Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-08-17

right ones to justice. / can almost
promise you that when the case is
finally sifted there will be five parties
who are equally guilty"
I'VE know you are our friend, Ken
Use us you will let the men stay in the
Statesboro jail and not be taken back
to Savannah. Then we will dispense
and not until then"
Presently some twenty-five men
crowded around the guards. Before
they could be prevented, they had
caught two of the guards. wrested
their weapons from them and threw
open the breech blocks. The weapons
were empty. That was what the crowd
wanted to ascertain. The troops had
been given orders not to load their
rifles The captured soldiers were held
prisoners. The same policy was fol-
lowed with the others of the soldiers.
Man after man. caught isolated, was
relieved of his rifle, after struggle.
At the front member of the mob
crept along the wall until he got close
to the guards. He threw himself upon
them. In the breach thus formed, his
hundred wildly cheering men fol-
lowed him and soon the soldiers tho
they fought desperately and inflicted
bayonet wounds upon some of their as
sailants, were overpowered.
One young soldier of the Oglethorp
guards never surrendered. He fought
his way free, fought thru his captors
and out upon the lawn. A weapon was
raised to strike him. "Shame!" shout
ed the crowd, and struck down the man
who had raised the weapon. Then they
threw themselves upon the boy and ov
empowered him.
Door Like an Eggshell.
The small guard about the prisoners
withdrew into the room and closed the
door. The mob crashed against 1t,
bursting 1t as tho it was an eggshell.
The prisoners We're at their mercy, all
resistance having been beaten down,
Cato, Reed, Handy Bell and the other
prisoners covered before the crowd.
They dragged Cato and Reed out. re-
leasing Bell into the hands of the few
soldiers left there.
Reed was taken down one stairway
with rope about his neck, and Cato
down the other, both pleading for their
lives.
BY this time the crowd numbered
5000 persons. The doomed men were
dragged. the crowd shouting and cheer
ing. along the roadway leading to the
Hodges homestead. where the five
members of the family had been muir
dered and burned. That was their
destination.
The heat was so intense that the
crowd wearied when two miles of the
six mile route had been traversed. Co
ing seventy-five yeards from the road,
the crowd halted. The two negroes
were made to seat themselves on
log. They were told that they had but
a short time to live and that they
should confess.
Reed confessed. duplicating other
negroes, as he had In the court room.
He denied, however, that he had taken
an active part In the murder.
Cato answered incoherently. The
crowd moved across a field to strip
of woodland. Several men climbed to
branches and called for ropes.
Burn them,' 'Burn them" shouted
the crowd. Cato begged to be shot or
hanged. saying he was innocent; that
he had no part In the crime. Some
OF the more humane wanted to grant
his request but they were in the mi
nority The rest wanted to visit the
same death upon the negroes that they
had visited upon the Hodges family.
A member of the mob made a speech