The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-10-23
Negro Boy Sentenced to
 20. Years.
4 CLEVER RUSE PRAC1EED
Rushed to Pratt Mines on Special
 Train.
Montgomery County OM~ials Saved Honor of Their Omces and Up. hold the Integrity of the
 State.

By the cleverest piece of strategy ever practiced in Alabama Herman Thompson. the negro boy who at daughter of G. F. Cain on Simpson Avenue Friday morning. was sem tenced by process of law yesterday af- ternoon to serve twenty years in the penitentiary, was sent to Birmingham Immediately thereafter. and began serving hIs sentence at Pratt Mines last night.
 Judge William H. Thomas of the City Court of Montgomery, passed ceiving his plea of guilty. and the in- cident was over in five minutes. The sentence was passed in the Montgom- cry County court house and not more than . dozen persons in the confidence of Sheriff W. R. Waller and court of- 6cials knew that the negro boy was within the environs of the city.
 Since Friday morning Sherin Waiter had his prisoner hid from angry citi- zens. He realized that desperate meas ures must be adopted to save the ne- gro from violence. to save tne lntcgrI- ty of his County and tho honor of his onice. He resorted to a ruse that was as bold as 1t was successful and he seved Montgomery County from a rep etition of the scene that was enacted at the County jail Friday evening when a mob of 300 men and boys clamored for the life Of the young negro
 Slipped Into Court Heuse.
 Sheriff Waller slipped the young criminal before Judge Thomas at s:sO o'clock yesterday afternoon, aiioweu him to plead guilty to assault to rape, the extreme penalty of twenty years was imposed by Judge Thomas and Thompson was hastened to the union railway station where a special train provided by the State of Alabama LOOK him tu Pratt Mines to begin serving his term. The ruse was carried out with such quiet and precision that few had happened. sheria Waller demon strated a new method of defeating mob yfofe1ise and thereby eAfaed tho adsat- ration and approval of Montgomery.
 By prearrangement: Jndge Thomas, court officials. Sheriff Waller and n few of his deputies, all armed. met be- hind locked doors in the southwest court room of the court house at s o'clock yesterday afternon to await the arrival Of Thompson. At s:Su o'clock J. Lee Walker. a well known merchant of Boguehomme and a close friend of the Sherif, drove up to the court house in a buggy, accompanied by a small, yellow buggy boy. Thomp- son was driving the horse. MT. Walk CT stepped from his buggy to the sIde- walk followed by the boy who tied the buggy to a post and the merchant and the boy climbed the stairs to the City Court rom.
 Scene in Court Hoom.
 MT. Walker had been delayed in his arrival with the boy. He was due to o'clock. In the court room Judge Thomas. Sherir Waller, Henry N. Hughes. clerk of the court Solicitor Hugh Dent. Rob ert Crimson, ex-Sheriff of Lowndes county, Justice c. Young and Dep uty Sheriffs S. s. Belser. George Will son and others. sworn in by the Sher- if. awaited the prisoner. Anxiety was upon their faces as time slipped by, but the big sheriff of Montgomery county knew that his friend, NJ. Walker. would not fail him.
 Al 3:s0 o'clock MT. W;lker appear cd with the negro boy. They walked into inc court room jauntily just as though nothing extraordinary WIS transpiring. Straight to the bar of the court MT. Walker T'at wlth the hoy while the deputies heavily armed ana with intense feelings, stood bN to grasp and check any situation that might arise. The thing was ooh' quickly and without halt.
 ~ understand you desire to plea,i ouiltv?' said Judge Thomas to the negro boy who had been alread! ih> dicted by the grand juy.
 Vas sir respondeo tremulously.
 T receive your plea Of sulity' re n,ie6 Judge Thomas. What Is your name? ,,,, Herman Thompson. talterIhsiE.
 What ia your age? .
 .'I'se fourteen years old
 .What is your occupation?'
 "I wuz CT porter down to de s'ore
 "Are you In good health?
 Vas sir"
 Herman Thompson" aid Judge Thomas solemnly but rapie!y. sen tence you to twenty years Tn tn" pen itentiary. ..
 Not another word was spoken within the court room and MT. Walker an0 the boy left the court room rapidly. re- turning to the buggy through swarr of neople who were about the ,our| horse on business. At the sidewalk Thonnson united the horse and seated himself by MT. Walker in the vehicle The horse was driven directly througr the business district to the union rail way station. where the Louisville anC Nashville RalITOau Hdu ptoNlueu u Spt' cial train upon application of the Gov ernors office. This train was run t, Rirming gham without making a stop Il left the station a few minutes before 4 o'clock.
 Four or five buggies bearing Sherin Waller. Nat Waller. Justice Youn.; Constable Jim Smith. Deputy Albert Taylor. and Deputies George Wilson and s S, Belser followed the negro t. etu
 A crowd of citizens who were In the vicinity of tho court house did not realize until they snw this unusua number of vehicles bearing officers tha! anything unusual was In progress Thompson had passed within reaching distance of d number of citizens. man. of whom were eager to learn his where abouts. but still none was aware tha' the negro was sc near.
 sheriff Waller. Nat Waller, George Wilson and Goodwin Jones accom- nanied the negro to Birmingham.
 Barely ten minutes had elapsed af fer the hour of before the remaining oficers returned to the jail.
 By reason of the fact that J. l.. Wal
 A,H.,