINGERS.
One of the strong points of the all
thorities in maintaining that Albert
Washington was the murderer of Mrs.
Matthews is that when shot and killed
his finger nails and hand were bloody.
Can it be said positively that when
this man was halted before he started to
run away that his hand was bloody and
that his clothes were bloody? But Mr.
Vance and Mr.. Stinson are confident
that there was no blood on the hands or
the clothes Of this negro when he got on
the train Saturday morning at 10 o'clock,
and the negroes, his companions, give
the same assurance. This is somewhat
perplexing, but let reason be applied
Men familiar with blood and shots and
wounds, men for instance who were SOL
diers during the days of the Confeder-
acy, will concede from experience that
when man is shot, unless completely
disabled Or killed, that the first impulse
is to throw the hand to-the wound if it
can be reached. When shot, this negro
was running; he was shot in the back.
one of the bullets striking below the
skull little toward the right of the
neck. Did not this man throw his hand
to the back of his neck, where shot, and
when running and before he fell, and in
putting his hand to this wound did not
his hand and his fingers become bloody
Is it not probable that the blood trucking
from the wounds down his back and
from his breast run into his pants, and
did he not become more or less bloody
from these shots? Blood when smeared
on the hand would dry rapidly, and
blood when dried during several hours
could not have been scraped off with a
knife. The mans coat was bloody, but
this blood came from the wounds in
f1ieted by the officers.
A SINGULAR FEATURE.
Abiding to- this coat, it may be said
that it was not Albert Washington's |
coat, but Ed Porter's, negro we'll |
known IN Bossier. When Albert Wash
ngton got on the train Saturday morn
ing, by mistake he took and wore off Ed
Porter's coat. This coat should then es-
Eablish in some degree, if not altogether,
A I,