The Omaha morning bee. [volume] (Omaha [Neb.]) 1922-1927, 1922-12-21
Louisiana
Militia on
Feud Case
Arrive at Mer Rouge, Sup
posedly to Protect Detec-
tives Dragging Lake for
? Victims Bodies.
Kidnapped After Festival

New Orleans, Dec. 20.-Company G,
National Guard Of Monroe. has ar
rived at Mer Rouge. La. and pitched
camp, according to a telephone dis
patch received here this morning.
Monroe, La, Dec. 20.-The celebrat-
cd Mer Rouge kidnapping case. which.
for four months has Intellectually tax
ed all of the legal machinery of the
state of Louisiana in its effort to
solve. and moved forward another
chapter yesterday when National
..Aiard troops were ordered to move to
'Iastrop. La, near Mer Rouge. origi
servers, az a result of feud between
rival factions Of Morehouse parish.
Although the Ku Klux klan organ
izations of Louisiana. Arkansas and
Mississippi have been more or less
charged with being involved in the
mysterious disappearance of Maj.
Watt Daniels and Thomas Fletcher
Richards, citizens of Mer Rouge, fol.
lowing the kidnapping OF these and
gust "a, the conservative citizens be-
lieve that the mysterious case goes
much deeper than alleged Ku Klux ami
mostly 1t is beneved to be more or
less racial and rivals, in many re-.
spects, the celebrated feuds of the
Cumberland mountains of Kentucky.
Tennessee and Virginia.
Brewing Twenty-Five Years.
The feudal fight was said to have
been brewing for quarter of a CEN
fury, involving some of the leading
families of Mer Rouge and other
parts of Morehouse parish. A climax
was reached on August "a, when ]. l..
Daniels, 10. former prominent Mer
Rouge merchant: Watt Daniels, his
son; Thomas r. Richards, Watt Dav.
export, scion Of leading family, and
w. c. Andrews. planter, were kid
naped by 40 or so masked men on
their way from Bastrop to their
respective homes in Mer Rouge.
Neither Daniels nor Andrews was
able to identify single person IN the
crowd, nor could they give any in
formation IN regard to Daniels son,
Watt, and Richards.
Remains Mystery.
=. Daniels declared he recognized
arkansas aud Mississippi automobile
license tags.
II cannot tell thing now any more
than 1 could the night OF the kidnap
ing or the day after" said Daniels, In
discussing the case again yesterday.
Following the failure of Morehouse
parish and district court officials to
solve the mystery, Governor Parker
announced his determination to use
all the power Of the state in the case.
A big highway celebration and fes-
tival was held at Bastrop on August
"a and thousands of people from all
parts of northeast Louisiana attended.
The five victims of hooded riders at
tended the celebration. witnessed the
baseball game between Monroe and
Bastrop and then started home in the
twilight of the evening in two auto
mobiles. When they were midway
between Bastrop and Mer Rouge the
hooded men galloped up, on horseback,
or appeared on the highway in auto
mobiles, and seized the five Mer
Rouge citizens.
Search i'm Vain.
Watt Davenport was released with
in an hour after he was taken and
the rumor became current that the
masked men were mistaken as to his
Identity"
Searchers for "a hours tried to find
the men who were kidnapped, and the
day following the affair the elder
Daniels and Andrews found their
way back to their homes at Mer
Rouge in serious condition. Their
stories gave but little information in
regard to the kidnapping.
For a while neither Daniels nor
Andrews would discuss the case, but
AAey finally told of how they were
Kidnapped on their way to Mer Rouge
by masked men and severely beaten.
For several weeks Daniels was in a
precarious condition because of his
injuries, which. in his case. were aug.
mented by old age.
For the last three months there
have been detectives and other in
vestigators in Morehouse parish, in.
terrogating citizens and making
searches for the missing bodies of
Richards and Watt Daniels, which,
according to some persons, were be.
lieved 10 have been cast into lake
near Mer Rouge.
That the bodies of both Of the miss
ing men have been located is the re
port current in east Louisiana. The
finding is said to have been the cause
for the sending of the national guard
into Morehouse parish yesterday,
The others kidnapped were released.