The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1915-04-16
7 MEN INDICTED
BY U.S.. JURY AS
NIGHT RIDERS
WOrkmen Held i'm SikestOn
Sent Threatening Letters
Through Mails.
CASE THROWN
OUT BY JUDGE DYER
Heavy Damages Had Been Sought
From Jackson Men for
Bleaching Process.

The seven men who were recently
arrested at Sikeston charged with
having planned to set fire to certain
valuable property, besides having sent
threatening letters to different citi-
zens, were yesterday indicted by the
Federal Grand Jury for alleged viola
tions of the postal laws.
These men are now confined in the
Scott County Jail at Benton, where
they will perhaps remain until they
have been tried in the State Court on
criminal charges. In case of their ac-
quittal, they will be held to answer to
the Federal authorities on the indict-
ments found against them.
After investigating the charges
against the prisoners the Grand Jury
yesterday reported to the Court as fol-
lows:
Whereas, we the Grand Jury of
and for the Southeastern Division of
the Eastern Judicial District of Mis-
souri,, duly empanelled, at and for the
April term, A. D. 1915, of the United
States District Court of said division
and district, have now considered all
alleged violations of the Federal laws
which have been brought to our atten-
tion by the United States District at
torney for said district; and
Whereas, we have duly made our
report, by returning into this Court
indictments in all eases presented to
rs, where the evidence established to
our satisfaction to the guilt of the
various defendants in the indictments
named; and
"Whereas, by information furnished
us, we are advised, and are of the
opinion that the civil rights and liber-
ties of some of the citizens of this
division have been interfered with by
certain bands or gangs of cOwardly
conspirators who operate, not in the
open, but by secret use of the United
States mails and otherwise in their
efforts to injure, oppress and intimi
date certain citizens of this district IN
the free exercise and enjoyment of the
rights and privileges guaranteed and
secured to them by the Constitution
and laws of the United States; which,
if not restrained, can but lead to anar-
chy, and breed and inculcate disre-
spect of all established law and gov
ernment, and thus break down that
profound respect which has ever been,
and should ever be, the greatest glory
of American citizenship.
However, on account of insufficient
evidence, so far obtained, and prOGuc-
ed before us at this time, we are not
satisfied as to the certain identity Of
all of these conspiratOrs and all anon
ymous writer's, and we therefore re-
spectfully recommend, that we con-
tinue our investigation of these alleg-
ed outrages by reconvening at some
future time, upon the call of this
court"
The jury also found indictment for
four post office robbers and two ne
gro women of Mississippi County who
are charged with having used the
mails to defraud a mail order house.
/ The two women, TIME Scott and
Mathilda Key of Mississippi County,
were each fined S100, and advised by
the court that if they conducted
themselves properly in the future, the
fines would not be collected.
Ben Votaw and Charles Reynolds,
the post office robbers from Mingo,
who escaped from the Jail at this place
and were later captured and held in
Poplar Bluff, were each given SEN
tences of three years in the Leaven-
worth prison.
Guy knight and Homer Forbes each
confessed to post office robbery at
Ardeola in November, 1914, and
knight was given a sentence of one
year and one day in Leavenworth pris-
on and Forbes was sentenced to serve
three years. Ernest Knight, who had
been held for completely in the rob
berry, was discharged.
George Clyde Gray and NJ. E. Kit
ridge, alias Michael 0'Toole and c. L.
Edwards, were convicted of a post
office robbery at Bryan and we're