Mr. STALLWORTH. That is what I read. Mr. JENNINGS. And was a bishop in the African Methodist Church, Mr. STALLWORTH. That is correct. Mr. JENNINGS. The reason I am interested is that I am a member of the Methodist Church and I do not like to hear about bishops being treated that way. Mr. DENTON. I would like to ask one question. How large a town is the town of Dora? Mr. STALLWORTH. Where the women were? Mr. DENTON. Yes. Mr. STALLWORTH. It is a very small town, just one street of stores and a railroad running by it. Mr. DENTON. And is this deputy sheriff located there? Mr. STALLWORTH. I went to see the deputy sheriff in Sumiton. Mr. DENTON. In a town of that size, is it possible for 150 men to dress up in robes and take people away without everybody in the town knowing about it, without its being a matter of general knowledge? Mr. STALLWORTH. I would not know about it. It is just a small town. Mr. BYRNE. Would you say the population is 500? Mr. STALLWORTH. I would not say it was 500. Mr. BYRNE. Would you say it was 300? Mr. STALLWORTH. Something like that. Mr. BYRNE. That would be a fair estimate on your part, based upon the number of houses or cottages in the place? Mr. STALLWORTH. That is right. Mr. DENTON. Do the sheriffs patrol the country around there? Mr. STALLWORTH. There is a deputy in Dora. I think his name is Robinson. Mr. DENTON. Is it conceivable for 150 people, hooded people, to come into that house, without the sheriff knowing about it? Mr. STALLWORTH. I would not know, sir. All I can tell you is the facts that I know. Mr. KEATING. Did these women indicate whether or not these 150 men were from Dora or from the surrounding area? Mr. STALLWORTH. They did not indicate that to me. Mr. JENNINGS. There probably would not be that many men in Dora, if it is as small a town as you say. They must have come from around that entire region. Mr. LANE. The only ones who have been arrested are the persons who assaulted you, as far as you know of anything that has taken place in Alabama? Mr. STALLWORTH. Well, sir, they are the only two that I know of who have been arrested for beatings. Mr. LANE. Those two were arrested on your complaint, is that right? Mr. STALLWORTH. That is correct. Mr. LANE. And nobody has been arrested in the other case, because no complaint has been made; are we to understand that? Mr. STALLWORTH. Nobody has been arrested because no complaint has been made? Mr. LANE. Yes. Mr. STALLWORTH. Are you speaking of all cases in general or the Burton case in particular? Mr. LANE. That particular case that you referred to involving women and the men. Mr. STALLWORTH. They had not made a complaint on June 20. I do not know whether they have made a complaint up to this time or not. So far as I know, there have been no arrests in that case. Mr. LANE. Thank you. Mr. BYRNE. If there are no further questions, thank you very much. The next witness is Mr. Clancy E. Lake. STATEMENT OF CLANCY E. LAKE, BIRMINGHAM, ALA. Mr. Lake, your name is Clancy E. Lake? Mr. LAKE. That is correct. Mr. BYRNE. And you reside where? Mr. LAKE. Birmingham, Ala. Mr. BYRNE. What is your street address there? Mr. LAKE. No. 2020 Fourteenth Avenue North. Mr. BYRNE. What is your occupation? Mr. LAKE. I am a city hall reporter for the Birmingham News. Mr. BYRNE. And that is a Scripps-Howard paper, is it? Mr. LAKE. No, sir. Mr. BYRNE. Pardon me for my ignorance. Mr. LAKE. It is a home-owned newspaper. Mr. BYRNE. Is it a morning or afternoon paper? Mr. LAKE. Afternoon paper. Mr. BYRNE. How long have you worked on this particular paper? Mr. LAKE. Since last October 27. Mr. BYRNE. Did you have prior experience as a newspaper man? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir; for 22 years in Sarasota, Fla. Mr. BYRNE. Will you tell us something of your schooling and background? Mr. LAKE. Just high school. Mr. BYRNE. What high school? Mr. LAKE. Tottenville High School, in New York City. Mr. BYRNE. How long have you resided in Birmingham? Mr. LAKE. Since last October 27. Mr. BYRNE. When you went to work for this paper? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. Mr. BYRNE. You have some information or knowledge regarding a situation that has already been under discussion here this morning in that locality? Mr. LAKE. The Dora incident? Mr. BYRNE. Yes, sir; do you know something about that? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. Mr. BYRNE. Will you tell us in your own language, or do you want us to interrogate you? Mr. LAKE. If you do not mind, I think I could save time by just telling the story. Mr. BYRNE. That is a relief to us, also; please do. Mr. LAKE. Saturday, 2 weeks ago, I had a tip that two men had been beaten in Dora. I went to Dora. Mr. BYRNE. By a tip you mean information? