The Peoples Press (El Reno, Okla.), Vol. 2, No. 13, Ed. 1 Tuesday, February 20, 1912 Page: 1 of 4
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THE PEOPLES PRESS
VOLUME 2
EL RENO, OKLAHOMA, TUESDAY, FERRlAHV 20. 101!
No. 1:5
MYSTERIOUS MURDERER
IS EXTERMIXATIXG BLACKS.
Bloodthirsty Crank VVeilils Ave With
Awful Effect Among Xegroes
in the South.
Beaumont, Texas, Feb. 2U. —A
brutal murder was committed here
Sunday night when an entire negro
family was wiped out. The victims
were Ethel Dove, her son Ernest,
aged 16, her daughter Hattie, aged
12, and a married daughter, Jessie
Quick. An axe was found near their
bodies. Mrs. Quick had separated
from her husband. No arrests were
made.
This is the seventh of a series of
similar crimes which have been com-
mitted in southeastern Texas and
southwestern Louisiana within the
past few months. The first was at
Rayne, I,a., where a mother and
four children were killed. At La-
fayette tiie victims numbered four.
Next came Crowley with a family
consisting of father, mother and one
child. Lafayette was next with an-
other family of four, then Crowley
was the scene of the next murder
when a mother and three children
were killed on January 18. On Jan-
uary 21 a family of father, mother
and three children were murdered
at Lake "Charles. The crime here
Sunday night was the next. The vic-
tims total twenty-nine, and all are
negroes.
Each of the seven murders con-
tains" identically the same elements.
The victims are killed with an axe
while they sleep. The axe is in-
variably left behind. No robbery is
committed. The victims are as a
rule obscure negroes in their respec-
tive communities and no trace what-
ever can be secured as to motive.
It is believed that it is the work ot
a religious fanatic. The negroes
here and in Louisiana are terror-
stricken. Lights are kept burning in
all houses and prayer meetings are
held and male members of the
families take turns sitting up at
nights. Many belieVe it is a visita-
tion of divine displeasure.
The axe with which the murders
were committed here Sunday night
was taken from a yard about two
blocks away and another axe was
left in its stead, evidently to prevent
tracing by identifying the axe.
The murderer here last Sunday
night wielded the axe with fiendish
fury, fairly smashing the heads of
the victims into pulp, in the Crow-
ley murder he chopped off the heads
of his victims. The officers have no
doubt that all seven crimes were
committed by the same person.
SUPREME COURT KILLS
OUR GROSS REVENUE TAX.
Declared Unconstitutional Because it
Imposed ail Additional Tav
on Corporations.
THREE BLACK ASSASSIN'S
MORRED AT XASH\ ILLE.
Only One is Killed—Other Two N'eai
ly So—They Had Murdered R.
R. Official.
Washington, Feb. 20.—Oklahoma's
gross revenue tax law, which has been
a source of great objection on the
part of public service corporations
operating within the state, was dealt
a knockout blow by the supreme
court of the United States yesterday
when the highest tribunal held that
the statute was unconstitutional.
It was held by the court that the
gross revenue tax statute imposed an
additional tax to the customary as-
sessments made upon these corpora-
tions.
The gross revenue tax law of the
state of Minnesota was upheld by the
court on the ground tiiat it was the
only tax imposed.
Attorney General West of Oklaho-
ma, who has been appearing before
the supreme court in the tax case,
last night estimated that the state
would be loser to the extent of $3,-
000,000 by the decision. The case
has been pending in various courts
since 1909, and none of the money
the state would have collected under
the gross tax law has been paid.
The express companies who obtain-
ed an injunction against the enforce-
ment of the statute claimed thai the
law was one designed to interfere
with interstate commerce, and its
contention too was upheld by the
court. It was also cited the Okla-
homa law was practically identical
with the Texas law declared uncon-
stitutional about three years ago.
NEGRO MURDERER RROWN
NOW YELLS "CALF-ROUE."
Oklahoma City, Feb. 20.—Gover-
nor Brown, the Logan county negro
sentenced to death for the murder
of another negro named Burke, who
was granted a reprieve by Governor
Cruce in order that the ideas of the
jurors relative to a commutation of
sentence might be obtained, has
changed his mind about wanting
either to hang or to be given his
freedom. Brown wrote to Governor
Cruce on two occasions, stating that
he is not guilty of the charge upon
which he was sentenced to death, and
said that he did not want his sentence
commuted. He either wanted the
sentence carried out or wanted to be
set free. Yesterday Governor Cruce
received a letter from Brown in
which the latter said:
"After considering the awful sen-
tence given me in the courts of this
county to the effect of hanging me,
and believing that as long as life
lasts there is a chance for justice to
get a hearing, I ask that you will
please commute my sentence."
