The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-09-20
MADISON GRAND JURY URGES IMPEACHMENT
Continued from Page One
INQUIRY COURT AT WORK.
Captain R l.. Hay Principal Ni"esS V"
 Etrut Day.

 the conduct of the officers of company | F on guard at the jail when surround | ed by the mob that later lynched HOT ace Naples. - The court Is composed of Col. I. Sld- ney Frazer of Union Springs, Cap.. " | J. Walden of Uniontown, ana Sap'' I' D. Smith of Birmingham
 The first session of the court was heio | in the City Hall, beginning at CLOCK. Captain Walden read the order TOT the court issued by the Governor, also telegram from the Governor dppoiii'- | ing him as recorder.
 l w. B. Bankhead Douglas laylor' James NJ. Ballentine and capt. ooian Burke, Commissary Captain or me ou Regiment, were introduced as couhsel for the officers of Company F. iohs list of witnesses was called. All were | then sworn and excluded from the rooii'' Captain Hay excepted.
 The evidence of three witnesses was heard and was substantially the same las appeared in The Advertiser in thls connection Sunday morning mere was more or less of a confusion or or ders during the excitement on the a'- tack on the jail, but the closest cross- examination falls to show trace oi lcowardce on the part of the officers ana men of the company. | he ordered his men to fire on the crowd. unless ordered to do so by the Sheriff, he would be held criminally responsible, while the men, as shown l by Sergeant Brock, wanted to shoot and drive off the crowd or be taken from their undesirable position on the stairway.
 | Captain Hay Testifes. l The first witness was Captain IL. IL. Hay, commanding oscer of company F. 3rd Regiment who was in com mand of the comsany the night of the lynching. In substance he spoke as | follows:
 "On the afternoon of the lynching about 4:3o o'clock. my brother. Lieu tenant Tom Hay. came to my oftlce ana told me that the Sheriff had ordered | the company to come to the jail. ordered him to get the company to- gether at the jail and there we issued cartridges and guns to the men. about seventeen, and marched to the jail.
 "I saw Sheriff Rodgers there and asked him if it was true thlt he had ordered the company out. l did not salute him according to military rules but considered myself under his com mand. I never used the words I re- port for duty and orders. Later re- ceived telegram from Governor Cum ningham instructing me to report to the Sheriff The order came about 7:3O o'clock, to the best of my recol- lection.
 q threw out pickets. seven of them. around ' Q jail at the various corners leading to the jail and kept the re- maining men. about eleven. as re- serve at the jail.
 "I dispersed the mob at once, and had very little trouble doingj so all | though the members cursed the otti- | cers and men.
 When I reported to the ShoriH 1 said to him: T want you to stay here. as we are liable to have trouble He then told me if there was any trou- ble to sound. ~s1y and order all | the men into the jail He did not give | any orders to shoot in case the mob | attacked, and never during the entire | trouble would he allow me to order l the soldiers tn shoot, although I beg | ged him and so did some of the men in | the Jail after the mob had rushed the lines.
 | II left the jail and went up town a short time after I had reported to the sheriff. It was than that I received the telegram from the Governor. my brother giving 1t to me. I wired back | to him that the company was in com mand at the jail and asked for rein l forcements, and also asked If instruc- tions had been sent to the Birming, ham company to come here. I never received reply to this telegram.
 Hay Obeyed Sheriff.
 After I had gone back to the Jail. and about o'clock the mob rushed the lines and assembly was sounded. but not by my orders or by those of any one so far as I know. Shots were fired, but I do not know by whom. When the mob rushed tlse line and the assembly, was sounded I ordered the men into the jail, but not until after Sheriff Rogers had also done so. He marched us to the second landing of the steps just as the negro escaped.
 q do not know If any of the rifles of my command were fired that night. did not inspect them to see. The orr der to load was never given by me, and so far as I know none of the rifles was loaded.
 Tn the jail, after the mob had sur rounded 1t and had started firing 1t, l said to the Sheriff that it was pretty warm and that he ought to do some thing. He called to individual men in the mob and advised them to go home. as he did not wish to fire on them.
 The boys in my command kept begging the sheriff and myself to al low them to shoot and two of them were suffocdted by the heat and smoke and had to lie down.
 Soldiers Wanted to Shoot. | The Sheriff's son came to me and l said: Bob, if father orders you to shoot don't do it. He repeated this several times. and also several times begged his father not to order us to shoot l had half a dozen talks with the Sheriff begging him to allow me to shoot. l told him that I would shoot and shoot to kill any time that he gave the command. l replied u his sons pleadings that I would do my duty and order to shoot to kill.
 One of the mob shot into tine win. dow and the glass cut my fingers and just under my eye. l don't know who shot at the militia
 Before the mob had succeeded ir setting fire to the jail. the Sheriff or. dered me to go back to the rear doc, , and ask the mob there to stop trying to break in. but they paid no attention to me. l went alone.
 Even after the fire had been start.
 ed and the boys were almost suffocatef they stuck to their posts and did no I leave until the Sheriff ordered us ou g of the jail As l went out l fell UT , against the side of the jail alno. completely overcome by the smoke ane
 the fumes.
 As l was leaning there d body Grop ped to the ground beside mo and f
 was the negro Horace Naples 1 saw some of my men near, but did not or de int n1