The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-03-15
Town Awkwardly Situated

Town Awkwardly Situated
 The town is awkwardly situated for such an emergency as this. It is the county seat of Carroll county and lies In thessBeaver Dam valley four miles from the top of the Blue Ridge noun tains across the valley. A strip of in digo along the sky on clear day shows the Alleghenys. The country is rough, the roads are bad and at this time of year, with spring thaws, nearly impossible. Illicit stills are said to be | many.
 l Floyd Allen lived on one side of the | town and his two brothers on the other All the men of the family have been known as characters and were feared by many in the county. The deputy sheriff who would serve a war rant or a summons on one of them was accounted brave man.
 Judge Massie was one of the most prominent jurists of the state. He was appointed to the bench by Gov ernors Swanson in 1908, was 4s years old and Is survived by a wife, two sons and daughter. Judge Massie had been considered recently for promotion to the state supreme bench. Commonwealth Attorney Foster had held his office for eight years. He was 40 years of age and known as a fear less prosecutor. He was a republican leduef Ill Inc county SneTlH NeDD had been deputy for 10 or 20 years before being elected sheriff last Mo- vember.
 All Quiet at 10 O'Clock
 At 10 o'clock tonight the detectives from Roanoke had not arrived but everything is quiet.
 Three jnrors, Fowler, Faddis and kane, were seriously wounded, and A. r. How lett. Burce Marshall and Stuart Worrell, bystanders were more or less seriously wounded. Floyd Allen. the prisoner at the bar, was shot several times. probably not fatally Sidney Allen, his brother, who killed Judge Masse. was wounded, but left town with his friends.
 Sheriff Webb's deputy and county peo- pie are guarding Floyd Allen. It is re- ported that friends of Allen will attempt to rescue him tonight.
 Sidney Allen, who took part in the shooting today. is under sentence of two and a half years in the federal peniten- tiary at Atlanta for perjury and was out on an appeal. His trial was to come up in April. He was tried with Preston Dickens for counterfeiting. Dickens was convicted and Allen was acquitted, but was convicted of perjury for his testi- mony in the case
 The Aliens are regarded as well to do people. The final obstacle to getting news of the tragedy here to the outside world presented itself tonight when Mss Ella Wilcox, the telephone operator, collapsed from the days nervous excitement and closed Up the office. Muddy roads oYar steep grades, with few vehicles will he Hillsville's only connection with the world until tomorrow morning.
 Premoniti0n of Trouble
 Rather than indicate a fear of law breakers by sitting on the bench with wea pon in my pocket prefer to be killed in the administration, was the statement made by Judge Massie only last night to a friend who urged him to take steps for his own protection against the lawess element he had determined to bring 10 justice.
 Commonwealth's Attorney Foster said this morning just before he walked into the court that 1t would probably he his fast day on earth. 1t was expected that trouble would follow the rendering of verdict. When Floyd Allen fired. as sen tence was pronounced. Sheriff Webb quickly returned it, and it is believed that a bullet from his revolver struck Allen. But he did not fire again, for he was shot