Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1906-09-27
ATLANTA RACE WAR
NINE NEGROES AND ONE WHITE
MAN ARE KILLED.
Numerous Assaults Upon White
Women Provoke Uprising Against
BIacks-Negroes Dragged From
Street Cars and Beaten to Death.

Atlanta, Ca, Sept. PA race war
of alarming proportions began here
Saturday night. Through the night it
ragged with varying vigor, and when
morning dawned it found number
of negroes and one white man dead,
score of both races wounded and
the downtown streets in possession of
eight companies of the Fifth Georgia
infantry, with battery of light artil-
lery in reserve. Throughout Sunday
little of Importance occurred. The
police claimed, with the aid of the
military, to have the situation under
troll. At least ten lives have been sac
rificed and several of the injured
cannot recover.
This condition came as the result
OF numerous and repeated assaults
or attempted assaults upon white
women by negroes. The last of an
even dozen of such assaults within
the limits of Fulton county within the
last nine weeks came Saturday, when
four attempts at assault were re-
ported.
A negro showed a white woman from
the sidewalk on Whitehall street, in
the center of town. Almost simulta-
neously negro woman made an in.
sulting remark to white man on an
adjoining street and he administered
what he considered due punishment.
From this start the excited crowd,
which had become mob, began its
work of destruction. Ten thousand
men and boys thronged the downtown
streets looking for negroes. They
made attacks on the incoming street
cars. Each car was scanned for ne.
groes. The trolleys were pulled from
the wires and negroes were beaten,
cut and stamped upon in an unreason-
ing mad frenzy. If negro ventured
resistance or demonstrated it meant
practically sure death. One car half
filled with negroes approached from
an outside run. The mob dashed for
the car. Resistance was made by the
negroes, who had not been apprised OF
the trouble. Three negroes lay dead
on the floor of the car when it was
permitted to move on, and two moro
were beaten into Inconsistencies.
When the crowd seemed to be get.
ting beyond control, Mayor Woodward
mounted car platform and urged the
crowd to dispense, declaring that the
assailants of the white women would
be promptly punished by due process
of law. Mayor Woodward was given
respectful hearing, but when he fin.
ished, the work of destruction was re.
sumed. Then he turned in a general
fire alarm, calling the entire fire de.
partment to the scene.
To Chief Joyner he gave the laconic
order: CLEAR the Streets" The re.
suit was to stop the mob in its work
in that immediate section and to drive
it to other streets. The situation be.
came SO threatening that Governor
Terrell gave the order mobilizing the
eight local infantry companies at
once. 1t was almost 2 a. m. before
the first squad appeared on the streets
and at o'clock six companies were
under arms.
The attacks on negroes had the eff.
feet Of clearing the streets of blacks.
Street hacks were abandoned at
curbings; drivers on baggage wagons
vanished, and their places were taken
by white men. This fear of troubl
affected several public conveniences.
The postoffice officials had much diff.
Guilty in delivering special letters; ice
deliveries have been scarce to private
homes; in some restaurants service
has been restricted by the absence of
regular walters. Throughout the day
hundreds of negroes have been fee.
ing the city, by train. and wagon and
on foot they hurried away, fearing
the possibilities of trouble in the i'm.
mediate future.
In the fighting negro women were
the most warlike, urging resistance to
the mob and themselves fighting like
amazons.
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