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Show Whole State Aroused in Conflict Between Negroes and Whiles in Black Belt. . TROUBLE FIRST STARTED AT SL0CUM ON FRIDAY Other Towns Now Under Martial Law; Number of Dead May Reach Hundred. By Leased Wire to The Tribune. PALESTINE, Texas, July 30. Desultory De-sultory firing is still iroinR on in the woods surrounding Slocum and J'JIk" hart, fifteen milos south of this point, betweon negroes and whites and it was I reported tonight that at least fifty blacks were killed and woundod and that scores o whit'o men -were either dead or suffering from bullet wounds. A conservative estimate of tho dead is fifty-five. The war between the negroes and whites followed a race riot late Friday afternoon iri Slocum -when John Wilson, a white farmer, attempted to collect a debt from Edgar Henry, a colored man. Troops were rushed here from Houston nnd Jacksonville and a body of Texas rangers arrived tonight propared for a bloody battle. A band of negroes were driven into a strip of forest at dusk and as darkness fell tho woods wero surrounded by a posse of white farmers, all armed with revolvers. Wliolo State Aroused. All of Texas is aroused. Not since tho days when Mexican marauders swept across tho border or when the Texas rangers fought pitched battles with "bad men1' has feeling and excitement ex-citement run so high. Jt was reported 200 armed negroes from nearby towns slippod int'o Elkhart under cover of darkness tonight. The exact number of killed is hard to determine because many bodies have boon romoved. A number of unidentified negroes wero found dead in the underbrush. The negroes are in a frenzy of oxcitcmeht and it is feared that the death list may run to over 100 boforc t'lio uprising is quelled. Orders -were given that when the militia reached Palestine tonight tho plan is for it to march immediately to the scene of hostilities. is reported that a deputy shoriff of Houston county is among tho dead. City Under Martial Law. Palestine is in the midst of the Texas black bolt. The city is now under martial law. Authorities at noon today closed all saloons and hardware sfuros. Scores of citizens wero disarmed on tho streets. Captain Fowler has assumed cluirgo of the larger posse which went from here to Elkhart and tho posse assisting assist-ing Fowler is headed by Sheriff Black of Anderson county and it is believed that there are now 1000 gathered between be-tween Slocum and Elkhart. The negroes are in tho mind not to give up until utterly routed. They are well generated by a huge- black who is Couti tinned on Pago Two. MAN SLAIN IN TEXAS RACE WAR Continued From Pago One. shouting orders from riht to left". Efforts Ef-forts to shoot him down have so far failed. PROSPECTS APPEAR TO BE RATHER GLOOMY By Associated PresB. PALESTINE, Tex.. July 30. Throughout Through-out tho night, the meeting of parties of the two races was tho signal for a resort re-sort to arms, fatalities attending many of the encounters. Finally the nogroos were driven to cover of a heavily timbered tim-bered section and the crowd of whites, about 200 In number, formed Into posses and following, scattering over a wide area. As the small bands met they clashed, and, according to those returning return-ing to Palestine tonight, In each Instance In-stance the negroes were forced to glvo ground. A small portion o'f the pursuing parly, is still in tho woods, but the majority ma-jority have returned to their homes, and the outbreak is believed to be at an end. Besides the troops, four companies of state rangers reached ' Palestine late today, to-day, and It Is planned to have the militia and the rangers work In conjunction with the county . officials .in arresting those responsible for the uprising. The detachments de-tachments of rangers went to Slocum tonight. to-night. In the absence of the county officials, who were en route to the scene of tho trouble, Judcc . B. H. Gardner or dered saloons closed and the sale of firearms discontinued except on an order of the court. According to a member of the partv of whites, the first killing occurred just across the county line in the adjoining county of Houston, where the negro who attempted to kill Spurgor was driven. A few moments . later two negroes were killed In Anderson county and the rioting riot-ing became general. In one house four negroes were shot to death. He declares that two others probably were fatally wounded. Then the outbreak became general gen-eral and before the riot ended about fifteen fif-teen others were killed. It is reported tonight" that further rioting is in progress in Houston county, but this has not been confirmed. |