The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-08-14
Shackled Victim of Mob's
Fury Slowly Roasted
to Death
ONLY FIFTY MILES
FROM PHILADELPHIA
Chained to Bed in Hospital.
Having Attempted Sui
eide, Slayer of Officer
Dragged Forth

COATESVlLLE, PA. Aug. IA
frenzied mob of 400 masked men
battered down the doors and win
dows of the Gainesville hospital to-
night, dragged Ezekiel Walker, a ne
gro. charged with killing Special Of
fiear Edgar Rice here last night, man
acled to his bed, out Of the hospital.
through the streets and TO the edge
of town, where they burned him.
manacled to his bed. Police and hos
pitai attendants were beaten aside by
the mob IN their desperate efforts to
get the negro.
The lynching. which out-horrors
the worst of the klu klux days. and
which was contaminated in u town
only fifty miles from Philadelphia,
WAS only accomplished after the ne
gro, writhing In pain. had leaped off
the blazing Are which the mob had
built over him, and struggled to es-
cape with the bed to which he was
bound, and which was sending up
flames all around him.
Forced Onto Pyre.
Two Thousand persons gathered and
watched the leaders OF the mob beat
the negro over the head with fence
rails ana force him and his bed back
onto his funeral pyre. Three times
did the negro try to escape with the
btI 11lA IilStE times kfSe crown GT0R~
ded him with fence rails, which were
sunk into his fresh already seorched
and hanging from the bones until
finally the negro fell into the fire and
struggled no more.
Only then WAS the mob satisfied
The flames died down and went cut
The masked men walked back to the
town ard & half hour later they had
dispersed as rapidly as they had gath
cred.
Walker. tho negro victim OF TIE
!ynching. had shot himself earlier in
the evening in an effort To cheat the
crowd OF armed men. who We're
searching for him with guns ali Of
last night and today.
After the news OF the murder Of
Special OFFICER Rice, favorite with
the mill workers Of the iron foun-
dries had spread ahout the Town, men
started a search for the negro charged
with the shooting.
Tries To ktlI Himself.
When the armed searcheTs sur
rounded Walker. who had taken ref
uxe in a tree. the negro pulled gun
and shot himself through the mouth.
The men took him To the Coatesvtlle
hospital, evading mob which was al
ready gathering and threatening vIo-
lenca.
About s:16 tonight band OF 40o
men. with handkerchief over their
eyes, gathered in front OF the hos
pital.
There was no revealing Of Identifies
The men called their leaders Mar
shall and themselves they addressed
~ brother" Walker. the negro.
was in shaekles and t-9unG so a cot
ia the mems ward on the first floor OF
the hospital Policeman Stanley Howe
had been stationed To guard him.
Z. e''~' Gut Telephone Wires.
Attendants at the hospital saw the
mob gathering and ran to the tele-
phone. There was no response over
the wire The men outside had cut all
wires leading into the building.
The mob stood muttering on the
lawn and in the street iii front of the
hospital. An ambulance came up the
driveway. In an instant the leaders
had surrounded 1t and climbed into
the wagon over the drivers seat They
thought the negro was being hurried
away.
The patient In the ambulance was
not Walker The negro was lying ras-
tened 10 his cot In the hospital cring-
ing and trembling from head to foot
each time a frenzied vel! came from
the crowd outside,
Assured that the man they We're
after was still in the hospital the mob
advanced towards the door. Then
and then only for an instant was there
e. falling hack. Some OF the leaders
stopped midway up the lawn and n
few went out alone. out from the
front row OF the few who had gone
on alone, stepped a. man In a white
mask whom the other men had been
addressing as Marshall" He walked
up the steps leading TO the hospital.
On the top step he turned and faced
tho crowd on the lawn.
Calls on tho Mob.
M en-" he shouted. ARE You going
to allow a white man to be downed
by a negrof"
He looked about him for an instant
There were more mutterings and the
crowd hesitated. Then those In the
rear OF the mob surged forward.
Others Were pushed Up towards the
hospital steps, and with wild yell
the men ran up the steps TO the hos
pital doors. They battered In the
doors. They hammered glass out OF
the windows on one side OF the hos
pital with their fists. In the corridor
OF the hospital. policeman Howe met
them with a drawn gun. He fired two
shots, but the Infatuated men did not
notice II. They brushed the policeman
aside and pushed the hospital attend
ants, who tried TO interfere. out OF
their way and went on.
Walker lay helpless on his bed IN
tho right wing OF the hospital Into
the ward the leaders rushed, other
patients fainting and screaming from
fright Some one produced a rope,
They tied the shackled negro to his
cot. Then a score OF men lay hold of
the rope and ran down the corridors,
out OF the hospital they dragged the
bed and the negro with 1t.
Walker could not make an outcry
His self inflicted bullet wound In the
mouth had made this impossible. His
eyes glared the terror that was his.
The crowd outside gave a cheer as
they saw their leaders come out with
the negro.
Chief q Police Olmstead tried to
lContinusd on Second Pags.l