Newspaper Page Text
THE ASHBURN ADVANCE
VOL. VIII.
DESPERATE BATTLE IN JAIL
Murderer Flanagan and Seven Other Jail¬
birds Attack the Sheriff.
OBBS TEARFULLY UNEVEN
Colored Janitor Stood Bravely By
SUeritf’s Side Until Fight
Was Won.
The DeKalb county jail at Decatur,
O.I., was the scene of a terrihe fight
Saturday night between Sheriff Talley
and eight of his prisoners who made a
bold and desperate attempt to escape.
In the fight the sheriff used his pis¬
tol, aud Edward Flanagan, the notori¬
ous double murderer, was shot.
Amoug those xvho took part in the
attempt at jail delivery were George
Bankston and John Pendley, the men
who were mixed up at one time iu tho
murder of Policeman Ponder at At¬
lanta.
Flanagan was one of the leaders iu
the assault Upon the jailer, aud held
as a weapon the heavy padlock which
had been sawed from the jail door.
The affair was one of the most ter¬
rific hand-to-hand fights that ever oc¬
curred in a prison between jailbirds
and prison keeper, and but for the
fact that the sheriff acted with tho
greatest coolness and bravery, some
noted and desperate prisoners would
now be at large, and among them the
notorious Flanagan.
The sheriff was assisted by his ne¬
gro janitor, Jim Smith, aud it was the
negro whom Flanagan attacked, trying
to braiu him with a heavy padlock.
The striking feature of the jail sen¬
sation was the fact that the knife with
which the lock was sawed or filed was
owned by Hiram Sharpe, the man who
brutally murdered his wife near Litho-
nia about a month ago. With this
part of the story comes the statement
from the sheriff that a few moments
before the fight with the prisoners,
Sharpe secretly armed himself with a
heavy irou bar, an act the significance
of which was not realized until tne eu-
counter was over.
The attack upon the sheriff was sud¬
den and without a word of warning.
Eight prisoners, all charged with grave
crimes, sprang upon him as he passed
the cell door. The sheriff thought the
door securely fastened aud when he
saw it swing open and Ihe eigl.t des¬
perate men rush upon him, he backed
off a few feet and cried out to his ne¬
gro janitor to stand by him. The ne¬
gro, displaying remarkable bravery,
stood liis ground.
For several minutes the fight lasted.
The prisoners were endeavoring to
beat down the sheriff and the negro,
for if this could have been
plished, nothing stood in the way of
their liberty except a ruu through an
open corridor and a dash through tho
residence portion of the jail which had
only unlocked doors.
The sheriff knew the situation and
he struggled with his assailants with
a determination to conquer or be
trampled under- foot.
All the while, the negro janitor
stood by the side of his officer ready
to go down with him.
For a while the sheriff could not get
ail opportunity to draw his pistol,
which was in his Hip pellet. When
be finally did, he pulled loose from
the prisoners and backing quickly to¬
ward the outer door he began to fire.
The negro janitor dropped to the floor
to keep from being shot. The sudden¬
ness of the firing dismayed the pris-
oners. Flanagan reeled and fell. A
bullet bad Btruck him. Three shots
were fired, and that was every bullet
the sheriff’ had in his pistol, and if the
prisoners had known this they would
not have retreated as they did into
their cell. The retreat was xvhat the
sheriff looked for.
Ho jumped through the corridor
door, slammed it to and fastened the
lock. The fight was over. The sheriff
and his loyal janitor had won the day.
The jailbirds were safe.
This was the second time within two
months that Fiaunigan had attempted
to break jail. The last time he seized
the sheriff’s child and made a dash for
liberty. He knew that as long as lie
ran with tho child in his arms tho
- JOHN RUSKIN DEAD.
Was Great Critic and Kitsayint liut a Queer
Character.
A London dispatch says: John Rus-
kin, English critic and essayist, died
Saturday afternoon of influenza, aged
81 years. remarkable facts in
One of the most
his career - is his divorce of his wife.
He engaged the great painter, Sir John
Millais to paint a picture of his wife.
Millais snd Mrs. Ruskin fell in love
with each other, but they remained
silent. Itnskin soon realized that his
wife and Millais were bound by a true
love hut made no objection to it, ur¬
ran ging bimself a divorce for bis wife
00 that she could marry the painter.
