Phoenix tribune., 1924-01-30
(Special)

(SpeciaD
SAN ANTONIO, Texas-Induced to
enter an automobile occupied by sew
eral young lads, members of promi-
, meme families here. Miss Octavia
Bell, pretty 20-year-old school teach
er, was bound, gagged and blind
folded, taken several miles from the
city, assaulted and then branded with
hot iron on five different parts
of her body. The words which were
burned into her skin stamped her
I as immoral
The outrage occurred early last
Thursday morning, and Thursday af.
tetrnoon two youths, one of them II
years old, and a student at the local
high school, and the other, a gradu-
ate of the school, were arrested in
connection with the crime. l.. G.
Farley, the 17-year-old youth, denied
his guilt and blamed the arrest on
gossip
Farley and the other youth are be-
ing grilled in an effort to make them
tell the names of the five other
youths who were in the car on the
morning of the crime According to
Miss Bell, Farley is the one who
welded the iron
Pleaded With Lads
When Miss Bell filed her com
plant she exhibited five brands, and
said young Farley cut off part of her
hair, preparatory to branding her
forehead but that she persuaded him
to desist
The girl, dishevelled and hysteri-
cal to the point of nervous prostra-
ton, arrived in town Thursday aft
ernoon, saying she had been forced
to walk to town from the scene OF
the assault.
Gossip" Blamed for Crime
Miss Bell blamed the prattling
tongues of town gossips" for the
besmrching of her character, and al
legged that she believed the actions
of the youths were done under order
from some one higher up some ''in-
visible power"
The words branded on the back of
the young girl are of unprintable ma
ture, and testify glaringly as to her
immoral character 1t is known that
the girl has had numerous admirers
in the city, and it is believed that
the cause of her popularity had been
misconstrued, and that secret or
ganization. of which the suspected
youths are members, had black
balled" her, and ordered the inflic-
tion of such punishment as she re-
ceived
Tells Sordid Story
81 had just left the house of a girl
friend" said Miss Bell in relating
her night of horror "and was stand
ing on a corner in the downtown
district awaiting a street car The
street was apparently deserted when
suddenly an automobile appeared,
stopped by me and several youths
jumped out, dragging me into the
car.
Before ! could make an outcry,
was bound, gagged and blind-fold
ed. Then driving at high speed l
was carried into the outskirts of the
CITY, where | was forced to leave the
car.
"The youths then proceeded to
criminally assault me-oh, the hor-
ror of it ALL They paid not the
slightest attention to my pleas. Al
ter they had satisfie& their brutal
lust branding iron, similar to the
one which is used 10 brand cattle,
was produced. Then telling me that
was immoral and a disgrace to the
community, they proceeded to brand
me. The pain and the smell of my
flesh cooking caused me to faint
several times
Once, when | came out of my
stupor, one of the boys. young Far
ley, was cutting off part of my hair
He said they were going to brand
me on the forehead in order that
everyone would know just what I
was. They said that l was the first
Of number of prominent young girls
who were to he treated in similar
Then. after l had pleaded with
them not to brand me on the fore
head, they left the scene, telling me
| could get back in town the best
way l knew how