NEWPORT, ARKANSAS MONDAY, OCTOBER 2fi, 1911. NUMBER 174.
. Mob Lynches
Negro Murderer
Who Killed Night Officer James Payne
On Lower Front Street Early Sun
v day Morning—Second Negro
Escapes Similar Death.
_ i
MOM WORKED OPENLY
V _
Sheriff and l>epulu*s Overpower
ed and Hanging Ensued In
Jail Yard From Small
Elm Tree.
Within a stone’s throw of the
court house and one of the
churches, where services were
being held upon the Sabbath daj
the body of a negro Howe Davis
was hoisted from the ground bj
means of a rope over the limb oi
a tree in the court house yarc
. and left hanging for nearly at
hour after life had left the dan
gling form. He had paid the
quick penalty of an awul crime
one that had aroused the city
and county, the wilful murder ol
Night Officer James Payne, ear
ly that same Sunday morning
The mob’s work was speedy, it'.6
onrush had thrown down the
officers and secured the keys ol
the jail, where the cowering
wretch was quickly apprehend
ed and dragged forth by deter
mined men. He foresaw his
fate and sullenly refused to con
fess his crime or make any
statement except to say that hi.6
accomplice did the shooting. Tht
onlv wonder of the day’s event?
\ is that this other negro was not
taken at the same time and thal
he would have been later, there
is little doubt. This was recog
nized by Sheriff McCuistion
who with other officers eluded
V the men demanding vengeance
\ and carried the other negro tc
White River Bridge in time tc
^ board No. 3 for Little Rock
where he is now in the peniten
tiary for safe-keeping.
had run through Officer Payne’s
yard back into the alley and then 1
■ fallen in some weeds on a vacant
lot that faced Second street, not
more than 125 yards from the |
scene of the shooting, where the |
officer lay dead, not being dis-!
• covered until . about 5 o’clock j
■ that morning, when City Mar-1
■ shal Gus Martin received word j
and went to the scene.
Early in the morning, several'
had passed the lifeless form of
James Payne, but none recog
nized him and thought some
drunken fellow had fallen down
beside the walk in the gutter.
The remains -were carried to his
home where tney were viewed by
^Coroner Melville and an inquest
jury, which was adjourned until'
Wednesday to hear evidence in
the case.
The negro Davis was heard
groaning in the weeds by a ne
gro living next door and upon '
the former’s request, was car
ried to the home of Ben Griffin
|on Lower Second street. Grif
fin sent for Dr. Christophe, who
finding that the wound was from
a pistol shot, went to his office
after his instruments. Down if
town he learned of the murder
of Night Officer Payne, and sus- ■
pected Davis at once. Going
I back to Griffin’s home, he asked
the wounded negro if he had any
thing to do with killing Officer
i Payne and received this reply:
1 aj ne didn t pull the trigger
fast enough; I beat him pulling
the trigger.”
I Hen Griffin then asked Dr
i C hristophe, who refused to 1
dress the wound, to notify the
i officers and the Doctor saw and •
I told City Marshal Gus Martin of '<
the negro’s whereabouts. !
! Officer Martin and Sheriff Me- 1
Cuistion proceeded to arrest Da- !
i vis and also learned tha? his ae- <
j complice was in the house known
'®a the “Big Four” on Lower
b ront st-. where John Woodward 1
' was also captured. As further 1
proof of Davis’ guilt, of which i
there is no doubt, the empty i
^ cartridges from his revolver
were found in the weeds where
| he lay the latter part of the
night, unable to get away be- <
cause of his injury. (
The front door of the Nelligan 1
hospital received two of the bul- 1
lets. They are thought to have
been from Officer Payne’s 32 1
revolver. One seemed well spent I
and had probably passed through i
the negro’s leg and then em- 1
beddpd itself in the surface of j
I the door. The other tore i
through the door, glanced along 1
jthe woodwork of a stall and was i
1 found m the rear of the barn, f
I As the facts relative to the <
murder of the efficient officer
I became known, the feeling of the 1
crow’d became stronger and 1
jmore turbulent. Several hun
j tired men, who lacked only a 1
leader, *were congregated about 1
jthe courtyard. Then the move- <
; ment took form and head. Sher-!1
iff McCuistion had passed his!*
I keys to the former sheriff, H. S. i s
Simmons, but both were thrown!!
