Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-11
TROOPS CALLED FOR
Mob vainIy Storms the Spar
tanburg Jail.
FIGHTS TO LYNCH NEGRO
Sheriff Wounded While Protecting
the Trembling Prisoner.
THREE SHOT BY PRISON GUARD
GOV. Ansel Leaves by Special Train
for the Scene Of the
Fighting.


the heart of Spartanburg. with its 10000
at times numbering a thousand or more,
fought today and tonight with the mill
tary and civil authorities for the possess
sion Of John Irby. negro who attempted
to assault Miss Lille Dempsey earlier in
the day while the young woman was on
her way here from Saxon Mill village.
three miles away. Four persons were
wounded. one of them seriously, and John
Sparks. restaurant keeper, was arrested
and held without bail on the charge Of
shooting Sheriff Nichols. who was slightly
wounded in the exchange of shots between
the mob and the authorities. who were
protecting the trembling prisoner in the
Jail.
Mob Bent on Violence.
Beginning about noon the crowd, sui
len and bent on vengeance on the negro,
roamed about the courthouse square. ap-
preaching at times the very gates Of the
high wall inclosing the Jail, but no leader
appeared. and by $50 O'Clock ,tonight
the mob had apparently spent their fury
and contented themselves with jeers and
curses But later the situation again
became alarming. The crowd was aug.
mented by 800 persons from Greenville,
the home of the engineer killed in the
wreck/caused by the negro Clarence Ag-
new. There was some shooting in the
streets and the mob moved into the public
square.
A company of state troops from
Laurens. s. c., under command of Capt
Babb. arrived on a special train at 9:45
Jail. These brought the number ofssol-
diers on guard tonight up'to 15O
Capture of Irby.
Irby's arrest wcs effected shortly after
the commission Of his crime and close to
the scene of his attack. He was captured
by mill operatives who had joined in the
pursuit, was taken before the young
woman. who Immediately identified him,
and was then carried into the woods. His
captors were about to lynch him. when
mounted police arrived and wrested him
from the crowd. not. however. before the
negro had been badly beaten. Irby was
taken to the jail. and almost Immediately
the storming of the building began. Sher-
III Nichols swore in a number of deputies
and the militia was ordered out. Fowler,
one OF the wounded, was fired at by those
within the Jail just as he was about to
batter down the gates of the institution.
The mob also tried to gain ingress by
means of stepladders. but taat, too, was
Intellectual.
Sheriff Nichols Wounded.
The first shot came from window Of
the Jail. and it was followed by others
from the same quarter. An answering
shot was fired from the crowd. This
broke a window in the Jail and slightly
wounded Sheriff Nichols Sparks was
accused of the shooting and Immediately
taken into custody. His attorneys offered
bail of $1.OO tonight. but this was re-
fused. Those wounded by the officers
when they hred on the crowd were: Gro
yer Fowler, fourteen years old, shot in
the arm and hand; Ernest Foster, twenty
years OF age. seriously wounded in the
side and shoulder. and Garner. twenty
two years old, slightly wounded in the
hip. all mill operatives.
Just before nightfall the guard at the
jail was augmented by the arrival Of the
Morgan Rifles. fifty strong. from Clifton.
a suburban mill town. The company came
In on the electric car line and was rushed
to the Jail. The Hampton Guards, forty
strong. the local company of state troops,
had been at the Jail since 1 o'clock to-
day. A hundred regulation army rifles
protruding from windows. doors and
porches Of the building presented a
formidable proposition for the considera-
tion of the mob leaders.
Governor Leaves for the Scene. =
Gov. Ansel left his home In Greenville,
forty miles west of here, on a special
train tonight. AS this is prohibition
town. the main source of supplying the
demand for liquor is through the office
Of the Southern Express Company. and
that establishment. as a measure of pre-
caution. was closed early this afternoon
in 80 far as the delivery of whisky was
concerned. There were threats of dyna-
miting the Jail, and precautions were
taken to have all known supplies of the
explosive guarded.
While tOday's crime Of the negro Irby
was the chief cause Of the mobs fury,
the presence in the jail Of two other
negroes against whom there have from
time to time during the last two weeks
been threats of violence added to the
excitement. One Of these negroes. Clar-
ence Agnew, wrecked q passenger train
on the main line Of the Southern railway
two weeks ago near Duncan. 8. c.. and
the engineer and fireman were killed in
that wreck. 1t was expected that Agnew
would be tried at the last term Of court,
but for some unexplained reason he
was not tried. The other negro, Will
Foster. was twice convicted of the revolt
Ing murder OF John Young. a white man.
last November. These circumstances made
1t certain that entrance Of the mob into