The weekly soliphone., 1915-08-06
Popular Sheriff of Mississippi County Had Presentment He
Would Lose Life in Raid on Island 37--How Judge
Driver Saved Crum From Mob Violence
Tragedy Probably Means End of
Reign of Lawessness.

Cowan to get them away from Os-
ceola, to keep off the main roads
and to communicate with him on
the following day. He did not
hear from Cowan until noon on
Sunday. 1t is believed Cowan and
his deputies took the prisoners to
the bottoms and kept them out all
night, continuing their journey
Sunday morning. When Cowan
called Judge Driver over the phone
Sunday at noon the court directed
him to take the men to Marion.
Driver Talks
To Throngs.
On Saturday night when the en-
ragged citizens gathered in large
numbers about the Jail to lynch
Crum, Judge Driver, w. D. Ora
vette, Wilks Davis, Ed Alexander
and others went among the crowd
and told the people there was no
one in the Jail whom they wanted
to hang. Judge Driver advised
them of his movements to protect
the prisoners and said he could not
afford to do less as long as he was
an officer of the law. He further
told them they were at liberty TO
go through the jail to verify his
statements that Spring Crum, Ken
ton, Osborne and the others direct
ly implicated in the murder were
not there. This invitation was ac-
cepted, a committee representing
the citizens making complete
search of the jail. The visits of
the committee were repeated at in
tervals through the night, some of
the citizens being under the impress
sion the prisoners might be re-
turned to the Jail before morning.
Excitement Subsidies
But Feeling Still Strong.
Sunday morning the excitement
began to subside, the people return
ed to their homes. Outward man
ifestations of their wrath disappear
ed but the determination to sum-
marily punish Crum and his asso-
ciates has not abated in the least,
The people of Blytheville, or at
least those who were willing to
give expression to their feelings,
are far from satisfied with the out
come of the affair. They contend
that the taxpayers of Mississippi
county have already been burdened
with a frightful debt because of the
lawlessness for which Crum is re-
sponsible. For years he and his
hirelings have piled their damna-
BILE trade on Island 81, supplying
the negroes on the Arkansas plan
tations with bottled hell. Murder,
rape, arson and kindred crimes have
held high carnival in the territory
tributary to this island. All these
law violations were on the Arkan-
sas side and they piled up material
mountain high for the criminal
courts in the Osceola district.
Crum Collected
Heavy Toll.
With such a heavy penalty hay
ing already been paid by the peo-
pie of Mississippi county as blood
money to Crum it is contended he
ought to be summarily dealt with,
and that while lynch law is ordi-
narily demoralizing, the peculiar
conditions surrounding the Crum
case are such that the shortest and
severest work made of him the bet
ter for Mississippi county. No
question of his guilt has entered
the minds of the populace, especial
ly those at all familiar with condi-
lions. 1t is asserted Crum estab-
lished the dives on the island, en-
ployed degraded white men and des-
perate negroes to operate them.
that he furnished them with weap-
ons and always gave orders to kill
any officer who set foot on the
island.
Fifty Indictments
Against Crum.
The grand juries in Mississippi
county have returned nearly fifty
indictments against Crum during
the past two years for selling
liquor and operating gambling
joints. Many of these warrants
were carried by officers on the
Arkansas side for more than a year,
waiting and watching for Crum to
put his feet on Arkansas soil so he
could be taken in custody without
involving the question of jurisdic-
ton. Crum, knowing there had
existed grave question of the au-