down and searched for the keys
and once the keys wrere in pos-^
I session of the mob, the penalty
I of the crime was speedily im-,
posed- The negro was brought1
from the jail and hurried to the !r
little elm tree in the corner of 1
the court yard, near the Cook (
hotel. He was pulled up once t
only to be lowered, but he still r
had nothing to say except that
Sunday was a day of great ex
citement, the murder of a popu
lar officer discovered, the in
creasing fury of the people that
was partially satisfied in the ex
acting of the guilty negro’s life,
the* revival of the mob spirit as
crowds from the country reach
ed the city and the escape of the
second negro from a similar
d judgment through flight of the
officers—these were the succes
sive events of the day.
MURDER OF NIGHTOFFICER
Night Officer James Payne ov
erhearing the talk of Davis and
another negro, Woodard, found
they were preparing to burglar
ize a store on Lower front
Street. He removed his star and
left his billy at the Walton res
taurant about 2 o’clock Sunday
morning, stating that he expect
4 ed thus to walk upon a couple of
^thieves.
He intercepted the negroes
near Dr. Nelligan’s hospital and
ordered them to surrender- Ac
v jading to Woodard, the other
* «?ro Howe or Joe Davis,as he is
iMter known, began shooting,
firing a 38 pistol two or three
times. As Officer Payne was
taken by surprise, he is thought
^ to have jumped from the walk,
drawing his gun at the same
time. A bullet from the negro’s
revolver entered Payne’s back
jpst to the left of the spinal col
V iflffin and ranged through the
heart probably and coming out
in the right breast. The brave
P officer seems to have gone to his
knees, but as he did so he emp
tied his 32 calibre weapon upon
the negro, shooting five times.
^ * One of these bullets went
tteough the neero’s leg in the
region of the hip. The negroes
ran, but the wounded Davis left
a trail of blood, that showed he
/
the other negro did the shoot
inf. And a second time he was
pulled limbward and there left
dangling for nearly an hour af
ter all signs of life were gone.
He was then taken down and
carried to Drummond’s under
taking rooms. The inquest held
over his remains was profitless.
Of the hundreds who saw the
mob, none knew its membership.
The unwarranted crime of the
negro, in the wanton murder of
an officer doing his duty had
merited the death which befell
the brute, and the jury, of
course, found that he came to
his death by unknown hands.
Davis is said to have come
from Poplar Bluff and to have
been working at the oil mill. The
undertaker says that his hands
are as soft as a woman’s; that
he was doubtless one of the idle
class that are a menace, because
their living must come through
crime.
The Ranging of Davis did not
satisfy the mob. The crowd be
came augmented by hundreds
from the country and it was re
ported that an even larger num
ber was coming from Tucker
man, the former home of James
Payne. At any rate, Sheriff Mc
Ou.'stion, to avoid a double lynch
ing, slipped the other negro,
[XT'/j urn v, /} n, n 4- n-f 4-V. n ! 1 1„ i.
»» vv/v» U, WUI VX l/ilt J Clll C’.kJVJU L
5 oclock, rushed him through the
court house to an automobile in
waiting and away the party sped
:o Front street and to White
River Bridge, where No. 3 was
foarded- Deputy Sheriff James
[lasting and H. S. Simmons ac
companied Mr. McCuistion and
;be car was driven by Lucien
Daugherty, Mr. Hasting going
with the sheriff and prisoner to
Little Rock.
The negro is said to have rais
ed a crop on the Davis farm,
lear Auvergne, an dto have lat
er worked for Muirhead’s mill
it Weldon. He was for several
^ears a farmer on Denton Is
and. his father living there at
;he time.
FUNERAL OF OFFICER.
