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The Atlanta Constitution,

Thursday, 1st January 1914,

PAGE 1, COLUMN 3.

The Meager Police Records Show

Forty-Seven Homicides, and Arrests Made in Twenty-Nine Cases.

MARY PHAGAN KILLED;

APPLEBAUM SHOT DOWN

These Two Were the Most Noted Tragedies of Year.

List of Slain Smaller Than In 1912, When It Was 56 Crimson splotches darkened many pages of Atlanta's history during 1913, for the city's homicide rate continues higher than that of other southern centers.

Meager police records show that the gunmen and thug, brother slayers, have stalked abroad with effect as great as in many previous years.

There were forty-seven homicides in 1913, two of them among the most noted crimes in recent years the murder of Mary Phagan and the slaying of Jerry Appelbaum.

This is a record of almost one tragedy a week.

There has been, however, an appreciable decrease compared with 1912 and a pronounced increase in the number of arrests.

Last year's homicidal number reached fifty-six, a ranking greater than that of the whole British empire.

In 1912 there were more negro crimes than in the past year.

Twenty-Nine Arrests Made.

As a result of the forty-seven homicides twenty-nine arrests have been made, according to police statistics while the slayers in the other cases escaped.

The record, however, is generally conceded as being incomplete in this respect.

Police authorities say that more arrests have been made than this number.

Authorities likewise declare that there has been a decided increase in convictions.

A noticeable fact was that crimes were fewer in 1913 during the holidays.

While there were hardly less than a dozen tragedies during Christmas, and New Year in 1912, there were only four recorded at headquarters throughout the past season.

All of these were negroes.

Police headquarters feels that the holiday situation has been handled more successfully in 1913 than at any previous time, and that holiday crime is on a marked decrease, due largely, it is said, to a round-up of crooks and criminals before the yuletide began.

38 of Dead Are Negroes.

Of the forty-seven deaths, thirty-eight were negroes.

The remaining nine were of whites, all Americans.

One homicide, the slaying of an unknown negro at the new Healy building, charged by the police to Charley Collins, a foreman, of which Collins was cleared, is not contained in the police record.

The decrease is accounted by authorities to the strict enforcement of the "gun-toting" law.

Recorder Broyles, who at the opening of the year, declared relentless war against the pistol-carrier and gunman, is probably greatly responsible for the change.

Hundreds of pistol-toters however, have been arrested.

The negro's choicest weapon, the knife, figured, as statistics show, oftener than the gun or pistol.

The most noted tragedy in years occurred during 1913 the murder of Mary Phagan in the National Pencil factory, April 26.

This crime stirred the city for months.

The supreme court is now considering the appeal for life of Leo M. Frank, sentenced to hang.

The investigation by police officials, private detectives and attaches of the office of solicitor general lasted several months.

Frank was arrested early after the murder was discovered, and, shortly afterwards was held by the coroner's jury.

His trial lasted for an entire month, creating court history for the entire southland.

Death of Appelbaum.

Another notable homicide was the death of Jerry A. Appelbaum, who was slain in his apartments in the Dakota hotel on February 25.

His wife, Mrs. Callie Scott Appelbaum, was arrested on the morning of the crime and held for trial.

She was later acquitted and is still residing in Atlanta.

The following is a brief history of each homicide recorded in police statistics:

January 4 William A. Dobbins, colored, was struck in the abdomen with a brickbat thrown by a negro youth, Roy Spear, at the corner of East Cain and Fort streets.

Spear escaped.

January 5 Hobo Charlie, a negro with police record, was shot and killed in a gambling game at 22 Johnson street by an unknown negro who escaped.

January 21 Arthur Glover, colored, was shot by Harvey Mozeley at 60 1-2 Decatur street.

Mozeley admitted the crime and was freed after a self defense plea made before Recorder Broyles.

January 26 Lagene Huff, colored, alias Lagene Macus, a police character, was shot and killed by Will Daniels at 2 Traynham's alley.

Daniels was arrested and convicted.

February 2 Addle Harrison, a negro woman, was shot and killed by her husband, Jim Harrison, who, after firing the bullet, hacked the body into an unrecognizable condition, later escaping.

February 3 H. D. Newsom, a white youth aged 24 years, was stabbed and killed by an unknown negro at Whitehall and Alabama street, during the rush hour of the afternoon.

The negro escaped at the time, being pursued by a headquarters detective.

Although the police records do not show the fact, a negro man has been convicted for this crime.

February 25 Jerry A. Appelbaum, white, a travelling salesman, was shot and killed in the bathroom of his apartments in the Dakota hotel.

His Continued on Page Three PAGE 3, COLUMN 4 wife, Mrs. Callie Scott Appelbaum, was arrested, but later acquitted.

No Arrest Reported.

March 10 Lula Smith, a negro woman, was found dead in vacant lot between East Pine street and East Merritts avenue, with a stab wound through her heart.

So far as police records show, no one has ever been arrested.

March 12 Dean Finch, colored, was shot and killed at 1912 Auburn avenue.

A negro named Harry Chatman was arrested.

March 13 C. M. Goddard, white, of Stone Mountain, was shot five times in the Union station by Elmer T. Darden, of 37 Cone Street.

