Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-01-31
CHEER MAGISTRATE
WHEN He D|SM|SSES
GEORGETOWN CASES
Crowd Approves Verdict N Cases
Growing Out of Mob Chasing
Commissioner Wells.
HEAR SEVERAL WITNESSES

st.1 e,orrcspondcncc Of Every Evcnkn&
Georgetown, Jan. 3l;-The last OF the
tr;als growing out Of the mob's advance
uuOn the Brick Hotel to r,in State Health
Commissioner II. C. Wells out OF town
flivvcred yesterday. Mayor II. c. Stew
art. sitting rs magistrate. discharged
Halstcad Layton. alleged to haved led the
riot: Joshua T. Collins and Walter Roach,
councilman, after several witnesses had
related their story. The spectators cheer
ed and applauded.
Attorney General David J. Reinhardt
twice came to Georgetown 70 prosecute
these cases, but without success. His
next move, II any. has not yet been out
lined. He left town right after the hear
ing. Health Commissioner Wells Was the
first witness.
Wells said he was sitting inside the
hotel when he saw q crowd gathering in
front That's him. some Of them
said," the commissioner testified.
You're going to leave here right
away. If YOU don't leave we're going to
take YOU away. We have a machine out
side now, LAYTON said.
There were one or two talking and
some talked of getting rope. One
said: Go get rope. II asked where
they were going TO take me and they
said to Selbyville.
Il then called up Frank Jones over the
telephone and told him WAS threatened.
After FIVE or ten minutes talk with Layton
and the mob | said | would agree to 60.
But told him it was the State Board Of
Health they were taking out--not me,
and they replied they would take any
other member of the State board out OF
town.
One man, the witneAs aaid, stepped m
between him and the crowd and admonish-
ed the crowds as follow: mo harm
now, boys. Don't lay hands on him"
There were at lcast so in the hotel
lobby that night, Wells said. He WIS ta-
ken to hotel at Milford in car There
were four men In the machine.
Attorney James NJ Tunnel, represent
ing sll three defendants, objected to Wells
telling what happened out of GEORGETOWN.
Attorney-Generl Reinhardt replied
it was all part and parcel of the same Of
fence Moreover" the attorney-general
went on, this is only a preliminary
hearing"
The Encouragement once said to At
torney Tunnel: II beg your pardon"
Il don't beg your pardon" rcjoined
Tunnel.
'You don't have TO-" reported the At
torncy general
Wells then said Layton told him that
up his mind whether to leave, or he would
be taken out of town.
Roach was one of the crowd in the
hotel, Wells stated. After Wells bad told
of the crowd swarming into the hotel and
taking a mcnacing attitude toward him,
Tunnel asked:
"lf you were gong into big hotel You
would be scared before you got in,
wouldn't you?"
Wells WAS then asked II he was scared.
The witness admitted be was fearful of
the result of refusal on his part to leave
as urged.
"They struck me n beng thrcakening
mob" he went on.
Mr.. Tunnel found fault with this
Wells also testified he thought he saw
Collins, the third defendant, in the mob
in the hostelry.
Tunnell wanted to know whether they
looked wilder that night than now in
court"
Wells said there was as much dd-
ference as there Is between q pleasant
ooking crowd and q mob threatening
violence.
layton v,s the only one Of the thrse.
Wells stated, who made any direct threat
against HIM. The Commissioners thought,
.hough, that Collins and Roach were both
, part of the mob simply through being |
present and backing up Layton.
Wells said he did not see any weapons |
lmong the crowd-except their fists.
'Are you afraid of q mans hsts?'
runnell asked.
That all depends On whether I'm a |
lrivste citizen or pubic official, as a pub |
lc official did not want to be involved in /
my disturbance of the peace"
Tunnel wanted to know if there was
any violence there that night.
The commissioner declared Layton ran
nto the hotel at him, when counsel /
'ressed hum for description of this de- |
conduct that evening
Wells then told of several citizens, in
luding Andrew Marvel, Thomas Pepper
nd John Barr, advising him to go, saving
hey knew the crowd before him better
han he did. Pepper and Barr were dis
harged by the magistrate two weeks
go at Attorney General Reinhardt's re-
uest because of their sincere efforts to
held Commissioner Wells.
Hadn't your attitude been rather
that day7" asked counsel for the
efendants.
"No, only with one or two persons,
nd they did all the arguing"
The general clamor of the crowd to
,nng him out was referred TO by Wells.
sked what he thought of this, he said it
,oked to him like it meant business.
julius Green, manager of the hotel
4 L. |
ayton first asked Wells if he wouldn't 20
ut. Afterward, be said, Layton told
ellis he had better leave. Green added
lere were 25 to so persons In the crowd,
ut that all were peaceful except a few
who, be declared, were hol-