The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1908-07-29
NEGRO BURNED
ON THE SQUARE
Ted Smith Positively Identified
by White Girl Who Was
Criminally Assaulted.
|OFF|CERS OVERPOWERED
Another Black Given Terrific Beating
by Mob Because Of Remark
During Death Fire-Negro
Slowly Roasted.

Greenville, Texas, July 29.-Ted
Smith, a negro boy Is years old,
charged with criminal assault upon
Miss Viola Delaney at Clinton, Hunt
tured by officers at O'Clock Tuesday
morning. He was taken before the
young lady and identified.
The prisoner was then hurried to
the local jail. There a mob overpow-
cred the officers, took the prisoner
and prepared to hang him.
This idea was given up, however,
and the mob agreed to burn him.
Fagots were piled up in the public
square and the negro was placed
thereon Oil was poured on and a
match applied.
Smith slowly burned to death
while 1000 people witnessed the
flames execution.
Sheriff D. l.. Hemsell Chief of Po-
! lice w. F. Norman and other officers
| kept the mob quiet until s O'Clock
( Tuesday morning, when they went
i to the jail and told the sheriff that if
the officers did not take the negro to
the Delaney home where the girl
could identify him they would take
him out and mob him.
! Sheriff Hemsell made the crowd
promise that If the officers should
| take the prisoner for Identification
returned to Jail. This they consented
to and the officers started with the
prisoner to the Delaney home, fol-
lowed by large crowd.
Upon returning with the negre
about O'Clock the officers, on reach
, ing the Jail door were overpowered
and relieved of their prisoner. The
crowd took the negro to the public
square, dragging him with a rope
around his neck. There they placed
a cord of wood around him and
poured oil on the negro and wood
and set fire to the pile. AS the wood
burned more was hauled and piled
on the blaze and it was kept going
for an hour or two.
1t was predicted all night that a
burning or hanging could not be
averted, as the people from the coun-
TRY poured into town when the affair
was heralded over the country that
the negro had been brought to the
Greenville jail. A large number of
people came over from Farmersville
on the train which reached here at
10 o'clock yesterday morning, but
they arrived only in time to see the
charred remains burning.
When the negro was taken to the
Delaney home Miss Viola Delaney,
the victim of the black was very posi-
tive in her Identification, and said,
That is the negro who did the
deed."
The negro then screamed, "Oh, my
Lordy!" He did not make a state
ment, but was scarcely given time
after being taken from the officers,
as a rope was thrown around his
neck and he was dragged to the
place where the burning occurred.
During the burning a negro on
the public square made some slight
remark and the mob proceeded to
give him terrific beating After
that negroes were very scarce on the
streets.
Smith was the first negro to be
burned to death by a mob in Hunt
county.
Judge r. l.. Porter, Judge T. D.
Montrose of the eighth judicial dis
trict and others made short speeches
to the crowd. trying to keep it from
doing anything. but soon after the
speeches the mob demanded that the
negro be taken before the girl for
Identification.
4 r. H. Delaney, father of the girl
was one Of a number who made nc
promises to the officers.
| 1t was quiet and rather orderly
crowd. No guns were discharged.
! The nre was kept burning on the