The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-08-18
PRISON OFFICIALS ARE NOT BLAMED
 FOR LYNCHING OF
 LEO M. FRANK
tcontinued from Page One,

raurred to, but threat to kill him | if it was not opened immediately quick | ly gave the mob easy access to the in- | side. As the gate was opened a guard came up. He was overpowered. Another guard was encountered, but was soon al | the mercy of the mob Frank was grabbed by five men. according to most reports, hurried outside and thrust into the tonneau of an automobile along with a long rope that was dang!ed in front | of his eyes.
 He did not utter word. An occasional groan escaped his lips. What he said, if anything, during the five or six-hour trip from Milledgeville to the outskirts of Marietta, probably never will be gen. erally known.
 The moose around Franks neck was | tied, as if by an expert. It had drawn ! taut around the slender throat and cut well in the wound, not yet completely healed, from the knife thrust made a l few weeks ago by J. William Green, a fellow convict, who said that he believed he had been "called from on high' to
 kill Frank.
 There was no suggestion from residents of Marietta, where Franks alleged vic tim lived and where she is buried, as to who members of the mob might have been. Reports that several high powered automobiles had left Marietta early Mon- day night resulted in Mayor Dobbs is-
 suing the following statement late to- day
 "I desire in the interests of justice and truth to say that the Marietta and Cobb county officials had no knowl- edge of any automobiles leaving Marietta well loaded last night nor were they ap-
 prlsed of the return of any machines today. None of the officials had any in- timation of the lynching until the body was found"
 No doubt exists that the hanging was
 well planned. The ease with which the entered, the difficulty that has been en- countered in tracing the route taken by the lynchers with their huamn victim and their sudden disappearance afterward all show careful preparation.
 All that Is definitely known is that the last stark answer met the rising sun today-Leo M. Frank was dead and the VOW of Franks enemies when his sem tence was commuted to life Imprisonment by Governor Slaton shortly before he re- tired, had been fulfilled. And tonight there were many who believed that the secret of last nights events would for ever be locked in the breasts of the men who saw their victim "hanged by the neck until dead" as he three times was sentenced to be.
 After Franks body had been removed to Atlanta there was some doubt as to whether the coroner's inquest could legal ly be held without it. An examination of the statutes, however, convinced of- ficals that 1t would be legal provided wit resses were found to testify that they knew the man hanged to be Frank. That was done.
 Captain Burke's Story T was called to the door just as I was preparing to retire." said Capt. J. M
 Burke, superintendent of the state prison farm. When passed the threshold two
 or three men grabbed me and in an in-
 stant snapped handcuffs on my wrists. Four others stood guard over me. two with shotguns and two with heavy pistols remonstrated and they declared 1t was
 no use for me to squirrn, as they had come for Leo M Frank and was going to get
 him. I told them that Frank was not at
 my house and they said they knew that,
 but they were going to take me where they knew Frank was quartered. I was marched up to the penitentiary building
 by guard which was doubled as we pro- ceeded When we reached the building a demand was made for the gate to be
 opened and when the trusty prisoner awaited official orders, one of the men
 began cutting the wires and informed the prisoner that he would be killed as soon as an entrance was effected. The gate guard. came forward. but he was imnle- diately covered and ordered to throw up his hands. Half way up the steps 1 was halted while half a dozen men rushed by me and made . dash for Franks room.