Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1907-09-10
w. 7. Ladd's House Fired
Into at Peril Of Many
Lives.
ORDERED TO JOIN QUICK
I'm. Crow and Oscar Smiley
Visited BY Same Band and
RsRaxs'T'1Sf ste,.as.e b. ,. .sa-@
Others& Threatened.

The cambridge district of Chris
tan county, between Era and Haw-
kins. on the Buttermilk road, was
raided by a band of masked night
i riders Sunday morning and three
prominent farmers told to join the
Tobacco Association by Monday
night. or their tobacco crops would
be destroyed.
The first one visited was w. j.
Iadd, near Ezra. Two of his chill
dren had just returned from party
and several of the family, consisting
of Mr.. Laid, his wife and nine chill
dren, we're awake. About 1890 a.
m. some one called loudly for Mr..
Ladd to come out. Slipping on his
pants he went to the door and saw
his ward filled with masked men. He
told them he could not come out
barefooted and they insisted. Telling
them he would come when he got
his shoes, he turned back into the
house. A Kfusilade was the result
and many bullets were fired into the
house, a log house sealed and wealth
er-boarded. Some went through the
door, narrowly missing Mr.. Laid.
All the while they were demanding
that he come out. When he opened
the door the firing ceased and he was
ordered to hold up his hands, which
he did. He estimates the number at
rs. all masked and heavily armed.
He was asked to show them his to-
bacco patch. He pointed to it. Some
of the tobacco had been cut ard
thew discovered this and turning to
the barn said it could be destroyed
that much easier. Laid began to
beg and was told that he would be
given until Monday to join and that
the announcement must appear IN
TUESDAYS issue of Charlie Meach-
ans paper, where it could be seen.
Mr.. Ladd made the required prom
Use. They then told him to see Esq,
John w. Rogers, j. j. Clark and
Ohio Clark, his neighbors, and tell
them they must do the same thing
From Ladd's they went to j. M.
Crows, about II miles away and
called him out at 1870 a. m. He
went at their call, offering no re-
sistance. He found one man at the
door who told him he wanted to
have "a friendly, sociable talk with
him" and as he stepped out into the
yard a large number of masked
men, who had been sQuatting be-
hind the picket fence, rose up, guns
in hand. They came in and sur
rounded Crow, who re 'ly agreed
to Join the association Monday. A
young man named G. R. Harper, a
cropper, at this stage came out Of
the house gun in hand, but Grow
called to him to lay it on the porch
and bring a bucket, as the night
riders" had asked.for water. Harper
went with them behind the house to
the cistern, where they slaked their
thirst. They left Mr.. Crow, after
complimentingshim on giving them
so little trouble. Both Grow and
Harper agreed,to join the associa-
ton.
About $3.50 am. a part of the
same gang waited on Oscar Smiley,
near Hawkins. Helwas called out of
bed and went out in response to a
loud call of Hello, Mr.. Smiley" He
found about 25 of the crowd who
served the same warning on him and
kicked few plants of his tobacco at
the gate to pieces to show him how
they served those who would not
get in the association. He quickly |
promised and agreed to notify his
uncle, John r. Keys, that he, too, must |
do so. His father-in-law, Ellis
Reese, also came out and mingled |
with the crowd. They wore white
patches of cloth on their right Shout