The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-12
NEGROES SEEK ID
 PUNISH KENNEDY Ask for Delivery of Man Charged With Burning Children URGE IMMEDIATE TRIAL More Than 50 Opticians of the State Will Meet In Annual Session
 In Montgomery.
 Today.
 
URGE IMMEDIATE TRIAL

Montgomery, May 11.-(Special. "A committee of negroes waited on Sheriff Hood this afternoon and urged him to let them have Jim Kennedy, the negro charged with setting fire to a house in which four children were burned to death last night. that they might deal out sum- mary punishment. On being refused they began a movement for a special session of the grand jury to secure immediate trial of the case.
 Though horribly burned, the infant of Kennedy and his wife is still alive. Four of the children of Horace Campbell, his father-in-law are dead, and a fifth may not live. All these were in the house which burned last night, the crime being laid to Kennedy. who evidently sought re- venge on his wife for leaving him.
 Kennedy Is Heartess.
 Jim Kennedy, the negro charged by the police with trying to burn up his own child and succeeding in killing four oth- CTS, is taking little note of the indigna- ton he has aroused among the members of his own race. In a cell at the station house he seems to be fairly content and appears not yet to have realized that if the allegations against him be true he will be classed as one of the most heartless criminals in history.
 The little babe of his own is badly, per haps fatally, burned and four children of his father-in-law, Horace Campbell, are dead, his own wife badly burned and in a hospital, his father-in-law and his wife painfully burned and one other child of Campbell perhaps fatally injured, spell the extent of the offense that the police say they can lay at the door of the young negro. who is barely past his majority. Half dozen witnesses are said to be ready to swear that they saw him fire the house of Campbell last night, after bolt ing the doors and fastening down the windows
 The story goes that Kennedy had had trouble with his wife and she had re- fused to live with him. He is said to have wanted the child and she to have refused to give it up. To his temper about this refusal is laid the charge that he fired the house of his wifes parents, in which the fatalities took place. The children were in the room with the wife of Kennedy, and neighbors are said to be ready to tes- tify that he locked them in and fired the house. Campbell and his wife were at church. The building was almost burned down when the department reached it, as no alarm was turned in.
 Campbell and his wife got back just as the fire was ot it's highest and as- sisted in getting out the victims. They were painfully burned.
 The negroes were very angry, and or ganized a mob last night to hang the accused. However, the police got at him first, securing him at a farm eight miles out early this morning.
 Opticians To Meet.
 More than half hundred opticians of the state will be in the city tomorrow for the meeting of the third annual ses- sion of the State Optical society, which will hold Its sessions in the rooms of the Commercial club. E. H. Hobbs of Selma, the president, will report progress along all lines The object of the meeting is to get better line of service on the part of the profession.
 The following will take part in the pro- gramme: M. E. Butt of Childersburg; Andrew Brown of Florence, J. w. Lang ley of Sylacauga, A. N. Naumenee, Mo- bile; w. H. Murphy, Birmingham; H. P. Mcdonald, Mobile; F. E. Jenks. Mobile; w. k. Van Arsdell, Anniston.
 Hardwick Ruth, chairman of the local committee, is very much pleased with the outlook and the programme. He thinks that these meetings are going to be of vast value to the profession in the state.
 Lumbermen Will Meet.
 Alabama lumber men and those from west Florida will be here tomorrow for the regular monthly meeting of the Ala bama and West Florida association. F. J. Hughes of Sumter is president and J. H. Eddy of Birmingham secretary. The business is not fourishing now, and the main part of the work is price and stock talk, with the prospects of the future for the mills and the selling agencies.
 Alabama Bankers. The Alabama Bankers association will meet in Montgomery Friday and Satur- day, with what is taken to be the best programme in the history of the organiza- tion Secretary McLane Triton of Pell 1 City will be here a day ahead of time to l assist the local committee in getting all | matters in shape. On May 20 the Methodist laymen of the | Alabama conference will assemble in | Court street church. John R. Pepper of | Memphis, president of the movement, will | speak.
 Churn Dasher Business. The Forbes Churn Dasher company has l been incorporated at Monroeville to man. | ufacture a dasher patented by J. l.. | Forbes of that place. The capital stock l of the company is s10,0O0, all paid in.
 New Lumber Company. The Blue Springs Lumber company of Greenvlle has been reported to the sec retary of state, with capital of 5000. The Jersey Creamery Company of Birming- ham, capital $50O0 is another new enter prise reported.
 To Good Roads Meeting.
 Gov B. B. Conner will be member of the Good Roads convention of the coun- try, which meets July In the city of Denver. He has promised to make a talk on the development in this section of the country, and may also appoint delegates to the meeting. Alabama is also taking some interest in the international good roads convention to meet in Paris, France, in October.
 Supreme Court.
 The supreme court will have up the third division this week. composed of the counties of Autauga, Butler, Conecuh, Es-
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