According to testimony at Darden's trial, the shooting, occurred over domestic trouble.

April 26 Mary Phagan, a white girl worker in the National Pencil factory, was found mutilated in the basement of the factory on South Forsyth Street.

Leo Frank, superintendent of the plant, was arrested and later sentenced to hang.

May 1 Sam Fambro, colored, was stabbed and killed by Roy Brandon, at 171 West Mitchell Street.

Brandon, according to police records, was not arrested.

May 3 An unknown negro man was stabbed to death by two negro youths at Pryor and Decatur Street.

Elijah Kippley, colored, was arrested and bound over for murder.

May 7 Will Collins, colored, was stabbed to death by her husband, Charlie Collins.

No report is made of the man's arrest.

Many Negro Killings.

May 10 John Smith, colored, was stabbed, to death in the rear of 202 Washington street.

John Henry Adams, another negro, was arrested.

May 20 Isaac Foster, colored, was shot twice and killed in the rear of 127 Auburn Avenue.

Marvin Coleman, a negro accused of the crime, escaped.

May 24 Andrew Towns, colored, was stabbed to death at his home, 196 Gray Street.

John Kendrick, colored, accused by witnesses, escaped.

June 7 Will Holmes, colored, was shot and killed by two unknown negroes at Juniper and Tenth streets.

June 13 Mabel Huckleberry, a negro woman, was stabbed to death by her husband, Hillery Johnson, whom she in turn, killed with her knife.

The double murder occurred in an alley on Capitol Avenue near Crumley street.

June 16 David Yancy, a white deputy sheriff, was stabbed to death by Eugene Watson, a negro desperado who Yancey was seeking to arrest.

The negro fled to a house on Windsor Avenue, near Whitehall Street, and crawled underneath the building.

He was killed by bullets fired by citizens and policemen.

July 19 Charlie Hill, a negro blacksmith, was stabbed to death by Simpson Brown, another negro, who was arrested and bound over in recorder's court.

July 28 Sam Jackson, a white man, was shot and killed by W. D. Partee at the Georgia railway roundhouse in an altercation said to have been over domestic trouble.

Partee was arrested and bound over in recorder's court.

Slayer Makes Escape.

August 1 Emma Thomas, a negro woman, was stabbed by her husband, Ed Thomas, at 395 Auburn Avenue.

Thomas, according to police record, escaped.

August 17 Munich Harrison, colored, was shot and killed by Peney Johnson, another negro who was arrested.

August 17 Martha Ruffin, a negro woman and a witness in the famous Grace trial, was stabbed by a negro man named Felix Smith, who was arrested.

August 30 A. Lee Maddox, white, a blacksmith, was shot and killed by G. Miller, a night watchman at the Transportation building on Walton Street, when the watchman sought to drive Maddox and a group of youths from the place at closing time.

Miller was arrested, but was acquitted in recorder's court.

August 31 Tom Harris, colored, was shot and killed by West Daniel, another negro at 4 Fifth avenue, where church services were being held.

No record is held of the slayer's arrest.

September 4 Bessie Green, a negro woman, was stabbed on Butler street by Lavada Wright, another negress, who was arrested and tried.

September 8 Will Gray, colored, was shot by Policeman J. W. Mashburn, when he attacked the policeman with a knife on the roof of a residence at 198 East Baker Street, which the victim was attempting to burglarize.

September 22 Anna Murray, a negress, was stabbed by another negro, Melton Craig, who, according to police report, escaped.

Negro Stabbed to Death.

October 18 Sam Smith, colored, was stabbed to death at the corner of Humphries and Chapel streets by an unknown negro.

No record is held of the slayers' arrest.

Arthur Weems, colored, was stabbed to death at Block's candy factory by a negro, Richard Turner, who, according to police record, escaped.

October 29 Henry Wilson, a negro, was cut to death by his wife, Maggie Wilson, at their home, 42 Old Wheat Street.

The woman was arrested.

November 2 Sam Harrison, colored, was shot by Mary Lane, a negress, at Foundry and Mangum streets.

The woman was arrested.

November 23 Clara Elder,a negro woman, alias Cora Jordan, was stabbed to death by her husband, Ed Elder, alias Will Jordan, who was arrested.

Both characters had police records.

November 25 Will Leonard, a white engineer in Inman Yardis, was shot, and killed at his post of duty by a negro, Will Ratchford, colored, who, according to record, has not been caught.

December 24 Will Brown, colored, was stabbed and killed at 113 Peters Street by Perry Smith, alias Perry Johnson, who escaped.

December 25 Lizzie Hutchens, colored, was shot, and killed by her husband, Hal Ross, who escaped.

December 25 Charlie Page, colored, was shot and killed at his home, 420 West North Avenue, by a negro, Henry Sharp, who, according to record, escaped.

December 28 Horrace Reed, said to be colored, was shot and killed on Vine Street by a negro named "Stiffie," who escaped.

This report is very incomplete and was taken from the detectives' lookout book on December 28.

The crime is believed to have occurred at an earlier date.

Thursday, 1st January 1914: Gunman And Thug Busy In Atlanta During Year 1913, The Atlanta Constitution

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