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. Mr. BYRNE. And that came from where? Mr. LAKE. I cannot tell you that, sir. I got hold of a photographer and we went to Dora, which is a small mining hamlet. The population is listed as about 1,000. Mr. BYRNE. About 1,000? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. The photographer and I moseyed around; we did not want to ask too many questions and as a result we got nothing. I went back Saturday afternoon. I got hold of my contact again and he told me to look up a man named L. M. Beard, who lived in a place called Palos. There is no community there, it is just a section, in the northwest section of Jefferson County. I went to see Mr. Beard and his was the only name I had. He told me that on the night of June 3, while he was traveling through Dora in a truck, he noticed a group of cars on the side of the Dora road, and other cars parked on the side of the road. As he went past the line of cars he said the lead car swung out in front of him, blocking his way. Two hooded men jumped up to the side of his truck and snatched him out of the truck. He said they were armed with pistols and rifles. He look around and saw between 100 and 150 heavily armed men all wearing hoods. He said they hauled him into the woods a short way, put a pistol to his head and broke out a letter and shined a flashlight on it and made him read it. He said the letter was written in three different styles of handwriting, and accused him of nonsupport of his family, gambling, bootlegging, and so forth. He said they warned him it had better stop or they would be back again. Then they turned him loose. There was no violence attached to that paritcular case. Mr. KEATING. No violence except holding a pistol to his head? Mr. LAKE. What I mean is, he was not whipped or beaten; I mean physical violence. Mr. KEATING. He was not injured, except for his nervous system. Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. I asked Mr. Beard if he had heard of any other incidents. He was a railroadman and I thought perhaps that was one of the men I had been informed had been beaten. He told me about Troy Morrison. I went to Troy Morrison's home and he did not want to talk about it. I tried to sell him a bill of goods, that these things had to be made public, or else we could not do anything about it. He still did not want to talk about it. He said, "You know, there is another fellow involved; his name is Bill Lowry." "Well," I said, "let us go see him." So, with Troy Morrison I went to where Bill Lowry works. Troy Morrison lived in Dora and so does Bill Lowry. We went over to see Bill Lowry. Bill did not want to talk about it, either. I kept up my sales talk about the fact that we have got to break this, we have got to make this story public and at that point I found out there were three women involved. Mr. KEATING. One of these men told you that? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir; they told me there was one woman involved and that her name was Mrs. Irene Burton. She was a 38-year-old widow with five children. With Troy Morrison I went to Mrs. Burton's home and there I found out her two daughters were involved, Sally, 16 years old and Billie Fay, 18, and also another man named Willie Koogler. He is 39. He lives in Cordova, Ala. Well, I got Mrs. Burton and Troy Morrison and Sally Burton together and the story they told me I talked with five of the seven persons who were involved that night-and this is the story they told me: That at about 11 o'clock Mrs. Burton, her two daughters, Willie Koogler, Troy Morrison and Bill Lowry were sitting in Mrs. Burton's home in Dora. It was some time about 11 o'clock. There was a knock at the door. I do not recall which one answered the knock. But there were hooded men at the door. Someone had lit two railroad fusees in the front yard. Those hooded men came in. They were carrying rifles. Mr. JENNINGS. A fusee is something that burns at the end of a pointed piece of iron, which railroadmen stick in a cross-tie when they want to flag down a train, is that right? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir; that is right. Mr. BYRNE. And throws a red glare? