The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-06-29

Selma, June 24.-Last night between
II and II o'clock. at the home of he1
father in this place, there was a bold
attempt by some unknown person to
enter the 10 of Miss Pearl Jones,
but the attempt was foiled by the use
of a revolver in the same steady hand
that exactly two weeks before so sue
cessfully dispatched her would-be as
sailant.
Miss Jones was relieved at the tele-
phone Office about II o'clock, came
home and had just eaten her midnight
lunch and gone into the sitting room,
where b was talking with the rest
Of the family, when the dining room
door was heard to open. Her grand
father, who was in the room at the
time, looked into the dining room but
found no one there, so he securely fas-
tened the door and returned to the
sitting room. Pretty soon, however,
some one was heard walking on the
porch in front of Miss Pearls room
and her roommate, Miss Josie Hunt,
who mad already retired, saw the form
OF a man at the window of her room
through the space between the bot
tom of the shade and the window sill,
whereupon she called Miss Pearl. How
ever, before Miss Jones could get there
with her pistol the form had disap-
peared.
INVESTIGATION FRUITLESS.
Miss Pearl n her father, who had
just returned from the railway station,
went up stairs and woke Mr.. W. G..
GateWOOd, a railway engineer, who has
a room there, and the two of them
went out into the yard tO investigate,
but could find no one. Mr.. Jones.
hearing another noise like one of the
night hands at the fertilizer plant, of
which he is superintendent, that had
been sent to his residence to see him
about something, and probably did not
know which door to come to, went to
the plant, where he found all the
hands in their places and no one had
been sent to see him. He returned to
mis- residence where, with Mr.. Gate
wood, he made a more searching in
veStigatiOn, but could find nothing.
Then hoping the trouble was over he
allowed Mr.. Gatewood to retire and
soon the family retired.
Before they had gone to sleep Miss
Jones, hearing another noise like a
man stumbling on the porch in front
of her room, shot through the window,
but unfortunately the culprit escaped,
the ball entering the railing around
the porch. He was heard to jump from
the porch and the night being unusual
~ dark and cloudy he had no trouble
escaping without being seen. There
was a heavy rain soon after this
--ts II~A%- @,A 49, .~N1-~ = H. l~e+
any.
CITIZENS AROUSED.
This affair, while not so widely
known as the one two weeks ago. has
aroused the citizens of the community.
There are different views of the affair
expressed here, some think it was
merely a case of attempted robbery Of
the house, others think it was a case
of contemplated criminal assault upon
the girls, while others hold to the
theory that it was a matter of some
of the younger negroes of the place
trying TO ayenge the death OF their
former companion.
If either of the latter two theories
are ever proven to be correct a repe-
ton of the trouble in Wilmington in
1898 is feared. This is a specially ag-
gravated cas- in view of the fact that
the girl has so recently, however RUM
phantly, passed through an ordeal cal
cHlated to shake the nerve of any or
binary person, and if the culprit is
ever found out it will not be safe for
him to remain in this community
many minutes. The people here are
determined to give this girl the sup
port she deserves. Up to this time
there is no clue whatever.
SUSPICIOUS NEGRO AROUND.
Mrs. King, who lives just across the
street, says that yesterday a negro
man came to her house and asked her
to change a $40 bill and while he was
talking to her and when he left and
until he was out of sight he kept his
eyes fixed on the Jones home, which
fact impressed her to the extent that
she informed the Joneses of it and
warned them to be on the lookout.
This being the junction of two impor-
tant railway systems it is an easy mat
ter for such persons to catch any one
of the many trains passing here every
hour in the day.