TWO LYNCHED - TERRIBLE FATE OF TWO BLACK STORE BURNERS
- Title
- TWO LYNCHED - TERRIBLE FATE OF TWO BLACK STORE BURNERS
- Source Type
- Newspapers
- Publisher
- The Birmingham News
- Publication Place
- Birmingham, Alabama
- Publication Date
- 02/13/1892
- Transcript
- TWO LYNCHED. TERRIBLE FATE OF TWO BLACK STORE BURNERS p. In Tuskaloosa County. Taken From Officers by a Mob and Strung Up to an Oak. FULL DETAILS OF THE HANGING Yesterday's Tuskaloosa Times says: A quietus has probably been given to robbery and arson in the Sylvan neigh- borhood, for some time to come, at least. It has been but a few weeks since the store of Mr. Guy Foster, in that neigh- was plundered and burned to E ground. Ou last Monday night the store of Mr. D. S. Robertaon met with a like fate. Circumstauees pointed to the fact that the same parties engineered both rob- beries. They will participate in no more affairs of like character. Here are the details: On Monday night thieves forced an entrance into the Roberison store at Sylvan, by first cutting a hole through the window large enough to admit a hand, and then reaching in and with- drawing the key to the bar that held the shutter fast. Once inside the store the robbers first removed to the outside as many articles of various kinds as they could carry, and returning to the store raturated the floor with kerosene and applying a match to it, departed with sheir plunder. They had gone but a short distance when they discovered that the firo had gone ont, and they returned and made a second attempt to kindle a blaze, and this time they were successful; and in a short time the store and its uninsured contents were converted into ashes. Early the next morning the thieves were tracked to the river by a posse of citizens. The boat being on the op- posite side of the river the white men feared if they signaled for it the negroes on the other side would take frigbt, 80 they had a negro, who was in the pur- suing party, step to the bank and signal for the boat. In response to the call, John Johnson, one of the negroes sus- pected, entered the boat and pulied to- ward the pursuers. When about mid- way of the stream be suddonly turned the boat, and dieregardiug orders to come baek, pulled for the shore be started from. A load of shot fired at him struck him in the wrist, when he jumped into the river and swam ashore. The trailers soon succeeded in erosg- ing the river, where they captured John- son and another degro named Charles McKelton, and recovered the stolen goods. The men confeased their guilt. They were being guarded by two men, when, as night came on a number of persons, beavily masked, appeared upon the scene and, after overpowering the guard, disappeared towards the swamps with the prisoners. The next morning the lifeless bodies of the negroes were lound daugling from a limb. A placard was pinned to the back of each bearing the inscription "Protectiou to our homes," and the other "Warning to house burners." A. J. Townsend, Esq., empaneled a jury and held an inquest yesterday, developing the facts substantially as we have given them. The jury found that the nen came to their death at tue hands of parties unknown.
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