Official Organ of Worth County. Orders for Job Printing Given Prompt Attention.
sheriff would not shoot. lie was in¬
tercepted in the jail office and a des¬
perate fight followed, the sheriff’s
wife snatching her child from the mur¬
derer’s at ms.
Saturday night the sheriff did not
aim particularly at Flanagan, hut it
seemed to he some direction of fate
that lie of the others should be shot
with the same kind of weapon with
which he bad murdered two helpless
women.
It was about 9:30 o’clock Saturday
evening that Sheriff Talley sent Jim
Smith, bis negro janitor into the low¬
er floor of the jail to clean up the cor¬
ridor. The negro opened the door
leading into the corridor and placed
his lantern behind it.
The sheriff followed behind the jan¬
itor to see if the prisoners were all
right for the night. As he passed a
cell Hiram Sharpe, the wife murderer,
confined iu a cell across the corridor
in which the eight notorious charac¬
ters were locked up, handed him a
heavy piece of iron five feet long and
four inches broad and half an inch
thick.
“Mr. Talley,” said Sharpe, “the
man in here with me has been hiding
this piece of iron and I wuut you to
take it out before it gets us all into
trouble. ”
The sheriff thanked the prisoner and
walked down the corridor with the
iron bar in his hand.
Not until after the terrific fight with
the desperate jailbirds was over did
the sheriff remember the significance
of the act. Sharpe suspected that the
attack was goiug to he made and ho
had armed the sheriff so he could de¬
fend himself from a snddon assault
which might have meant his death.
Sheriff Talley walked to the hack of
the corridor. The eight prisoners
who had planned the escape were
peering at him, watching for ail op¬
portune moment to make the break
for liberty.
Not a suspicion of what was about
to take place entered the sheriff's
mind. He had glanced at the doors
of all the cells and he had not noticed
that any lock had been tampered with.
But the men had already sawed the
padlock to the door of their cell.
The eight men must have made a
slight miscalculation in the distance
the sheriff was from their door, and
the time it would take to walk to the
rear of the corridor. They threw open
the door jnst as the sheriff was about
to repass it. Then the terrific fight
took place.
Before they could pass out the pris¬
oners would have to beat down the
sheriff and the negro, and this they
proceeded to do.
“Stand by me, Jim,” cried the sheriff
to the negro,
Aud the answer came hack:
“I’m with yon, Mr. Talley.”
As many men as could get at tho
sheriff struck him over the head aud
the shoulders with their fists,
Sheriff Talley fought with the mo-
mentnry strength of a giant. He
hurled tho desperate jailbirds from
him as fast as they sprang upon him.
Jim Smith was not idle. He stood
by tho side of the sheriff and struggled
to keep off the assailants.
All this time the sheriff had not had
an opportuniiy to draw his pistol.
He at last got off a few stops from
the prisoners and he drew his pistol
and began to fire into the crowd.
Throe shots were fired in quick suc¬
cession, and Flanagan screamed and
fell.
Back into tho ce 1 the prisoners
tumbled in more confusion than they
had left it a few moments before.
Sheriff Tally saw his opportunity.
He sprang hack warn through the cor¬
ridor door, closed it aud turned tho
key in the lock.
A few minutes later help came and
the desperate jailbirds who had made
the bold but unsuccessful attempt to
escape were safely locked up in their
cell for the night.
Flanagan was placed in a chair in
the corridor and a physician sent for
to dress his wound.
The pistol ball had entered his left
thigh about two inche i above the knee,
inflicting a painful bat not very seri¬
ous wound.
BRYAN IN’ BALTIMORE.
Talk* < 0 Free Sllverite* on Imperialism,
Trusts and the Currency.
Hon. William J. Bryan delivered an
address in Baltimore Saturday night
upon tho political questions of the day
to an audiance which filled the Music
Hall.
The meeting was held under tho
auspices of the Maryland Democratic
Association, one of the free silver
wingB of the the Democratic party of
the state, and was not encouraged or
discouraged in any manner by the reg-
nlar Democratic organization. In fact
the latter held strictly aloof from the
affair.
ASHBURN, (JA.. SATURDAY. JANUARY 27 , 1900.
UPRISING IN NEGROS.
