Fitzgerald enterprise. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1895-1912, 1911-04-13
A PLAIN TRUE STATEMENT
OF Facts Concerning The
Mob Affair on the Night
of April 9TH.

campment of the G. A. R. Each
Post in the Department was en-
titled to 1 or more delegates and
the colored posts are ruled by the
National Headquarters the same as
the white posts; they are given
the privilege of one delegate from
each post at the Department and
National to give an account OF
what they are doing in their posts
but no negro is ever allowed in a
white post for any other purpose
nor at any other time except as
stated at the business session. Not
even at the campfires usually held
in the evenings after the business
has been completed. And as to the
negro delegates that came to FitZ-
gerald, they were met by the same
! committee that was appointed to
meet all G. A. R. men that came to
attend the encampment, and taken
to Wiley Burk's boarding house on
Thursday evening where they
stayed, took their meals and slept,
what sleep they got.
Friday morning they started out
to look for the hall where the meet
ing was to be held and being strang-
ers here got down by the St James
hotel, where they were at the time
D. Nelson started from his home at
the corner of Thomas and Suwanee
SITS. AS he went along a man that
the negroes were making inquiries
of called to him and asked him if
he was not going up to the hall and
he said, YES" Then the man
wanted to know if he couldn't
show the negro delegates the way,
Then D. Nelson said they could
follow him if they wanted to- which
they did.
AS to the accusation that D. Mel
son took them to his home, that is
strictly false. The nearest they
were to his home was at the St.
James hotel corner which is five
blocks away. We would thank
people to tell the truth about us, as
we try to attend to our own bust
ness and certainly have no use for
the negroes. That lie is the one
that the mob worked on that sent
a couple of men to our home at
IL o'clock at night after Mr.. Nelson
had returned from the campfire
and gone to bed, saying they had a
very urgent telegram for one Of the
colored G. A. R. men and asked him
where they were. AS he didn't
know he told them so but told
them maybe he could find out, so
he phoned to several of the G. A. R.
men but they said they didn't
know as they had not been on the
committee. One man said that he
heard they were on E. Pine St.
somewhere. Mr.. Nelson said if he
started out to find them he thought
he could find them and as the men
that came to the house seemed
very anxious to find them and
said that the telegram was so i'm
poruant, he dressed himself and
started out to find them. He had
zone clear to Pine St. and had
raped on one door before he was
interfered with, then the mod began
to gather around him and took him
back past the Jail and courthouse
down Central Avenue east toward
the Seaboard depot, beating him
on the back of the head and hold
ing him by the arms. When one
man said, There, you have given
him enough; let him 90" another
said, Never, will burn him at the
stake first" This was the time he
made up his mind that if he got
away from them he would have to
do it by himself and soon then
giving a sudden jerk freed himself
and started on a run for home.
They shot at him twice Although
they were young men, they didn't
overtake him till he got to the
railroad where they gave up the
chase.
There has no negro ever slept in
our house nor eat at our table.