The funeral services of xNight
Jfiicer Payne were held from the
iome»at 9 o’clock Monday morn
ng, conducted by Rev. B. L.
sVilford, the remains being tak
en to Cheshire graveyard, near
Slgin, for burial. He was mar- ,
ued twice and leaves a wife and
eight children, four of whom are
small. He left them practically
fenniless, because his meagre
salary was no more than requir
ed for their support.
Mayor Hubly is passing a con
1 /->/4vi /I i4- 4-„
/X UVU V UliU XV VU511 V I/O
3e a pleasure to our people to
lelp this family, robbed of their
support, because he was fearless
n the discharge of his duty.
Newport has never had a bet
ter officer than James Payne.
3ig hearted, never downcast, but
ilways cheerful, a willing work
er, kind, honest and courageous,
le was respected and esteemed
)y all who knew him.
We appeal to all our people to ,
lelp his family in distress- He
iravely risked and lost his life :
n the protection of property and
he preservation of our safety j
ind peace and we pay tribute :
md recognition to the man in
lelping those he loved and who
ire left in need. Send in your
subscriptions to Mayor Hubly,
>r the Independent.
I'outh Condemned Comes Clear.
Jnited Press Dispatch.
Macomb, 111., Oct. 26.— Ran.v
^anschmidt, a youth charged
vith the murder of his mother
md father, sister and another
voman, was acquitted upon a
second trial. The first trial re
sulted in a death sentence, but
he case was appealed and the j
■erdict set aside.
Bananas!
I have a car of nice, ripe ba
lanas that I am selling cheap,
iv the bunch or bv the dozen— ,
lar now on the Iron Mountain
racks. opposite Wolff-Gold
ian’s. dtf.
J. B. Heard.
I
Ifatai fall
FROM TREE
Ott Young of Swifton Killed In
Fall From Tree Sunday In
River Bottom.
I -
Special to Independent.
| Swifton, Oct. 26.—Arthur
Young, known to all his friends
as “Ott Young”, fell from a pe
can tree in the Black River Bot
toms Sunday and was almost in
stantly killed and never regain
ing consciousness. One of his
legs was broken, but the cause
of his death is attributed to con
cussion of the brain.
The deceased wras a most ex
cellent man, the son of a promi
nent farmer of Glass township, j
and a relative of N. D. Moon. He ’
was a salesman for the firm of |
Moon & Sons.
With a party of friends, he ;
had gone to the bottoms for the |
day, nutting, and1 while thresh
ing a tree, lost his balance and i
fell to the ground.
The remains were brought to
Swifton this morning and the
funeral will be held today.
_*
Japs Sink Austrian Ship.
United Press Dispatch.
Pekin, Oct. 26.—The Japanese
legation has been advised that
an Austrian cruiser has been
sunk in the Kiao Chou harbor,
and that the Japanese have
posted heavy artillery on the
hills at the harbor’s mouth.
Four Killed —Car Leaves Road
United Press Dispatch.
Wassilon, Oct. 26.—Two men
and two women were killed this
morning automobile riding when
the car plunged down an em
bankment. The dead are Hugo
Horn and wife and Carl Rupen
thal and wife.
Mrs. Carman Not To Re Tried
Again.
New York, Oct. 26.— Mrs.
Carman left the court house in
Brooklyn, a free woman, on a
$25,000 bail following a disa
greement of the jury. It is un
derstood that she will not be
tried again.
Labor’s Right To Organize.
United Press Dispatch.
Cleveland Oct. 26.—Judge W.
B. Neff has ruled the right of
labor to organize in the decis
ion finding School Suerintendent
Frederick guilty of contempt
for disobeying an injunction not
to discharge teachers for affili
ating with a new union
Moving* f ictures
The Opera House
THE ADVENTURES OF
KATHLYN
THE WARRIOR MAID
The best and most thrilling of
any episode shown- She dresses
and becomes a real Joan of Arc
and is left in the burning palace
with hungry lions waiting to de
vour her.
(SELIG)—Two Reels
SLIPPERY SLIM AND THE
CLAIM AGENT
Harry Potel and Sophia Clutts ;
in a roaring comedy.
