Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-01-12
CONFESSED CRlNES
REFUSES TO PRAY
Women and ChiIdreF
Watch Brutal Deed
Committed

Charles City. Jan. 10.-Led by
prominent business men, mob Oh
over thousand persons attacked the
county Jail here at 1880 o'clock last
night. and, battering down the doors
| with railroad iron and axes, took JAS.
Cullen, the selfconfessed murderer OF
his wife and stepson, to the railway
bridge over the Cedar river and there
hanged him.
4 Cullen Refused to Pray.
| When the guilty man was placed be-
meath the girder upon which he was
so soon to hang, he was given leave
to speak his prayers. He refused,
and barely had the words left his lips
when the grim sentence was egecut-
ed.
There were four ministers among
the onlookers They stood by, utterly
without power to interfere. 1t was
Ensign Roper of the Salvation Army,
from Portland, Me-, that spoke the
| first friendly word to the man.
"There is no repeal he said. look
into Cullen's eyes "Will you pray be-
fore you go?"
In an instant the frenzied crowd was
stilled. Many heads were bowed.
Cullen alone was unaffected by the
note of sacredness that the preachers
words had given to the affair.
He swept one defiant glance over
the heads of his executioners, drew
himself to full height and trembled.
His fingers closed in upon the palms
of his hands so tightly tina blood oozed
i forth. His face was white and mask
I'm tbn po1 Inn
Of death.
/ Never he said.
Five seconds later James Cullen's
body hung at the end OF six feet OF
rope
Gathering of Mob.
:. The crowd stood by for few min
\ utes to regard it's work. Then the
members went quietly to their homes.
4 A few remained to care for the corpse.
:, At o'clock last night, feeling,
which had been running wild during
i the day. came to a head. A few citi-
zens collected at the doors of the Jail.
4 A few more came. A handful follow
4 ed. A hundred heard of the work that
was at hand and came to lend assis-
lance Presently a half thousand men
had collected and began to take up
the cry of the ringleaders.
Electrically the frenzy of slaughter
passed. through the irregular. tightly
packed half hundred men who clamor-
ed before the Jail, and as man they
: moved forward 1t was not a frantic,
historical mob without head or leaders
that went to get James Cullen. but an
officered army, COOL collected, Telent-
less
A party of men, especially told off,
had cut the main electric light cables
and the town was left in absolute
darkness. Here and there a kerosene
lamp, or Pickering candle glowed dim
1 ly in the window of some home. Two
members of the mob had come provid.
ed with lanterns. and these alone fur.
nished illumination for the operations
of the mob.
i Jail Door Battered Down.
With railroad iron that someone
had provided the door of the Jail was
attacked. Leading citizens caught
up the heavy rail, and charged through
the crowd against the barred barrier
that separated them from the man
who was called upon to answer for
murder.
One onslaught was enough The
mass of oak and iron sprung inward
cracked from top to bottom. fell with
crash to the floor in the corridor
and the way was cleared Only one
man, sworn to protect his prisoner
and powerless to meet his oath, inter
vened He put up a resistance, plead
ing, imploring, throwing himself hope
lessly into the midst Of the charging
human mass. His efforts were without
avail.
A dozen arms seized him and helt
him powerless for the instant. Others
pushing forward, tore him from bis
first captors, and he was flung aside
and pressed helpless against the wal!
JAMES CULLEN PAYS PENALTY
FOR BRUTAL DOUBLE MURDER
Continued from Page ID.