The weekly times-record., 1912-11-14
Baker Dragged from
Cell and LynChed
ORDERLY MOB DRAG MURDERER
FROM cELL-SWUkG, FROM
CROSS ARM AND SHOT T..


FROM cELL-sWuNG FROM
CROSS ARM AND SHOT.
Steele. N. D., Nov. 8.-An orderly
mob OF fifteen or twenty people at an
early hour this morning overpowered
Sheriff Filbin at the courthouse at
Steele, took George w. Baker to the
stock yards near the city and hang
ed him to the cross arm over the gate
of the entrance to the yards.
Sheriff Filbin this morning states
that it was only three minutes after
the first blow was struck at the out
side Of the Jail until the mob had pos
session of the prisoner and was on
the way to the stock yards with him
The sheriff made every effort to stop
the worn Of the mob, but they wore
not to be denied their revenge and
did not hesitate.
Deputy Sheriff Armstrong had been
at the jatl as q speciai guard ever
since Baker has been connned here.
but last night he vas relieved and Al
lowed to 90 home, 90 the sheriff was
without assistance and, as the mob
! was armed, had no chance to make
resistance.
Wore White hAndk eechiefs., -
Every member Of the mob was
masked with white handkerchief,
| and from the actions and the way
| things were carried out it was very
carefully planned AFFAIR When Baker
had been strung up there were num-
Der Of shots fred, and an examtna-
tion of the body showed that he had
been shot at least ten times. The
condition Of: his face shows that he
was dragged from the courthouse to
the scene Of the lynching, as dirt and
grit is ground into the skin, making
the features unacceptable. =:
Baker was in jail waiting trial for
the murder of his wife and her father
at Dawson, Oct. 80. He had come
from California and committed the
crime within an hour after reaching
town, and from every indication the
crime was one of the most cold blood
ed affairs in the history of the state
lBaker having killed both the man and
the woman and then. fired several
bullets into their bodies after they
were cold in death.
| All that prevented a lynching or
the day of the murder was the fac
that the prisoner was spirited out O.
town early in the morning before thu
most of the citizens became aware O.
the fact that a crime had been com
mitted. 1t is stated here that there
were none of the residents of Steele
concerned in the affair but that al
were outsiders aud it is stated tina
some were from Dawson and some
from Jamestown where relatives o
the murdered woman live.
Janitor Murray, who was in thu
building at the time the mob tool
possession, states that there was nj
chance to overcome the determine
tion of the members He saw Bake
when he was going down stairs AM
said a rope was around his neck
Baker kept his feet until the bottom
of the stairs was reached and thel
fell and was dragged on his face fo
three blocks to- the stock yards.
As soon as the mob had left thu
building the sheriff called up the tele
lphone operator and told her to no
tify as many as possible that Baker
had been taken from the building anc
for her to call all the assistance she
could get. The sheriff, the coroner
and a few other citizens went to sthe
stock yards and cut down the body
about o'clock in the morning and a
guard was established until daylight
when the body was taken to the court
house and an inquest IS now being
held. ""t' -..'~.,
There have been no arrests made
and the authorities will not give out
any information as to whether or not
there. will be. ..,. ..
| The combination sale at Riedman's s
n1oco Saturday was q very cucceSS SSfu1