Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1917-07-03
FIVE KILLED IN
nav ne DlnI!AIr IN! ,u,.
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IN EASISi.LuuIS
NEGROES Are Pulled From Street
Cars and Killed Following
Reopening Of Race
War.

East St. Louis, Ill.,, July 2.-Mobs
OF men and women who fought i'll race
riots in nearly every section OF East
St. Louis since midnight, had killed
five persons, three negroes and two
whites, by sundown tonight.
The riotiing was a recrudescence OF
race troubles that occurred here
month ago, following the importation
of large numbers Of negro laborerS
from the south.
Rioting Reaches Climax.
The disorder, which began when a
mob OF 200 negroes fired on an auto
mobile load OF policemen last night.
killing one, reached climax this fore
noon, when three negro men mad one
white man were killed, two white men
and two negroes were shot and
wounded, and twenty-three Others so
badly beaten and stoned, that they
were taken to hospitals.
Tonight with the saloons closed and
street car service stopped by order OF
the authorities, national guardsmen
began escorting truck loads OF negroes
across the river to Missouri.
White women and girls joined with
the men in stopping street cars IN the
heart OF the downtown district, drag
ging out every negro on whom they
could lay their hands.
Until the white women began to
participate, negro women and girls
had seemed immune from attack, but
when this occurred, negroesses, too,
were attacked.
Undertakers' Wagons Line Up.
As the rioting continued this after
noon, the crowds boarding street car
after street car and dragging off ne
groes, local undertakers lined their
wagons by the curb ready for the ex'
pected call to haul away the dead.
Major William Klauser OF the Hi
nois National guard said that though
the guardsmen had guns loaded, they
were under no Instructions to tlre IN
to the mobs, but to rely on the
bayonet.
The two white men who were sho'
and the one who was killed, were
victims of stray bullets.
| Sixteen guardsmen were disarmec
by members of the mob, who calmly
asked the soldiers to give them the
weapons lest the guardsmen hurt
someone in the crowd.
Mayor Mollman ordered the sa
looms closed at II o'clock this after
noon and it was hoped that thl
measure would prevent any serious
outbreak tonight. At 8 o'clock police
and guardsmen began moving Negro
men and women and children to ST
Louis, Mo, in motor trucks in orde
that they might be out Of danger dur
ing the night. None of the automo
bile trucks were molested.
Evidences of Bad Blood.
The immediate cause of the riotni
today was the outbreak of negroe
late last night, but for several day
there had been evidences OF ba'
blood, and on Sunday night severa
minor clashes between whites AM
blacks occurred.
The clashes Saturday night appar
entity alarmed the negro quarter o
the city, or at least gave agitators
chance to organize the negroes 10
fighting. When word was telephone
tO police headquarters that the ring
ing of a church bell had called tn
armed negroes together, an automo
bile loaded with police left for tn
scene to disperse the crowd. The OF
fcers were greeted with a Volley: De
tective Sergeant Coppedge was kille
and three policemen wounded: -.
Police reinforcements early thi
morning dispersed the negroes an
shortly after 3 a. m. Mayor Molina
asked Governor Lowden to send Ma
tional Guardsmen here to preserve OF
der.
Illinois Troops Arrive.
Two companies Of the guard /wer
assigned to duty in the negro quar-
|