(ESSANAY)
...-. .-t
THE MADALINE
JIM REGAN’S LAST RAID
The story of a worthless husb- j
md and a dancing girl. Hersch- j
d! Mayall, Clara Williams.
(Two Reel Broncho Feature)
A SUSPENDED CEREMONY i
A society comedy, Marguerita !
Fischer, Harry Poland and Ka
:hie Fischer.
(BEAUTY)
rHURSDAY—-“The Million Dol
lar Mystery”
ADMISSION, 5c AND 10c
$50,000 Execution Against
Stuck.
Jonesboro, Oct. 26.—The exe
cution ol' $50,000 against Vvm.
R. Stuck will probably not be
levied at this time, as an ap
peal has been Arranged for by
the attorneys of Mr. Stuck. The
execution was sent the sheriff
of Craighead county by the
sheriff of Benton county for
service on Mr. Stuck, it being
made against him to satisfy a
judgment of Benton county for
funds deposited in the defunct
Bank of Rogers and was due the
county.
It developed that among the
stockholders, who are responsi
ble for this amount that Mr.
Stuck is probably the only one
that the judgment can be col
lected from and that the matter
will be thrashed through the su
preme court before it will be
paid. It is expected that the ap
peal bond will be Signed and fil
ed by late this evening. Attor
ney Ed L. Westbrooke repre
sents the defendant.
The failure of the Bank of
Rogers is only, a small branch
of the failure of the Bankers
Trust Company of St. Louis,
which also hit Jonesboro finan
ciers, among them being W- R.
and E. C. Stuck and other mem
bers of the Stuck family, to
gether with Mr. H. W. Graham
of this city. The Stuck family
losing several thousand dollars
they had in stock and earnings
in that instutution.
MAY BE SHOT AS SPIES.
Unted Press Dispatch.
London, Oct. 26.—Refugees
from Holland state that all
British caught in Belgium are
being held by the Germans, pend
ing an inquiry to decide whether
they should be held as prisoners
or as spies. It is reported the
Germans are preparing for the
defense of Belgium.
GOVERNOR CALLS
CROP DIVERSIFICATION
For Arkansas To Be Held In
Capital City On Monday, No
vember 9.
Special to Independent.
Little Rock, Oct. 26.—Govern
or Hays today called a conven
tion at Little Rock for Novem
ber 9th of all merchants, bank
ers, farmers and manufacturers
to discuss a fcampaign for crop
diversification.
HOUSTON ADVISES SOUTH.
United Press Dispatch.
Chicago, Oct. 26.—Secretary of
Agriculture Houston, in address
ing the National Dairy Show
this afternoon said the South
should devote moe atterntion to
the production of live stock and
foodstuffs, for her own consump
tion, instead of raising a single
crop.
7,610, 682 BALES GINNED.
United Press Dispatch.
Washington, D. C., Oct .26.—
The census bureau today report
ed 7, 610,682 bales of cotton gin
ned up to October 18, or 627,000
more than at the corresponding
time last year
Four Reels Tonight
Edison Presents an unusually
good comedy, Mr. William Wads
worth in A CANINE RIVAL
Dora’s dog, Gyp, disliked Wood
B. Werb, but to win her he tried
to gain the dog’s affection. Af
ter caring for Gyp awhile Wood
B. Webb was repaid by being
introduced to Dora’s new hus
band, and the dog he gave her,
presenting Gyp to Wood B.
Webb as a token.
_____ ■
Knox mends shoes cheap, 111
Walnut street. dtf*
if A'\-\ '-Sp-v
wmamaammmmmmmmmmmmmaammm
When a man
comes here
to look at
clothes
YY/E assist him by
* * showing the new
est and best styles—
suggesting what is most
becoming and aiding
him to find clothes to
suit his needs.
I YY/E fit him with
IV* care and exact
ness and we sell him
the, best clothes for the
money that can be pro
duced.
“KUPPENHEIMER”
$20.00 $22.50
$25.00, $30.00 1 '1
ate maximum values. •» I
Our desire is to satisfy you
BErgeR’S
"ST^f* CLOTHtH G HOUSE"
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