The Newly Installed Officials Re¬
belled Against American
Authority.
Mail advices from Manila briug par¬
ticulars of tlie uprising last month iu
the southern part of Negros island,
iu which Lieutenant A. 0. Tedyard,
Sixth infantry, was killed.
Instead of being an unimportant re¬
volt of native police, as was at first
reported, it appears to have been an
attempt to overthrow American author¬
ity. This movement was started by
the chief officials of the autonomous
government, the men who were elected
and inaugurated with so much cere¬
mony last November.
Eleven of these officials, including
the president and several councilors,
were lodged in jail on a charge of
plotting treason. Several secured
their rolousc under heavy bonds, hut
others remain in prison.
General Smith found evidence that
the revolting police were following the
orders of the autonomous government,
which designed to uso the forces un¬
der its control to overpower the Amer¬
icans. The plot failed through being
started prematurely. Two companies
of the Twenty-sixth infantry were hur¬
ried from Iloilo to reinforce the garri¬
son at Baoolor.
The officials arrested include some
of the most prominent men in Negros.
It is believed that they will be ex¬
pelled from the island.
ROBERTS COMMITTEE REPORTS.
Voluminous Document, Covering the In-
ve*tlK»tiott, Ktv.ul In the House.
The-reports of the special committee
of investigation in the case of Brigham
H. Roberts, of Utah, were presented
to tlie house Saturday. The majority
report, signed by Chairman Tayler
aud six of his assistants, is a volumi¬
nous document, and is accompanied
by a summary of the law and facts.
It gives the detai ! s of the hearing, the
ample opportunities afforded to Mr.
Roberts to present his case, his refusal
to testify and the unanimous finding
of facts heretofore published. It pro¬
ceeds:
“The committee is unanimous in
its belief that Mr. Roberts ought not
to remain a member of tho house of
representatives. A majority are of the
opinion that he ought not to lio per¬
mitted to become a member; that tlie
bouse lias the right to exclude him. A
minority are of tho opinion that the
proper course of procedure is to permit
him to he sworn in aud then expel him
by a two-thirds vote under the consti¬
tutional provision providing for expul¬
sion.”
MOH HANGS MURDERERS.
Half Brothers Swung IJ|» In Jull Vnnl at
Ft. Scott. Kanftn*.
Saturday night, George Silbee and
Ed Meeks, half brothers, convicted of
murder, were lynched by a mob in
the county jailyard at Ft. Scott, Kan¬
sas. Their bodies were left dangling
from two trees in the yard. The au¬
thorities were completely surprised.
The two men, who hailed from Kau¬
nas J3ity, had been convicted of liiur-
derail the first degree, their victim
being a young German farmer named
Leopold Edlinger. The murderers
disposed of Edlinger’s pair of mules,a
horse and a wagon iu Bates county.
Amos Phillips, an accomplice of the
two brothers in the crime, was con¬
victed Friday of murder in tho first
degree. Tho evidence showed that
the three men belonged to a gang ’of
thieves who had been regularly dis¬
posing of their plunder in Bates
county.
Before being swung up Silboe shout¬
ed to the mob in defiant tones that
he himself shot Edlinger and that
Amos Phillips struck him on the head
with an ax. He insisted that his
brother Ed did not participate in the
crime.
‘•Bo sure and get Phillips,” the
doomed men urged.
HONORS ACCORDED DAVIS.
Vre.iiloiit Krlifter, of Transvaal, Hands
1‘rlvati* Car For American.
Webster Davis, assistant secretary
of the interior, arrived at Lonrenzo
Marques Bunday ou hie way to Preto¬
ria and called upon the governor gen¬
eral, Captain Alvaro Dacosta Ferreira,
who gave him a most courteous recep¬
tion and requested him to convey Presi¬ a
message of special friendship to
dent McKinley. The Transvual gov¬
ernment has informed Mr. Davis that
President Kruger’s saloon carriage
will convey him to Pretoria.
TO RECOGNIZE TRANSVAAL.
Kruger’* Representative Will He Re¬
ceived by President McKinley
It is stated in an authoritative quar¬
ter that if Montague White is equipped
with proper credentials from the
Transvaal government, he will be re¬
ceived as its representative by the ad¬
ministration.
