The Dillon herald. [volume] (Dillon, S.C.) 1894-????, 1911-08-31

rescue the negro from the crowd,
were overpowered and locked in the
court house.
Assaulted and House Fired.
Mrs. Spraggins was assaulted
while alone in her home, one mile
south of Purcell. After the deed
the negro set fire to the SpraS-
gins home. Mrs. Spraggins' hus-
band saw the flames while work
ing in the fields and rushed into
the house in time to rescue his
wife. She declared Carter, who
formerly worked on the Spraggins
farm, had attacked her. Officers
went to Carter's home and arrested
him. He was turned over to a
constable, but on the way to Jail
escaped. When it became known
that the negro was free, farmers of
the neighborhood organized a posse
and an all-night search was made
Ihe negro was not found.
Found Under Box.
This afternoon Higley Henry, a
negro janitor, noticed a strange ne
gro riding under a box car near
the Oklahoma Central Railway sta
ton. With the aid of two other
negroes, who had armed them
selves, the negro janitor pulled
Carter from beneath the car. He
was taken to the main street of
furcell, where a great crowd had
! gathered.
Turn the negro over to me-"
said tall farmer who suddenly
seemed to assume command of the
crowd
Officers Plead i'm Vain.
The janitor and his two aides
ooeyed. Garter was taken across
the street and in an instant many
men and boys were gathered. At
this juncture Deputy Sheriff Hayes
and Under Sheriff Farris arrived
and pleaded with the mob to turn
the prisoner over to them. The
sherlff and his assistant were lock
ed up and the negro was led out
and placed on an oil-soaked brush
heap, built around a telephone pole
He was tied to the pole and the
torch applied. Cheers came fl.
the crowd as the flames licked the
| victims face. and men and women
In motor cars watched him die. AS
lie was lashed to the pole the ne
gro shrieked for mercy. After the
flames died away the crowd slow
ly dispersed The negro's body
was burned to crisp.
Victim Describes Attack.
Mrs. Spraggins, who is not ex-
rected to live, said Carter enter
er her home last night and struck
her On the head with a gas pipe,
beating her until she was uncon-
sclous. An old mattress was torn
up and scattered over her body
After the negro had set the mat
tress Oh fire he fled AS Mrs.
SpragEins was crawling from under
the fire the negro then reappeared
an again struck her with the pipe,
hreaklnG hel jaw and beating her
BADLY. Her husband, rushing to the
house, rescued his wife. In few
minutes mere she would have been
dead.
Crowd Creers Again.
The pile of wood and brush on
which the negro'S body was burned
was still smoldering at 10 O'Clock
tc-ulght. The town was quiet.
The checls of the crowd, when the
tirst flames shot up, mingled with
the piercing cries of the negro, and
after the fire had burned for an
hour and the body was nothing but
a crisp. TIE crowd again cheered.
Then it dispersed
Whllo the majority of those who
gathered about to witness the black
mans death were men, there were
many W&men in the crowd.
Not n Shot Fired.
p remarkable feature about the
affair was that while the crowd
was determined upon the death of
the negro, it was far more quiet
than usual under similar condi-
tions. Not a shot was fired. The
escape of the negro, following the
arrest, seemed to add to the fury of
the searchers for the black man.
Talk about town tonight follow
ing the lynching, bears the mes
sage of the negro that he was 1.-The
right man" AS whispered from lip
to lip, comes a brief confession,
made as he was led to the funeral
pyre.