The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1913-11-26
OF MOB
TO BE


~Spartanburg, Nov. 21.-Four al
legged members Of the mob who on
the night of August 18th last dyna-
mited the ~Spartanburg county Jail in
an effort to lynch VIII Fair, a ne
gro accused of assaulting a white wo-
man not guilty, will be prosecuted.
The grand jury urged Solicitor Albert
II. Viii to institute criminal proceed
ings against the men and such other
members OF the lynching mob as may
be unprecedented. The accused mem
hers are w. r.. Belcher, Jesse Wolfe.
Robert Wilson II Robert Ward. and
the grand jury presents them in the
following language:
after careful investigation into
the assault on the Jail on the night
OF August rs, 1913. we find that GER
tain parties, utterly disregardcd the
lives of the officers and the county
property, did make an assault on the
Jail, with the intent Of taking the
life OF Will Fair. We present to the
court W.. r. Bclchcr, Jesse Wolfe,
'oD NllSoH anu itODcfI Ndru ana
ask our solicitor to prosecute Them
Solicitor Hill wasted no time after
the prescntment was issued. At his
request Judge DeVore issued bench
warrants for the arrest of the four
men.
The grand jury's action, which is
without precedent in this county,
came like a thundcrbolt from a clear
sky. The excitement attending the
arrest Of Fair, the attempted lynch
ing. the trial and the Negroes acQuit-
tai had long since die down and the
whole affair was regarded as a clos
ed incident. There has been some
talk a month or WE ago Of a grand
Jury investigation Of the near-lynch-
ing but after that body i'm its report
at the July term of court merely
thanked Sheriff w. j. White for up
holding the majesty Of the law by hold
ing the mob at bay, it was supposed
that nothing more would be done. In
the meanwhile, however. detectives
have been at work. it is reported, and
they did not conclude their ~investi-
cation until recently. w. G.. Query.
foreman Of the grand jury, declined
today, however, to divulge the method
OF procedure adopted in the search for
the identity of the members of the
mob. He explained that to make this
public might interfere with the appre-
hension of other members of the mob
whose names are yet unknown. 1t was
announced that further developments
were expected and as the necessary
evidence is secured by the grand jury
additional mcn will be presented.
Nothing certain had beer learned
up to late Thursday as to the vo-
cations and residences of the four
accused men, but Ward is thought to
be an employee OF the telephone COM
pany and one or more of the others
are said to be mill workers.
The grand jury's move startled
Spartanburs and has given delight
to opponents of l~ynching.
The negro Fair, it will be remem-
bcrcd, was accused by a young wo-
man of near White Stone, the wife
of a farmer. of having assaulted her
in her home in the absence of all
other members of her family.
Though she persisted in her story
when Fair was brought to trial, the
prcpondcrancc of the evidence was
that it was an haliucination on her
part. Physicians who examined her
testified hat they could find no evil
dcnce that she had been assaulted, and
many negro Witnesses testified that
while Fair passed the woman's house
he did not enter. Nevertheless Fairs
acQuittal in the face Of the young
woman's uncquivocal accusation was
regarded as cpoch-making.
After the unsuccessful attempt to
lynch Fair he was carried to the state
penitcntiary at Columbia Cor safe
keeping and held there until a couple
of days before his trial.
~ ID . nj As NJ