Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1926-06-12
TWOJAILED IN
NOTEDLANCE
: SLAYINCCASE
Solution of Klan War
In Caldwell County
Seen in Arrest of Six
At SomervilIe

ca, Juiie
l2.-(P)-Two men charged
with the murder of Otto
Lange and four men charged
with theft of ballot boxes. all
lodged in Jail, is the result of
the work of Sheriff Clint B.
Lewis of Burleson county, as
sisted by two state rangers.
acting on grand jury indict-
ments returned yesterday.
All is IN outgrowth Of the bitter
klan fight that was waged in this
county, and the arrested men are
supposed to have been former Klans-
men.
kinch Shelburne and Charles Bake.
both employed at the roundhouse of
the Santa Fe at Somerville, are
under arrest on the murder charge.
>. NJ. Shelburnc, Sam Gaines. Davis
Lauderdale and Buck Tuttle are
charged with robbery by fire arms.
the allegation being that they forc;-
oly took possession of the hallo.
boxes used in the primary elec,ic
OF 1922 at Merle, voting place
near Somerville. The next morning
the boxes were found in the court
house at Caldwell, but they were
empty.
Men Held In Secret
kinch Shelbourne is about SO wears
old and married. Charles Bake is
30 years old and single.
J. NJ. Shelburnc is a brother Of
hinch and is middle aged; DAVIS
Lauderdale. former United States ma
rine. single and member of a very
prominent family: Sam Gaines IS
married and father OF five child
rem: Buck Tuttle is employed at the
power plant at Somerville.
Tuttle is in Jail here, but Sheriff
Lewis declines to tell where the
other five men are confined. He
said they were in separate cells and
are being held in-communicado for
the time being.
State Senator r. S. Bowers an
nounced this morning that he will sue
Tor writ of habeas corpus and de-
mand that the sheriff produce the
men. Sheriff Lewis was in confer
ence with attorneys this morning pre-
pairing to meet the proposed move.
Case Caused Sensation
company Of state rangers dis
patched to Somerville by T. W.
Davidson when he was acting gov
ernor. worked on the Otto Lange
murder mystery. Several sheriffs
and constahles tried to solve the
mystery and Sheriff Clint Lewis,
since his election two years ago. ha
worked steadily until he finally un-
covered evidence on which the grand
jury returned its indictments yes
terday.
The murder of Lange created n
statewide sensation, but there was
very little ever printed about the
theft of the ballot boxes at Merle,
coming as ii did mt election tine.
when interest was centered in the
general results. "A party Of masked
men, armed with shot guns, drove up
to the voting place at Merle after
the polling place was closed. took
possession OF the boxes and drove
off with them. The empty boxes were
found at the courthouse in Caldwell
the next morning.
Otto Lange was slain by party
of masked men during tn, height of
the ESan bitterness in this section.
He was S2t<his farm home with his
wife. moGher and 11-year-old daugh-
ter when four masked men came TO
the door and attempted to drag him
out Of his home and into n waiting
car. The women members of his
family came to the rescue attempting
TO hold him back from his would-be
kidnappers. Then one of the four as
sailants fired the shot that killed
Lange. the bullet passing through
his chest and Through the finger of
his little daughter who was trying
TO shield him.
The masked men fled.
No motive for the killing Of Lange
was ever advanced. He was generally
reported to be hard working farm
er. owning his own 10 acre truck
farm.
Various vague surmisals as to the
cause for the killing were made.
Lange was known to have been pro-
hibitionist. and the liquor question
mad raised a great deal of animosity
in the community. Lange was also
a melon raiser. and there had been
considerable difficulty over the THEFT
Of melons in the section.