Rensselaer Journal, Volume 12, Number 33, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 January 1903 — WHITECAPPING NEAR HOME. [ARTICLE]

WHITECAPPING NEAR HOME.

Chalmers Father Whipped for Neglecting Family. Between twenty and thirty masked men went to the home of William Hileman, forty-five years old, in Chalmers, early Monday morning, and after enticing him to the door, pounced upon him and dragged him to a small wood near his home, where he was flogged until he pleaded for mercy. Hileman may have recognized some of the whitecaps, but has not filed any charges and no arrests have been made. The whitecapping was kept a secret until Tuesday. The whitecapping occurred shortly after midnight. A man called at the home of Hileman, on the outskirts of the town, and asked Hileman, who had been doing some butchering in White county, to come out and remove the hide from a dead horse. As Hileman stepped from his door he was seized by the stranger, and a dozen men immediately were upon him. He was hurried to a little wood about forty rods from the honse where he was severely whipped. A committee of the masked men stayed at the house to assure the frightened wife and children that no permanent injury would be done the man. After the whipping Hileman was ready to return to the house, and the crowd quietly dispersed. Hileman was accused of neglecting his family, which consists of his wife and four small daughters. He is said to have carried away fruit that had been canned by his wife and after selling it, spent the money for liquor. He is also said to have made the same disposition of potatoes and other articles that his wife had procured by washing. She has been the principal support of the family for some time.