The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-07-22
The County of Chester
field Stirred.
ARMED MEN ARE
SEEKING A NEGRO
Information Received SVery
Meagre.
ATTACK MADE ON
THREE WHITE WOMEN
Manchester Police Notified and on the
Alert for the Crminal--The Names
of the Victims We're Not OBJ
,ainable Last Night-A
Telegram from
Chester.

Excited men, armed with loaded shot
guns. and with thoughts OF vengeance
stirring their breasts, secured Chester
field county In the nelghborhood OF Cen
trala last night In a fruitlcss search after
a flying negro fiend. who some hours ear
Her In the day committed. or attempted
TO commit criminal assault upon two,
and possibly three. white women Of the
county. At the same time IN Richmond
and Manchester. toward which place the
fugitive was supposed to be heading, a
close watch was kept on the railway sta
tons and other roads Of ingress along
which the man might come; but ne came
rot. or had not come UP TO the early
hours Of the morning
scant in the extreme is the information
obtained or obtainable concerning the al
fair, which IS said to have caused great
excitement in the county during the eve
ming. Every available source was ex-
hausted last night, and ssill tlothing
could be learned with any definiteness.
Several had heard of the affair, and
that there was an assault committed upon
either two or three white women at or
near Centralia by n negro man, who
was afterwards chased by armed men,
nobody seemed to doubt. But as for fur
ther details. there were none Railway
officials. police stations. car lines. private
telephones and what not were utilized, but
with equnl effect. Sleeping rren reused
from their beds declared that they could
throw no light upon the matter.
Manchester Notified.
Not even the hour in which the reported
assault Is supposed to have occurred
could be ascertained. The first informa-
tlon came early in the evening In the
n ,I,,- 49, yk,>
Manchester police. Captain Ljpscomb.
just ready to so home to supper, was
informed that an assault had been COM
nlitted by negro upon two ladies in
Chester, and that the man was heading
In the direction of Manchester, being
chased by a mob. He drove at once to
station No. 5. about a mile below Man
chester. where he learned that the negro
had turned in the direction of Petersburg.
and there doubled on his track, and made
for Richmond again. The manner in
which he persisted in his course in this
G.rection led Captain Lpscomb to believe
that he was Manchester or Richmond
man.
BY this time, however the negro had
left the car tracks and was either hiding
In the woods or working a short cut
through the fields. 1t was impossible to
block him. Captain Lipscomb returned to
Manchester and set his officers on the
watch, and careful vigil was kept. Be-
fore he went however, the chief told the
men on the Petersburg car line. all of
whom are armed. to arrest the negro and
bring him here II they caught sight Of
him anywhere on the road.
Boarded Seaboard Train.
Communication was gotten through
the Atlantic Coast Line operator with
l..{
which places the assault Is said to have
occurred. but neither the one nor the
other could give any further details
Both had heard OF the assault. but as
for names, etc, they knew nothing. There
was no night Office open at Centrala
About midnight The Times Dispatch cor
respondent at Chester. in response to G
telegram. sent the following, which may
be placed in the same category with the
other accounts:
News of assault not definite and un,
known as to parties, Hear that three
ladies Were assaulted at Centralla thi.
evening by a negro and the police o.
Manchester and Richmond were tele-
graphed to look ont for him. as he hat
boarded a freight train on the Seaboart
Air Line going north about O'Clock thi.
evening"
The information as to the train wa.
also given tIHteI " tne NldIlClleSteTl dIlt
Richmond police, and Ie stations wer,
watched, but without effect. 1t was tot
late to catch the freight, which came
into Manchester about 10 o'clock, bu
Officer Wright at once posted himself a
the depot. where he stayed until afte
midnight. The freight had Just gone b,
when lie got there. Up to the time tina
he left no signs Of the fugitive appeared
Conductors Knew Nothing.
AS last resort toward gathering some
| further facts In connection with the mat
| ter all the conductors and engineers o
the eaboard who had come in during tht
| night We're waked up. but they, like thu
| others, could add nothing to. the meagr'
| inflammation already in hand. They hat
seen nothing of the. negro, nor had the,
| heard of the assault,
According to the descrintion received
bv the Manchester police,. the negro wht
Committed the crime is short. black ant
stout. He had on brown suit of clothe!
and wore shoes which had no heels te
them.
| orCJ0E DNPpEn