General Obiern’s rejection was os¬
tensibly due to bis American citizen¬
ship, but there is no doubt that the
authorities would have preferred that
the matter of the TranBvaal re presen¬
tation he left undetermined. However,
when Mr. White calls at the state de¬
partment Secretary Hay will see him
and his status will then be determined.
BRITONS HOLD
THEIR GROUND
Boiler Advances While Burghers
- Slowly Retreat.
BATTLES ARE OCCURING DAILY.
No Detinite Results Can Be Learn¬
ed at War Office In
London-
A Loudon cablegram of Sunday says;
It is evident from General Bailor's
dispatch to tho war office nnd tho ad'
vices to tlie Associated Press from
Spearman’s camp that a big battle is
now being fought. As far as can bo
gathered from these dispatches tho re¬
sult remains undecided.
The war office shortly after mid¬
night Saturday night posted tlie fol¬
lowing dispatch from General Bailor,
dated Spearman’s camp, January 20,
evening:
“Gen. Olery, with a part of Gen.
Warren’s force, has been in action
from 6 a. in. till 7 a. in. today. By u
judicious use of his artillery he has
fought his way up, capturing ridge
after ridge, for about three miles.
“The troops are now bivouacking
on the ground he has gained, hut the
main position is still in front of them.
“The casualties were not heavy.
About 100 wounded has been brought
iu by 6:30 p. in. The number of
killed has not yet been ascertained.”
BOTH SIDES STUBBORN.
Nothing was received iu Loudon
Monday to indicate that any conclusive
result had been reached by the British
forces iu tb« region of the Upper
Tugela, and tho lack of information
regarding what men nnd munitions
the Boers have iu reserve prevents
necurat.» determination of tlie measure
of real successes attending tho two
day’s hard fighting.
All that could lie said was Hint tlie
British seem to be doggedly advancing
in the face of an equally stubborn re¬
sistance. At the clone of Sunday tho
Boers had merely evacuated their first
line of defense to take up another
semi-circular position a short distance
in tho rear, recalling the old burgher
rnse by whieh the Boers have previ¬
ously managed to entice tho British
into fatal traps.
Dispatches from elsewhere in South
Africa Monday morning give trivial
details of minor happenings und do
not illuminate the situation.
Early ou Sunday morning General
Warren commenced a flanking move¬
ment on the extrome left of tho Boers’
position. The infantry advanced at 5
in the morning along tlie side of Ta-
hamyana mountain, which ends at
Splonkop. The British oarefully work¬
ed along the hills until within 1,000
yards of a commanding kopje, oil
which the Boers were concentrated,
concealed behind immense boulders
strewn thickly over the hill.
The artillery opened tlie attack and
the batteries worked continuously,
pouring tons of shrapnel among Mio
Boers, who devoted their attention to
musketry firing on tho British infan¬
try, The Boers stuck to their rocky
fastnesses with tho greatest teimeity
and at the conclusion of tho day, the
British had only advanced across a
few ridges. The Boers apparently
have few guns and they did little
damage. Captain Honley.of tlie Dub¬
lin Fusiliers, fell mortally wounded
while leadingh is men to seize a fresh
point of vantage.
General Bullcr reported nothing of
his operations oil Monday and official
and press intelligence showed the Brit¬
ish as bivouceil Sunday night on the
ground they had won after two davs’
fighting. The war office turned every¬
body out of the lobbies at midnight
Monday night. Military men assume
that flghing must have taken place on
Monday that it was probably more se¬
vere than on the preceding days. Gen.
Bailer would not he likely to give
tho Boers leisure to add to the elabor¬
ate entrenchments, to arrange their
artillery and to cencentrate their
forces,
BRYAN’ IN CINCINNATI.
Sn b rankan Declare* No Fanner or La¬
borer Can Afford to lie a Republican*
Col. W. J. Bryan addrosssd an
audience of 5,000 people at Music
ball, Cincinnati, Wednesday night on
“Fending Questions” under the ans-
pices of tho Cincinnati Bimetallic
Council. He announced as his text
that the time had come when no farmer
or laborer could afford to he a Kepnb-
lican. Ho said that party had entirely
changed front. He quoted from Lin-
coin’s letter to » Boston Republican
meeting in 1859, and also from his
first message, in which Lincoln said
that he feared monarchiul tendencies
In the reoubtic.
