The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-12-23
Mrs, Anna Jackson Tells How Night Riders Visited Her
 Home At Night
SISTER WAS WHIPPED
 AND HOUSE WAS BURNED
Frank Fehrneers Testimony Is Cor roborated By Several Witnesses, fl Some of Whom Had Been
 Whipped By the Riders.

l Union City. Tenn. December 22.-When
 Mrs. Anna Jackson, of the states
 witnesses this afternoon in the night l rider trial, was excused from the stand, she turned to Judge Jones and said: q will not leave the court room with
 out armed protection. l know these | men"
 Mrs. Jackson told a vivid story of l several visits of the riders, eorrobor- ating Fred Fehringer's testimony in many details as did other witnesses and l identified by name at least 27 members of the band. She was followed on the stand by her daughter, Miss Dora Jack son. 1S-year-old girl who corrobor-
 ated her mother
 The last witness of the day was Will 1 Russell, another night rider who has 1 turned states evidence. Russell came
 to Union City after the Rankin kill | ing and made a confession. He was l trembling with fear and could scarce , ly raise his voice above a whisper The 1 attorney general had to repeat most of his answers in order that the jury l might hear them He is under con- l stant guard but believes that he will be killed in spite of these precautions | Russelrs story was practically the same l as that told by Fehringer and corrohor- ] ated it in every essential detail. Cross examination was deferred until Wednes- | day morning.
 l Holiday To Be Short.
 Judge Jones today permitted the jury
 to decide upon holiday adjournment. Some 1 of the jurors favored holding court 1 Christmas day: others were willing to adjourn until Monday, but the major l ity favored a recess on Christmas day
 only. Thereupon the judge announced l +oI-1
 on Thursday until Saturday, but only 1 a couple of hours will be occupied | on that day The prisoners were brought
 into court today handcuffed in pairs with
 a detail of two soldiers for each pair
 The soldiers, with rifles, halted at the I court room doors and other soldiers
 armed with revolvers met the prison
 CTS at the threshold and escorted them l to the bar.
 l John M. Shaw was the first witness. l He was the proprietor of a store near l Reelfoot lake. The riders forced him l to give them oil to pour on the fish 1 docks when they were burned and later | whipped him when he tried to go be- 1 fore the grand jury.
 1 Shaw said the night riders wore black mother hubbards and black masks and ! tried to disguise their voices by talk l Ing in false tones. When Shaw was 1 summoned before the grand jury he tried l to slip into town at night The riders 1 caught him and threatened to kill him. 1 Finally they gave him his choice of 8 l switching or hanging. He told them | he was not anxious to endure either, | but if he had to make a choice he would prefer the whipping. 1 He got 1t. Shaw amused the court l by his quaint answers to questions of l counsel After the riders whipped him
 they told him to run. Did you run?' inquired the court.
 1 You oughter have seen me-" retorted l the witness.
 | Martin Leonard. another farmer, near
 Reelfoot lake, was visited by the riders | and given five days to move under pen- 1 atty of being hanged. Asked if he moved. 1 he casually observed that he was still | alive but his home was burned Witness l after witness told of visitations by the l riders, but there was no identification l and no effort made to connect the raids 1 with the murder of Capt. Rankin or his l murderers. One witness, a Mrs. Leon- l arc, asked how many there were in the 1 band which visited her. said: About 1 200 l reckon. The woods were full of l 'em'' The purpose of the state was to I show the reign of terror in the Reelfoot 1 district inaugurated by the riders and to 1 prove that the murder of Capt. Rankin was only an instance of the gigantic con- 1 splracy.
 | Fehringer. the night rider who turned
 
 l in detail and the host of witnesses now being used simply corroborate the testi-
 mony he gave. Several witnesses were called to identify a map of the Reelfoot district and to designate on it the points of the night riders depredauons. The proceedings became so monotonouS that the court room was soon almost de- serted.
 The afternoon witnesses continued the oorroboration of Fehringers confession detail by detail, raid by raid. Old man Pagan, referred to often, cleared the mystery of his name-it is Harvey. He was taken out and whipped. He didn't
 know what he whipped with, but 1t felt powerful like piece of leather" The day the soldiers arrested Garrett Johnson. one of the eight defendants, they
 drove with him to Camp Memo. As they passed a little cottage, a woman saw the prisoner. threw up her arms and screamed: Now thank God I can tell what l know" She was taken under guard to Union City for her own pro- lection. The woman was Mrs. Anna Jack son, and she was called to the stand this afternoon. The riders came to her home, forced her to dress and accompany them to her fathers with her husband and , daughter. Then they ordered her to kill some dogs she owned and burned her fathers house. She identified Garrett Johnson as the leader. The riders came Dack two nlSntS later, forced her 10 go to her fathers half clad and said there had been some talking done. They whipped her father and then her sister. She heard her sisters appeal for help. and began to scream whereupon they threat ened to whip her Again she recognized ] Garrett Johnson and several others. A third time they called to force her to get
 rid of her sisters little child, because
 the latter had quarreled with neighbours child They told MT Jackson that # they had to come again they would whip her. A fourth time they came to hang
 her father for testifying before the grand
 jury.
 On the last visit Garrett Johnson asked
 Mrs. Jackson if she had talked. Incau- ticusly she replied. NO. MT. Johnson, I have not"
 'If you were a man." Johnson retorted hrainx fa ,.rIil ha,,