MURDERER LAUGIIS AS
IIE MOUNTS THE <iALLOWS.
Asked To Have Little Daughter Lift
Black Cap—Had Brutally Mm .
tiered Three Boys.
.Mobile, Ala., Feb. 20.—J. Law-
rence Odoni, convicted of the murder
of three persons, was hanged here
yesterday. He refused the ministra-
tions of a clergyman who labored
with him all night and those of his
own son, a Catholic priest.
When asked to say his last prayer,
requested that his 5-year-old daugh-
ter llazel, be brought to him to re-
' move the black cap. He mounted
the gallows stoically and laughingly
asked to see his wife.
Odoni was convicted of killing
I Charles Golang, Joseph Stokes and
I David Gartman, the latter 16 years
old. They had been witnesses against
him in police court on a charge of
cruelty to a dog.
The killing took place March 18,
1910, at Citronelle, Ala. He shot
the boy at the feet of his mother as
she was pleading for his life.
Odoni wag tried twice and declar-
ed guilty each time. He was wealthy.
THE ROCK ISLAND'S
EQUIPMENT ORDER.
WASH IXGTON FORE<'AST.
Oklahoma: Rain Tuesday, turning
to snow and much colder. Wednesday
generally fair, colder.
Kansas: Snow and colder Tuesday;
Wednesday cloudy.
Arkansas: Rain and colder Tues-
day; Wednesday cloudy and colder.
Yesterday's Temperature.
Maximum 74
Minimum 32
Set maximum 45
Chicago, Feb.
equipment orders
livery comprise ."
of the largest type
20. Rock Island
for summer de-
0 mikado engines
, 48 steel passenger
■ars and 4,940 freight cars.
Passenger equipment includes six
diners, 20 baggage and mail cars, 10
baggage, 10 passenger and baggage
and two gasoline electric motor cars
of 200 horse-power, supplementing
live gasoline and two steam motor
cars in use.
Western Steel Car Foundry will
build 25 cabooses, 4 50 automobile
cars and 2 50 flats. American Car &
Foundry will construct 500 ballast
cars, Pullman 2,500 box and 500 auto
cars, and Mount Vernon company 715
gondolas.
Nashville, Tenn., Feb. 20.—Armed
with clubs and revolvers, a mob of
twenty men, all of them said to be
citizens of Nashville and employes of
the Nashville, Chattanooga and St.
Louis railway, shot and killed Watt
Greer, dangerously wounded Dave
Neal and badly beat Green Bomar at
Shelbyville, Tenn., yesterday.
The victims are the negroes charg-
ed with the murder of S. W. Everson,
special officer of the Nashville, Chat-
tanooga and St. Louis railway, which
occurred near Bell Buckle February
10.
The wounded negroes are now in
jail at Shelbyville and it is reported
that the mob will endeavor to get po-
session of them and complete its
work.
None of the members of the mob
wore masks.
The negroes were attacked on the
court house steps by the mob as they
were being taken to jail after their
preliminary trial about 2 o'clock.
They were in the custody of Sheriff
Williams and six deputies. Greer was
shot in the stomach and killed on the
steps. Neal and Bomar were beaten,
the former being seriously injured.
MENINGITIS HITS
BROKEN ROW HARD.
Word is sent from Idabel that an
epidemic of meningitis has struck
Broken Bow, a new town on the
Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern railroad,
16 miles north of that place. Eight
deaths in the past five days and six
new cases are reported. The situa-
tion is alarming and scores of peo-
ple have left the town. The county
board of health has taken the cases
in charge and it hopes to stamp out
the plague.
PITNEY GETS THE PI,ACE
HOOK WAS SLATED FOR.
Washington, Feb. 20.—The nomi-
nation of Mahlon Pitney, chancellor
of the state of New Jersey, to be an
associate justice of the United States
supreme court, was sent to the sen-
ate yesterday afternoon by President
Taft. The nomination is in succes-
sion to the. late Justice Harlan
TAKING ADVANTAGE
OF LEAP YEAR EAKLY.
