State Register described the assailant as being "about five feet eight inches tall, wearing a blue shirt and light colored trousers. The newspaper reported that the police found "a light colored hat," and that the hat was "the only clue" to the assailant's identity. The Illinois State Journal, on the other hand, described the assailant as being "not very dark in color, medium sized, and dressed in rough garments." The newspaper also reported that a piece of "overall material" (though it would later be reported as a piece of "shirting" that Ballard has in the "grasp" of his hand after the struggle) was found in Ballard's yard, which his son, Homer, would later claim to be the assailant's. Ballard's son, Homer, also gave a description of the assailant: Neighbors of the Ballard's reportedly saw "a negro walking up and down, in front of the Ballard residence," during the early evening of the 4th of July. Drunken man found Around 5:30 a.m., on Sunday July 5, four young white women – Clara Noll, Sadie Van Dyke, and Anna and Henrietta Ford – coming from a wake, discovered Joe James sleeping off a hangover, in the North End, about a half-mile away from the Ballard home. Some reports said he was found in the grass in Reservoir park, others reported he was found in the "weeds of a vacant lot" a half-block north of the park, and others reported he was found "in the rear of the watch factory" on the west side of Reservoir park. While two of the girls watched James, the other two went to a park phone and called "in the vicinity" of the Ballard home, asking for men to come there to investigate. When the news reached Ballard's two sons, Charles and Homer, along with two neighbors, Pledge Sears and Joseph Edwards, who claimed that James had also invaded his home before allegedly invading the Ballard's, went to the area where James was sleeping. The men allegedly found James with blood on his clothes, his shoes not on his feet, and a coat "thrown over his head." They woke him and, armed with a piece of 2x4 scantling, beat "the black wretch" while a crowd gathered around to watch. The Ballard brothers, Sears, and Edwards dragged and beat James for half a block while the crowd chanted "Kill!". It was reported that "only the arrival of officers"