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. The men came in. Four of them were assigned to Billy Lowry. He is a 186-pound fellow and is pretty rugged. Four of them hustled him out of the front door. They blindfolded him. Two other persons, hooded persons, were assigned to each of the other persons in the house, Troy Morrison and Billy Lowry being the only ones who were blindfolded. Mrs. Burton told me that when she went out, she noticed that the house was surrounded. They were taken out of the house. There is a small dirt road that runs in front of the house. They were taken along that road to a corner and near the railroad trestle and there was a line of cars parked on a small dirt road which led up into the woods. Mr. KEATING. Just one of them was blindfolded? Mr. LAKE. Two men were blindfolded. Sally Burton told me that she counted the cars. She was put in the second car and she counted 23 cars by the time she got into it. She and her mother were put in one car. She said the men kept making filthy remarks to her. Mr. JENNINGS. They did what? Mr. LAKE. They kept making filthy remarks to her. Mr. JENNINGS. Insulting remarks? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. Mr. KEATING. That is, these hooded men? Mr. LANE. Yes, sir. They drove on up this dirt road. It is a very narrow dirt road; it is winding, with trees hanging over it, and is just wide enough for one car. Mr. JENNINGS. Did you go over that road over which they transported these people? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. When they got about 312 to 4 miles from their home on that dirt road they stopped at a small clearing where the road forked to the right and to the left and another dirt road continued almost straight ahead in a slight offset to the right. They took Mrs. Burton, Sally Burton, and Billie Fay Burton out of the car at that point, and took them about 25 yards down the road. They then brought Troy Morrison out of the car. They put a noose around his neck and towed him along to where the woman was standing, threw one end of the line over the tree, and pulled them up to tiptoe. Mr. BYRNE. That is, they pulled the man with the rope around his neck up to his tiptoes? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. Mr. JENNINGS. That was a 260-pound man? Mr. LAKE. No, sir; Troy Morrison, I imagine, weighs about 160 or 170 pounds. Mr. JENNINGS. Who was the man you said weighed 260 pounds? Mr. LAKE. That was Mr. Fowler in the other incident, I believe. Mr. KEATING. When they got Morrison on tiptoe, did he say that they said anything to him or told him why he was put in that uncomfortable position? Mr. LAKE. No, sir; not at that point. Troy Morrison told me that they did not say much of anything to him, and he did not say much to them. Mr. KEATING. You mean that these victims did not remonstrate in any way? Mr. LAKE. Just Mrs. Burton, from what I have been told. They said, from what they told me, "Well, we won't hang them; we will just whip them." They made them get down in the manner that Mr. Stallworth has described, and they lashed them five times. Mr. BYRNE. With what, did he say? Mr. LAKE. I believe it was a leather belt about 5 or 6 feet long. He also mentioned that it might have been a miner's belt, but I did not know. Mr. JENNINGS. Did he say whether it was such a belt, of such leather as would be used in a mining belt, that had some thickness and weight to it? Mr. LAKE. Well, he said it was a heavy belt that was used on him. But the talk about it being a mining belt was very vague. Mr. JENNINGS. Have you seen such leather as is used for belting around machinery? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir; that is more or less what they thought it might have been, which is heavy material. Mr. JENNINGS. Heavier than the backband or bellyband that they would use on a mule or in horse harness? Were you raised on a farm? Mr. LAKE. No, sir; I am a city boy. Mr. JENNINGS. The reason I am using farm language is that I have been around a farm and I known how they put these backbands and bellybands on a horse or a mule. And I know about these belts that are used to operate machinery. They said that it was heavy leather? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. Now, I may get this a little out of chronological order, but I believe the next order of business was a prayer. They held quite a long prayer for Billy Lowry. I was wrong before; Billy Lowry did fight with them. He had fought with them on the way out in the car. Mr. JENNINGS. One of the hooded fellows prayed? Mr. LAKE. Yes, sir. Mr. JENNINGS. Was he praying to the Lord or to the Devil? Mr. JENNINGS. Just praying. Mr. LAKE. He led them all in prayer for Billy Lowry and then they brought Billy with a noose around his neck, and Mrs. Burton and Troy Morrison told me that when they brought Billy out of the car, they yanked on the rope and pulled him to his knees; and then they brought him about 20 yards out to this point where the rest were, and threw the rope over the tree and threatened to hang him. They |