Fort Smith, Ark., Feb. 20.—Julia
McCann, aged 14 years, of Cowling-
ton, Okla., secured a marriage license
here yesterday to wed T. B. Matlock,
also of Cowlington. The girl's mother
and step-father accompanied the
couple and gave their consent to the
marriage.
STATE NEWS BRIEFS.
The Chickasha Daily Star has sus-
pended daily publication and will be
a weekly paper in the future.
At a mass meeting Monday of citi-
zens of Poteau, Okla., it was unani-
mously decided to petition Congress-
man Carter to oppose the plans of
Fort Smith to secure permission from
the government to construct a dam
across Poteau river for waterworks
purposes. The government contends
the stream is navigable.
Charlie, the 9-year-old son of As-
sistant County Attorney John W.
| Tillman of Pawhuska, probably was
| fatally burned Sunday afternoon by
an explosion of a can of black gun-
powder
Under a decision of Judge Aber-
i nathy of the superior court at Shaw-
nee yesterday, a mayor, treasurer, two
members of the school board and two
aldermen must be elected at the
spring election, to be called by the
county election board. This is con-
trary to Mayor Martin's contention
that he was elected last spring for a
three-year term.
Ross Locust, aged 14 years of
Stillwell was accidentally shot and
instantly killed by his companion
Taylor Stann, aged 10 years, whilo
the boys were hunting rabbits in a
I gravel pit about four miles north of
I Stillwell Sunday.
To avoid a bitter and unprofitable
struggle the Taft and Roosevelt men
at Tulsa are getting together on a
plan for a county primary to settle
the question of preference as to presi-
dential candidates. The precinct
caucuses have been called for March
19, and a county primary may be sub-
stituted.
The Southwestern college basket-
ball team of Winfield, Kansas, play-
ed Oklahoma State Baptist college
team in the Blackwell court yester-
day. The score was 31 to 22 in favor
of O. B. C.
PRESIDENT HAS SIGNED
SURFACE LANDS BILL.
President Taft attached his signa-
ture to the bill providing for the sale
of the surface of the Choctaw and
Chickasaw coal and asphalt lands
yesterday and the measure now is a
law.
The department of interior officials
have assured members of the Okla-
homa delegation in congress they im-
mediately will set about to carry out
its provisions.
American enterprise is pushing the
beet sugar industry of Victoria.
Mcalester will celebrate.
When Congressman McGuire wired
from Washington yesterday that the
president had just signed the bill for
the sale of the surface lands, which
bill passed In the senate February
12, the news was greeted by the
blowing of whistles, ringing of bells
and a run through the principal
streets of the city by the fire depart-
ment. The McAlester commercial
club is arranging a big celebration
in honor of the event.
fourth hist. bankers meet.
Okmulgee, Feb. 20.—The annual
meeting of group four of the State
Bankers' association was concluded
with a banquet last night. The meet-
ing was attended by 150 bankers
representing 176 banks in seventeen
counties in the central eastern part
of the state. Group four is the
largest of the five groups of the state
and is composed of the banks of the
following counties: Adair, Craig,
Cherokee, Delaware, Muskogee. Mc-
Intosh, Mayes, Nowata, Okmulgee,
Ottawa, Rogers, Sequoyah, Tulsa,
Washington and Wagoner.
The two small children of Fred
Clark, who were horribly burned
when the Clark home, one mile north
of Keifer, caught lire Saturday night,
died in a hospital here last night,
within an hour of each other. The
father of the children, seriously
burned in rescuing the children from
the flames, is not expected to live.
MINE WORKERS MAY
ORDER STRIKE APRIL 1.
McAlester, Feb. 20.—Prank J.
Mayes, vice president of the national
organization of the United Mine
Workers of America, arrived here
this morning to attend the annual
meeting of the convention for this
district, twenty-one, composed of Ok-
lahoma and Arkansas. It is believed
that operators never again will sign
a schedule and a big strike is ex-
pected April 1. This will be a fea-
ture of the meeting tomorrow.
OIL HAS BEEN FOUND
NEAR CHICKASHA.
A special dispatch sent out from
Chickasha says that oil was struck
at a depth of 850 feet in the Rock
Creek oil fields ten miles south of
Chickasha yesterday. Farmers in that
section are highly excited. The well
is in the vicinity of Ninnekah.
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Hensley, T. F. The Peoples Press (El Reno, Okla.), Vol. 2, No. 13, Ed. 1 Tuesday, February 20, 1912, newspaper, February 20, 1912; (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc123475/m1/1/: accessed April 23, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.