The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1907-12-12
KENTUCKY NIGHT RIDERS.
HOPKINSVlLLEVISITED BY CROWD
OF ARr1ED MEN.
Tobacco Warehouses to the Value OF
100000 Destroyed-Newspa-
per Office Attacked.

HoPKINsvILLE, KY, Dec. 7.-Five
hundred might riders" masked and
heavily armed, marched into Hop
kinsville early today and destroyed
property valued at 100000. while
citizens, in terror of their lives,
feared even to open their windows.
The police, fire department, tele-
phone and telegraph Offices, and even
the railroad stations, were in pos
session of a wild mob, shooting right
and left, flames from burning build
ings meanwhile lighting up the city
and the surrounding country until it
seemed that the whole town was
ablaze.
Windows in front of business
houses and banks on the main street
of the city were shot out and the en-
tire front of one newspaper, which
had been especially severe in it's con.
demnation of the raids of the might
riders" and which was owned by the
mayor of the city, was demolished.
Only two men were injured, one
of them being Lindsay Mitchell, a
tobacco buyer, who was severely
beaten with switches and clubs, and
the other, a brakeman, who was
shot in the back while trying to move
his train from the path Of the flames.
The raid of the might riders
caught the city unawares, as fol
some time the depredations arising
from the tobacco war had been of q
minor nature and it was generally
thought that in the 'dark districts
at least the worst was over.
THE PROPERTY DESTROYED.
The property destroyed was as fol.
lows:
w. H. Tandy, Independent to-
bacco warehouse building, owned by
J. H. Latham.
B. NJ. Woodbridge, association
house.
Tandy and Fairligh, buyers ware
house.
In addition, the entire glass front
of the Hopkinsville Kentuckian
Mayor Meacham's paper, was des
troyed, while windows in the from
of the Commercial Banking and Sav
ings company, the First National
the Planters Trust company, and tn.
Bank of Hopkinsville were puncturec
with bullets.
A number of other business houses
and residences bear the marks of bul
lets and it is considered remarkable
that no one was killed. The insur
ance is said to be about $50, 600.
AS soon as the might riders" lefr
town a posse Of about Is, headed by
Maj. Bassett of the local militia anc
Deputy Sheriff Cravens, entered bug
gies and followed the trail. AS soo1
as the posse could get near enough i
opened fire on the fleeing mob ane
the pursued returned the shots. i
is believed none Of the might riders
were hit.
The members of the posse escaped
injury. They were soon out-dis
tanced by the mounted men and af
ter chasing the marauders pas
Gracey the officers returned home.
News was later received from al
parts of the town indicating the
spread of the raid of the riders.
There was hardly a house in the bus
mess section Of the city which die
not suffer.
Just why no damage was done by
the might riders" to the Imperial
or the American Snuff company
warehouses is not known. They
probably contained more stock thar
any other houses.
At the intercession of the citizens
who were being guarded on a street
corner the invaders during the raid
allowed the fire department to leave
their building to save property ada
cent to the burning buildings. Had
it not been for the good work of the
fremen and citizens the entire city
would have been destroyed.
The girls in the telepone exchange
were forced to leave their switch
boards until the mob were ready to