noon
And they tried . The colonel went to the sheriff . The sheriff said he had yielded to force , but he never would have dreamed of shooting to defend a worthless Negro who had maimed a good white man , had nearly killed another , and had declared a vendetta against the white race . By noon the colonel had interviewed as many prominent men as he could find , and they became increasingly difficult to find as it became known that he was seeking them . The town , he said , had been disgraced , and should redeem itself by prosecuting the lynchers . He may as well have talked to the empty air . The trail of Fetters was all over the town .