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Show THE FACTS OF THE NEGRO MOBBING Recently the Deseret News published a purported pur-ported statement of the facts of the killing of Marshal Mar-shal Burt by an insane negro on Main street in this city some twenty years ago, and the subsequent subse-quent lynching of the negro by an uncontrollablo mob that overpowered the police and took and executed the prisoner. The Telegram of Tuesday last published a similar statement from the lips of William Phillips, Phil-lips, who at the time was an officer on the police force. Such is history. There are grave errors in both statements. The negro killed the marshal as stated. He had made a disturbance in a restaurant, the proprietor pro-prietor of which telephoned the police station to come and arrest him. Before the officers came the negro went into Carter's gun store, purchased a gun and fifty cartridges loaded the gun and Strung the cartridges around him in a belt. When he was pointed out to Marshal Burt, that officer, who was one of the most fearless of men, started toward him. The negro asked if he was an officer, offi-cer, and without waiting for a reply, fired, the ball passing through the body and one arm of the mar-hal mar-hal and into the other arm. Marshal Burt staggered stag-gered into the Smith drug store, fell on his face and was dead within three minutes after being shot. t The other officer grappled with the negro, who, dropping his gun, drew a pistol and fired, wounding wound-ing the officer in the arm, but some bystanders caught the negro, overpowered him and he was taken to the southwest room in the old city hall. Theie he was searched, his money .and cartridges taken from him preparatory to taking him across to the jail. At this moment amah ran In and said: "Marshal Burt is dying." At this an officer whom we believe was the same William Phillips who gave the story to the Telegram, addressing the prisoner, said: "G d you, if Marshal Burt dies you will die before tomorrow morning." With that, either with brass knuckles or a billy the former, if we remember correctly the officer knocked the prisoner down, his head striking the pipes under a washstand in the room. Then two or three other officers joined in the attack, the prisoner was partially lifted up and then knocked down again and shamefully beaten. A second messenger came in and cried out: "Marshal Burt is dead." Then an officer said: "Let us take him to jail." The prisoner was dragged across the space between be-tween the city hall and -jail and into the jail. The door was closed, then those on the outside heard a blow and a fall and a voice saying: "That will fix him." By this time the crowd began to gather around the jail with cries of "Hang him." Suddenly Sud-denly the door was opened and the half dead negro was flung out to tho mob that quickly strung him up. Dr. Hamilton examined the corpse before it was cut down, and told the writer of this that "the head of the wretch was beaten Into a jelly, he would have died In an hour or two had there been no mob." The truth was he was practically killed by the fcctlvo Salt Lake police, in charge in those robust M days and then flung out to the mob. M The files of the Tribune published next morn- M ing after the double murder contain the full ac- M count, written by a conscientious reporter who M was on the scene and who saw and heard all that M transpired. M |
