The Winchester news., 1910-10-21
LITTLE RECEIVES
DEATH SENTENCE
Captain MiIIikin Claims to Have
Persuaded Crawford's Friends Not
to Act.

LEXINGTON, KY, Oct. 21.-Af-
ter having been the means of pre-
venting the probable lynching We'd
nesday night of Charles Little, who
1t Is alleged murdered Matthew
Crawford before daylight Wednesday
morning in the doorway of Craw-
ford's Office at his distiIlery neaI
jackson, Capt. V. G. Mullikin re-
turned to Lexington from Jackson
Thursday morning with his blood
hounds.
"Crswford's heart" says Capt.
Mullikin, "was cut clear in two by
Little's five bullets, all of which en-
tered the breast within a space Of
six inches"
Wednesday night dickson was
seething excitement and it was pre-
dicted that Little would be hanged
before morning.
Capt. Mulhkin says a meeting of
Crawford's friends was held in a
darkened store room in jackson
shortly before midnight and in the
darkness Capt. Mullikin in a short
speech told the unseen men assem-
bled about him and the leaders that
the evidence against him was so
strong that there need be no feal
that he would not get his just deserts
for the unprovoked murder and his
advice against lynching was follow
ed, as he thought he and his blood
hounds had been the means of fixing
the guilt on Little alone beyond de-
NAL.
Little was tried, convicted and
sentenced TO death all within six
hours after the crime. h
Justice, swift and terrible, was
meted out to the self-confessed as
sassin. The murderer was taken to
Lexington for safe keeping until SEN
fenced.
Little, trembling with fear that the
friends of Crawford would take HIM
from the Breathitt county jail and
lynch him. asked an immediate trial
which Judge Redwine granted. and
thirty-six hours after the commission
fthe crime, he was found guilty by
a jury. which took Six minutes to con-
slider his acase and was given the
death penalty.
The trial of the murderer took
place while the family of his victim
and their friends were attending the
funeral of Crawford at AthOl. As
the clods were falling upon the coffin
of Crawford, the jury reported itS
verdict in the cast.
Tile jury was hastily empaneled,
following the prisoners request for
immediate trial. Little pleaded gull
ty, Attorney 7. T. Cope made plea
for mercy for him and Attorney f. +.
Hogg demanded justice in the name
of the Commonwealth.
Surrounded by eight deputy sher-
ifs Little was hurried to the Lexing-
ton & Eastern train for Lexington
and they were barely in time to catch
the train. 1t was generally believed
that had the officers attempted toI
keep Little in the Breathitt jail until
Judge Redwine passed sentence upon
him he would have been lynched and
that the friends of Crawford womb
most likely have taken prompt action
tonight.
Law abiding citizens express theI
belief that the prompt action OF
Judge Redwine in summoning a jury
and trying the prisoner and the pen
altv imposed will have the effect OF
deterring other gun-users and the
Court has announced his intention Of
seing that life and property in Breath
lit county are protected during Els
admins at any cost.
Judge Redwine has kept his pre-
election promises in his work to root
ont the blind tigers in Breathitt and
his action in the case of Little Is an
index, his friends say, to what may
be expected from him in any similar
ease. Ht tt
Mrs. Little. whose confession that
she saw her husband shoot Crawf"rs.
caused her arrest and forced his own
.uoc ,.alooc