The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1910-03-15
HOW ALEXANDER COUNTY OF.
FlciAL STOOD STRONGLY
FOR LAW AND ORDER
HIMSELF THREATENED
During Disturbance Of Last November
Some Inside History Told
In ST. Louis Paper
Yesterday.

Eesting story of his part In connection
with some of the exciting scenes Il
Cairo during recent months, as foI
lows:
The fact that peace. instead OF VIC
Hence. feigns at Cairo. H., the city o
combustiblc race passions, ~ dre
jmany men even In Cairo will be sur
prised to learn, as much to the COO
head AMI collected judgment o
States Attorney Alexander Wilson
las to the firmness of Sheriff Fred ID
Nellis in repulsing the mob wniel
attacked the county Jail or to tn,
| resolution of Governor Deneen II
supporting the sheriff promptly will
| troops.
So unostentatiously did Wilton pei
form his service for orderly govern
lment that few are aware it was hi
level head which guided the turbu'en
city through an ominous crisis. Blu
Ifor him. it is conceded by one of tn,
military officers who was in Gem
mand at Cairo, hell would hav.
popped" with the battle between th'
troops and the citizens as eonse
quence not outside the pos abilities.
| 1t was Wilson who obtained ali al
Iiournment of a coroner's jury Il
give the iurymen time to cool off.
lwhen 1t seemed they had determine,
TO hold Nellis for the murder o
Alexander NJ. Halliday, who wa
| '7illed while leading the attack Of
the Jail It was Wilson who preyente,
the coroner from forcing te:timon
from Adjutant- General Frank S
Dickson which would have placed o.
Nellis the esponsibilty for the a
legged four hours neglect of Hall
days body after he was killed.
| Finally. it was Wilson who stoo
Iup before the jury after they had re
/ tired to formulate a verdict, and in
trepidly pressed home the fact II wa
none of their business, under TIL
law, whether Nellis used negro dept
ties to resist the mob, or whether h
let Halliday's body lie in the snol
uncared for. He told them, what fe'
Cairoites would have dared declar'
that Nellis was doing his drty in d.
Tending the jail by whatever mean
he could command. and that Hall
day. instead Of being martyr, wa
outside the pale OF the law
Faced Lynchinq Once.
He then added that he ha
learned his hostility towards mol
from a perilous personal experience
1t is not generally known that a nc
of 1000 men tried to lynch Wilso
himself during the riots following ii
death of Miss Anna Pelley. lat N
Vember, at the hands of negl
ravisher. "Froggie" James W;
, lynched for the crime.
"On the evening Sheriff Dav
pirited James ont ofsstHe city" sa
! Wilson, Il happened to be at the Gil
4 jail. A crowd of men, who believe
the negro was secreted in the jai
! began to gather, and grew rapid
from 800 to four times that numbe
Chief of Police Egan assured tt
mob that the negro had been take
from the city. The men refused
believe him, and declared they won
, search the jail They did, too, ar
. We're further enraged to learn tn;
James was not there.
Il left the Jail, and as was pas
ing through the crowd some OF
recognized me and shouted: There
the states attorney; he knows whel
James isl
In a moment ! was in the vorte
of a bowling whirlpool of mel
Make him tell!' they shouted.
he won't. string him to a 1amp-post
several yelled. One man placed th
muzzle OF revolver in the sma
OF my back and ordered me to marc
towards handy lamp post at til
next corner. 1t was in vain that
protested | did not know where tn
negro was; they did not believe m,
we arrived at the post, bit b
this time became angry. I saw Sc,
eral men ! knew in the crowd, an
turning upon them, called them b
name and by every other name
could think of. Then brushed asd
several OF the leaders and bega
pushing my way through the GROVE
1t appears they were SO startled the
did not attempt to interrupt me an
escaped unhurt."
Wilson's action in supporting Ne
lis Is the more extraordinary becaus
Nell Is Republican and the state
attorney Democrat. In other elite
a mans politics usually has little +
do with his attitude toward uprising
again neacc and order, but in Cair
the condition ~ different.
out IF q population Of $4,000 Cair
has 7.nGo negro inhabitants, most &
, them OF the ror tabout class. Thong
IN its proportion Of negroes Cairo /
q tynical Southern city, 1t happens I
be placed In typical northern stat,
IN which NEGROES possess the ballo
The Democrats attribute all the rae
disorders Of the city to the Republ
lean politicians whom thev accuaa =