Evening star., 1924-10-01
TAR MOB MEMBERS
BLAME MRS. SHANK
Merely Watched Attack on
Dorothy Grandon at Myers
vile, Court Told.
BY PHILIP {. KAUFFMANN.

FREDERICK Md. October IA
court battle, with one woman pitted
against l9 men over the real respon
sihility for tarring and feathering
pretty Dorothy Grandon when she
was fleeing Myersville. near here two
months ago, developed today i'll the
trial of Harry Leatherman. before
Judges Urner and Peters and a jury.
The case, whilh has aroused feel
ing throughout the countryside. has
had many angles, but today took
new turn. Mrs. Mary Shank. confess
ing the actual attack yesterday,
charged that the men in the mob from
My ersville which town was center
of religious conscientious objectors
during the war, forced her with
threats of bodily harm 20 attack Miss
Grandon.
Today several of the men testified
that the mob stood we'll away and
merely watched while Mary Shank
tore the clothes from the helpless
girl and smeared her with tar.
Trial vies With P,Iitics.
With John W. Davis, Democratic
nominee for President, Grating in
front of the courthouse and Harry
Leathermah and IS other Myersville
citizens within the courthouse fight
ing for liberty, Frederick is having
more excitement than since Barbara
Frietchie waved the flag in the Civil
War.
AS todav's session of the tarring
trial progressed, Harry Leatherman
storekeeper, express agent, station
agent and eX-Sunday school teacher
in the Dunkard Church of the ultra
respectable town of Myersville, faced
difficulties in extricating itself from
the charges that he led and melted
the mob that assaulted and tarred
and feathered Dorothy Grandon.
Even though there have been at
least 25 witnesSes-nlinisters of every
religion, farmers, merchants, bank
ers and other leading citizens-called
by the defense to testify to his pre-
yious good character, there were six
of the leading State witnesses who
have told the Judges and jury that
they had seen Leatherman hand the
tar and feathers to Mrs. Shank and
urge on the excited woman to beat
the defenseless girl, tear her clothes
from her and apply the hot tar to
her cringing body.
Mrs. shank Stirs Court.
A bombshell was exploded in the
trial late yesterday when Mrs. Mary
Shank, the one woman indicted and who
pleaded guilty took the stand for
the prosecution. Counsel for Leather
man tried in vain to bar her. After
a half-hour argument States Attor-
ney William Storm prevailed upon
the Judges to admit her testimony.
He said that Mrs. Shank had come to
him at recess and voluntarily offered
to become a witness against Leather
man. In the face of hostilities in her
community she unflinchingly told her
story, accusing the men of the tar
ring party of having forced her on to
commit the crime and threatened her
with severe bodily harm if she did
not take the entire blame.
For the sake of my mother and
father I'm going to tell the TRUTH
she exclaimed. Il won't lie for no
man. 1 was forced to beat and tar
and feather Dorothy Grandon by the
men in the mob. / didn't want to do
il. But l had TO or get it myself.
Later on at the justice of the peace
I didn't tell the full story because
several men of the crowd had threat
ened me with much worse than tar
and feathers if / didn't take the
blame"
Mrs. Shank admitted that she had
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