Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-08-05
RACE RIOT PROBE
BEGUN BY GRAND
JURY IN CHICAGO
Seventeen Negroes Indicted
Judge Declares Few Hang
ings Would Have SaIu-
tary Effect.

| chicago, Aug. 4.-Seventeen ne
groes were charged with rioting
and murder in indictments voted
today by special grand jury in
vestigating race riots, which for five
days last week held the South Side
of Chicago in a reign of terror.
Mrs. Emma Jackson, colored,
| confessed to an assistant states at
torney that she killed Walter Rig
natell, white youth, during the
| rioting last Wednesday night. She
said she fired the shot from a win
| dow in her home on the south side.
Her case will be presented to the
grand jury tomorrow.
In impanelling the grand jury
Judge Robert E. Grove in the
criminal court declared that a
state of anarchy exists in the city
and that few hangings would have
salutary effect on hoodlums.
"The rioting in Chicago is merely
anarchy and should be treated as
SUCH" said Judge Grove. "The gov
eminent that cannot protect the
humblest citizen cannot protect the
strongest and is weak and ineffi-
cient government.
"a large number of lives have
been taken, great deal of property
has been destroyed and a great
many people are now being deprived
of their liberty by being prevented
from going about the business.
Every man who violates theslaw, re-
CARELESS of his color, should be
promptly indicted and I promise on
behalf of the judiciary that they will
be promptly placed on trial"
Number of Dead 80
The coroner has fixed the number
Of dead at 80 and the city health
commissioner mas found that 800
people injured In the riots were
treated in hospitals. He expressed
the opinion, however, that perhaps
400 or more who were injured in the
riots never reported at hospitals.
While city, county and state au-
thorities combined in seeking causes
which led to the rioting in an en-
deavor to fix responsibility, 5000
state troops, 5000 policemen and
1000 deputies continued to patrol
the negro quarters.
Tonight officials reported the
riot zone quiet and every effort was
being made to relieve the suffer
ings of the negroes, who have been
marooned in the area and who have
been unable to go to their work.
Soup kitchens were opened and
guards were furnished for negroes
who wished to return to work.
The police today obtained reports
of threatening anonymous letters
received by negro families living
on the edge of the negro district,
in which the negroes were warned
to move within two days or their
homes would be burned and bombed
and the negroes killed.
Lowden Issues Statement.
In a statement issued today, Cow
ernor Frank O. ,Lowden said:' f.
"Order has been restored to the
danger zone. Peace reigns there,
but let it be remembered that it is
only because of the presence of the
troops. The conditions which pro-
duced the race riots must be remov-
ed. The state is working and has
been working for some time upon a 4
plan which it is hoped will bring
about a better understanding be-
tween the two races.
$50 far it has been difficult to get
the public to realize the necessity
of this and but little progress has
been made. Now, however, with
the memory of the awful riots of
last week in our minds, with an
Overwhelming disaster so NARROWLY ]