Bryan morning eagle. [volume] (Bryan, Tex.) 1898-1909, 1908-12-22

Late In the fifties OF the last cen
fury George W. King was the pro-
prletor Of a hotel In Oxford, twenty
six miles from Lafayette. Ind. In
1850 a stranger arrived at the hotel
and gave his name as DIR. Rowe. He
told King that he had no money and
asked TO be trusted for his board till
he could get practice In the place,
promising TO pay him as promptly as
possible King consented to the ar
rangement, and Rowe soon became a
favorite with the people on account Of
his companionable disposition and SUI
perlor intelligence The doctor, how
ever, fell deeper and deeper In debt.
He had been at the hotel for nearly q
year when King reminded him one
morning that he had not paid any
thing IN his board bill for three
months. The conversation. II after.
ward appeared. was overheard by
some one in the hotel, though moth
ing was thought of It at the time
A week after the conversation Rowe
was called ont late ~ NIGHT "a see a
patient and fi.oi % return. Days
passed withoul any wold from him,
and his disappearance soon was con-
nected with the conversation that had
passed between him and the landlord
about the unpaid board. One night
three months later party of disguised
hnto1 ND
erlng King. took him ia a woodland
adjoining the town.
He recognized the voices of several
OF his captors and especially OF the
leader. who told him that he was sus
pccted Of numbering Rowe and de-
maintained his innocence. and the
leader Of the mob ordered his com
panions Ito string him up" A rope
was placed around his neck. dozen
men pulled down a stout limb, over
which the other end of the rope was
leased II carried King Off his feet and
left him hanging by the neck. He
was nearly unconscious when let down
and again ordered 40 confess.
After much delay lie was restored
sufficiently TO understand what was
said to him, and he again refused, de-
claring his innocence and saying he
did not know what had become OF
Rowe. 4 second time he was strung
up and a second time let down. but
life was nearly extinct, and he was
much longer IN being restored than be-
fore
The luckless landlord knew he could
not pass through another such ordeal
and live, so he consented to confess.
lie purposely heightened the confes-
sion IN order to gain time and said
that lac and two men, named Rogers
and HagGard, had poisoned some whis-
Ky and Induced Rowe TO drink IT, and
after his death they had buried him
In hollow some distance away. 1t
was nearly daylight when the confes-
sion was made and the lynchers de
termired TO take King 20 jail in Lafa'
yettc and then arrest Rogers and IIaC
gard.
Before the Jail was reached day had
dawned, and King recognized his cap
tors as members OF the Horse Thicf
Detective company OF Benton. Warren
and Tippecanoe counties, nearly all OF
whom were known 20 him Coniiden;
Of his guilt. the men made no attempi
TO conceal their identity. So great
was the excitement and so intense the
feeling against King that he waived
examination and went 10 Jail. hoping
that something would turn up to eS-
tablish his innocence.
From the Jail at Lafayette King ad-
dressed letters to editors of papers IN
Cincinnati. Chicago. ST. Louis. Louis
vile and other cities. setting out the
asking them TO keep his letter in the
papers in hopes that IL might fall I'M
der Rowe's notice. The appeal was n
pathetic one and was copied into
many papers throughout the north
west.
Two weeks after its first appear
ance DR.. Rowe rode into oxford and.
attended Icy number OF citizens, pro.
ceeded to Lafayette. where his APP
pearance caused the immediate re-
lease Of the accused landlord. In ex-
PLANTATION OF his disappearance Rowe
said he had left his home in the east
on account of domestic troubles, that
he had learned that his wife was on
her way to Oxford, and he had deter
mined to leave the place secretly In
order TO prevent her from learning
where he had gone He had gone TO
q little town in southern Illinois, and
It was there that he learned that the
man who had befricnded him was sus-
pected Of his murder and was In jail
in Lafayette.
AS soon as King was released he
brought suit against thirty-two mem
bcrs OF the Horse Thief Detective
company for 5000 each and also
against the company as corporation,
Thomas A. Hendricks. afterward vice
president, was his counsel, but the
case was not allowed to come TO trial,
the lynchers compromising by paying
King $4,000. With this money he
purchased farm and other property
near Lafayette, where he lived TIL his