HELP FOR THE BOERS
Advocated at Monster Maas Moot¬
ing Iu Washington.
SYMPATHY IS OPENLY EXPRESSED
ft amnio rii, n<*prr*rntiiM v«* nnd Other Immi¬
nent Men are Heard—Strong;
lloitolutIon* Adopted.
The Grand opera house, the largest
auditorium iu Washinton, was packed
to the doors Sunday night with an en¬
thusiastic audience which vigorously
expressed its sympathy with the Bocih
in Die tight with Great Britain.
Tlie gathering assembled under the
auspices of the United Irish Societies,
and a number of loading Gormans of
the city joined the movement. Among
those who occupied seats on the stage
were Senators Mason, of Illinois; Al¬
len, of Nebraska,aud Tillman,of South
Carolina; Uuprcaentatives DeArmond
and Cochran, of Missouri; Bailey, of
Texas; Carmack and Cox, of Tennes¬
see; Ithea, Jones and Lamb, of Vir¬
ginia; Slinfroth, of Colorado; Dimmer,
of West Virginia*, Meyer,of Louisiana;
Huizer, of New York, and Lentz, of
Ohio, and Mr. Van Hioklen, represen¬
tative of the Orange Free State at New
York and representatives of the United
Irish societies and otlieis. A large
delegation of Irish-Americans and Ger¬
man-Americans from Baltimore was in
the audience.
The principal addresses were made
by Sulzur, Mason, Allen and Clark.
Representative Bailey, of Texas, said
that he was present to give his moral
support to the cause. His address was
u vigorous one, and lio was loudly ap¬
plauded.
Other speakers were Representatives
DeArmond, of Missouri; Cochran, of
Missouri; tihea, of Kentucky, and
Lentz, of Ohio, and Mr. Vun Sicklon,
of Now York.
A number of letters and telegrams
received, including one from Heuator
Haile, of Maine, expressing regret at
his inability to ho present aud entiro
sympathy with the movement. The
following resolutions were adopted:
“Whereas, The American people
still cherish tlie lessons and memories
of 1778 and 1812, and therefore, fully
understand and realize tlie rapacious
war which Great Britain is waging
against small lint patriotic people,
whoso misfortune is tlie possession of
natural wealth coveted by British
greed;
“Whereas, Iu the prosecution of
this robber warfare Groat Britain lias
boon balked as yet of tier tyrannous
designs, nml 1ms, therefore, resorted
to unlawful and barbarous articles, as
is her wont, to-wit:
“1. The arming und mobilization of
savages.
“2. The distribution of dum-dum
bullets to her soldiery, coupled wilh
the boast that tiin British government
possessed 1(10,0011,090 such missiles.
"3. The illegal seizure of peaceful
merchandise, on route from the neutral
ports of the United States to friendly
Portuguese markets.
“Whereas, the president of the United
States has not taken proper notion of
these outruges, making it necessary
for tlie people at large to express their
will through public assemblies and
serious warnings.
t « Therefore, the citizens of the
American capital in mass mooting as¬
sembled, have
“Resolved, That tlie people of tlie
Orange Free State and of the south
A frican republics nro and of right
ought to lio fioc and independent and
their civilization is recognized to be
equal in morality to that of any other
people, the false witness of the British
press to the contrary notwithstanding.
Therefore, the precipitation upon with
them of Biivage foes in alliance
trained soldiery threatens Wyoming, the repeti¬ Fort.
tion of tlie horrors of
Dearborn and other places, bitterly
remembered by the American people
us ruthless instances of British perfidy
aud dishonor. The attention of the
president of the United States is re¬
spectfully directed to thiH feature
which is u notorious matter of common
repute throughout the world.
“Resolved, That this meeting, in
concert witli the American people
throughout the laud, sends its sympa¬
thy and good will nnd heartfelt en¬
couragement to tho Boers and reminds
them that as we triumphed against tho
same foe, so muy they.
“Resolved, That we beseech anil
strenuously urge the president of the
United States to exercise the preroga¬
tive vested in him by tlie peace con¬
vention lately arranged.by the powers
() f £| J(J c |vili>xorl world. We beg him
to 0 fj #r ) 11H g 00< i offices as a mediator
between the Boers and the British as
for t)j0 deliverance of these unfortu-
na i e Englishmen and their families,
now being punished vicariously for tho
cr ;, n6 of a brigand cabal of gold grati-
j,crs anil land-hungry conspirators,not of
0)ie 0 j w hom is at the forefront the
battle.
