Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-04-03
lN|lCOURT
Indians Dynamiter Kills Terre
Haute Police Chief and
Wounds Others.
POLICEMEN Greek CAREER
Prosecution Of Desperate Law Break
er Results in Startling Tragedy
When Verdict is Read.

Terre Haute. Ind, April 3.-Henry
F. Mcdonald, convicted dynamiter of
two stores and church, yesterday
murdered the man whose testimony
convicted him and shot four others in
the circuit court room before he was
shot down by the police officers pres
ent.
The tragedy followed the reading
Of the verdict Of the jury finding Nc
Donald guilty of destroying three
buildings at Sanford owned by men
who exposed his blind tiger" a year
ago.
! Hardly had the last words of the
/ verdict been read, when Mcdonald
sprang to his feet, revolver in hand
and opened fire.
Attorney Escnyes Fire.
The first shot was aimed at Prose
cutting Attorney James A. Cooper, Jr.
who saw what was coming and tum
bled out of his chair to the floor out
of harms way. At the next shot Viii
liam D. Dwyer. chief of detectives
was killed. Before the police officers
could get into action Harvey w
Jones. superintendent of police, was
shot in the side. Deputy Sheriff Ira
Wellman sustained wound in the
chin and Sylvester Doyle. court bail
iff, was shot in the leg and a bystan
der struck in the leg.
BY this time the police had recov
cred from the stupor into which. they
seemed to have been cast by the sud
denness of the tragedy and half 8
dozen of them concentrated their fire
on Mcdonald, who fell apparentl,
! mortally wounded.
\ stories Conflict.
Some of the witnesses to the trag
edy say tnat James Mcdonald, brothel
of the convicted man, did some o
the shooting. Others say the dyna
miter had two weapons. firing both
i The police are searching for Jane
Mcdonald, who got away -in- the es
Icitement
i The first shot threw the court room
crowd into a state of panic. Tn
Jurors jumped to their feet an,
started to, flee. j. T. Walker, one o
thef attorneys, endeayored to seiz
mcdonald, but was unable to do sc
]. Judge Crane ran to the railing Q
the jury box, behind which he sough
Irefuge. The spectators in the cour
troom were making frantic efforts L
get out, while persons outside VIII
, heard the shooting, struggled to ge
lin.
l. Within a few minutes thron
, numbering more than 1000 had a:
, sembled about the court house an
police reserves were needed to pre-
4 vent their storming the court room
e. Canse OF the Tragedy.
Mcdonald is known as "a desperat
Imam" and the police were present q
the trial as a precaution, but no on
thought to have him searched for
weapon. He had been out on ba
since jury disagreed in a forme
: trial. -
II The people of Sandford have bee
fearful that he would wreak furthe
vengeance Oh tueHi OT IHclT pIOpcit !
las he had made many threats, an
lthey did not think he should hay
/ been admitted to bail
II A year ago last February his "blin
tiger" saloon was raided by the she
! liff and his officers. including We
man. Mcdonald held the Method
\ church people responsible and ali
blamed two merchants named job
lson and Reese for his trouble. 4
n The night his saloon was raided u
Ichurch and the two stores we
i 't|wrecked by dynamite. Mcdonald al
alhis bartender, James Scanlon. we
. fseen skulking about town, and thu
were indicted.
al Scanlon has not been tried.