The Little River news., 1917-01-17
JOHN HAWKINS MUST PAY THE
 DEATH PENALTY
John Hawk Hs, Negro Murderer 0. Mrs. Ben Dies and Child. lfcd Here Monday Morning; There
 Was Ne EXci ement.
CARRIED BACK IO iux Al
 NOON; MADE NO DEFENSI.

NOON; MADE NO DEFENSE
 The negro John Hawkins, self con- fessed murderer of Mrs Ben Dilas and little fifteen months old daughter, Ruth, was tried in the Circuit Court in this city Monday morning, found gull ty of murder in the first degree and sentenced to death by eleetrocut:on in the state penitentiary in Little Rock. The date of the electrocution was set by the court for Tuesday, the 13 h day of March, 1917. AS the court conclud- ed pronouncing the sentence, Hawkins replied, Yes Sah." This was the only time he had spoken aloud during the trial. He was brought here over the M., D. & G. at SIS by Sheriff w. D. Waldrop and Chief of Police Strange of TeXarkana. He was carried i'm meGt tate'y to the court house, the jury empanelled and the trial was started
 
 It was over at II o'clock, and the sheriff left with his prisoner on the noon Frisco for Little Rock, where he will remain until the day of his execu- tiOn
 Story of the Crime.
 Mrs Ben Dies and her 15 months Id hoI ISyf tr1 p,,+l 1yr and respected in tn s city, Mrs. Diles was the Wife of Ben Diles, a section
 brennan for the Frisco Ra;irCad The fam ly had lived in this city for a number of years, where Mrs. Dile5 las a number of relatives, a mother, brother and sisters. W. F. Gammill is a brother. The Diles home was at tEc Frisco secticn house, a half mile yves of the city and west Of the Frisco Ponf. The se-tion house was on the track and near the edge of the woods. No neighbor lived near. The hands had been paid off by the company the day before Mrs. Diles and little daugh- ter were murdered. It is said that the negro section hands knew that Mrs. Piles carried the family money, for Tiles freqLen ly loaned hands money. letting them have it at the house.
 On the evening of Friday, Novem- bor 3rd, Diles came home from his work at the usual time, 6 O lock. He entered his house and found his wife and litte daughter were missing. Fire had not been started to cook the ev- ening meal, which ordinarily was ready a-l that hour, for his Wife was regular about her household duties. piles remembered that he had left no WG cd prepared on the morn ng, and found that his vie had spli t3e wood, but had not brought it in. lis gun, a s'ngle barreled shotgun, was also n..ssing. Diles at once believed that his wife and child had met with foul play and gave the a arm. Officers and 0.nrra were gen on the scene. It was sCcn learned that the missing woman and child were not at the home of any of the relatives. A search was be- gun and lasted throughout the night without a trace Some were growing doubtful believing that the wcgman had gene away with the child, and were ready to give up the search but the husband wlth h.S negro sect.on boys keCr on. About 10 o'clock the negro section hands found the murdered bod ics of the woman and babe in the thick woods, quarter of mi or more south of the section house and not more than 100 yards from the Richmcnd-Ashdown rock road. The alarm was given, and soon the officers scene. It was a gruesome sight that met their gaze. On the ground in the thicket lay the bodies of the woman and her child The woman lay all most face Gown with a I the lower part of her face shot away Near her side lay the body of her innocent babe, it's bloody face to the sky, it's neck broken and it's head crushed. Close by lay the Diles gun with an empty shell, unbreached and the S ock slightly broken. Hanging on it was strand of baby hair. Evidently the murder had been committed where the bodies lay The $250 that Mrs. Diles was sup posed to have on her body was gone,