“Resolved, That we solemnly pro¬
test against the shipment of munitions
0 f war f rorn this country for tho use of
Great Britain.”
NO. 2 ;>.
BRYAN TARRIES
IN WASHINGTON
Holds Informal Conferences With
Leading Democrats.
FULLY DEFINES HIS POSITION
To Avoid Errors He Writes Iter-
views With Himself ns to
Future Political Course.
A Washington special says: William
Jennings Bryan, of Nebraska, spent
Friday iu Washington, most of liin
time being devoted to conference with
other Democratic leaders. A number
oi questions of party policy and polit¬
ical management wore under consider¬
ation.
Mr. Bryan reached tho city early
Friday morning and wont to the Me¬
tropolitan hotel. There lie w,»s
warmly greeted by a party of leading
Democrats. About 11 o’clock lie went
to the capital and spent some time
there, making his headquarters in the
committee room of Senator Jones, of
Arkansas. There ho was closeted with
leading Democrats and representa¬
tives. Later he appeared in the mar¬
ble room of the senate, where ull of
the Democratic and a number of the
Republican senators paid their re¬
spects to him.
During the most of the time he was
in tho marble room Senator IIanna sat
at the other end of the room talking
with some political allies. It was noted
that Senator Hanna was not among
those who paid their respects to the
Nebraskan.
Later Mr. Bryan had tlie same sort
of reception in the speaker’s lobby of
the house, almost ull of the Democrats
nnd Populists and a number of Repub¬
licans who served with him iu congress
going out to shake his band,
When asked concerning reports
that western friends and supporters
had urged against tho elootiuu of Now
York as the place for holding the na¬
tional convention, Mr. Ilryan said
that ho had expressed nnd would ex¬
press absolutely no preference in this
regard. Ilo added that it. is a fact that
lio has no preference; tho matter of
tho plane and time for holding the con-
vention is iu the hands of the national
committee and ho should certainly do
nothing to influence the action of the
committee against any of the cities
making application for the convention
There was more talk upon the Phil¬
ippine question than anything elso.
Mr. Bryan was called upon more than
once to correct tho impression given
by an interview published in Minne¬
apolis and telegraphed throughout the
country which seemed to present him
ns having gone over to the expansion
side of tlie controversy. lie explained,
however, that tho chief mistakes arose
from the interpretation placed upon
the interview rather than from the in-
tervieiv itself.
In order that there might he no mis¬
take about iiis position on expansion,
Mr. Bryan wrote with his own hand the
the following interview with himself,
writing out the questions as well as
tlie answers:
“Wlint about the Minneapolis inter¬
view? Have you changed your views
on expansion?” interview
“Not in tho least. That
ns sent out, contains some tilings that
1 did not say. 1 urn advocating today
exactly what I did iu tho interview
given out tho day after 1 resigned from
the army, December 13, 1898. I am
opposed to imperialism. I am opposed
to the permanent retention of tlie
Philippines. changed position
“f have not my
on the principles involved in the Phil¬
ippine controversy since my first utter¬
ance Immediately utter I came out of
the array,” said he. “Everything I
have said lias boon so misrepresented
and distorted by the Republican press
that the impression may have been
created of change on the line you sug¬
gest, hut I assure you there have been
no changes. At Hint time I main¬
tained that we could secure by hold¬
ing a naval station in the Philippines
every possilde advantage that could
bo hail by retaining tho entire group
of islands. Looking at the question
purely from a selfish standpoint, I
have never - seen uny argument that
proved tho contrary.”
“I believe that thin government
should at once declare its purposo to
give independence to the Filipinos on
the same terms that, independence has
been promised to the Unbans, and be¬
lieve further that we should proteot
tho Filipinos from outside interference
while they work out their destiny, just
as we have protected the South Amer¬
ican and Central American republic*.
I am not opposed to expansion. Each
proposed annexation must bo settled
upon its own merits. T have tried to
distinguish between tlie pi iceful ex¬
tension of the limits of a republic and
tlie change of a republic into an em¬
pire.”