The Bamberg herald. (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, January 25, 1912, Page 7, Image 7
WHEN CIRCUMS1
EVIDEN(
I A Tragedy That Crimso
tucky.?The Wronj
Dr. John P. Sant
Stained by tragedy is every county |
in the "dark and bloody ground." To
circumstantial evidence is due one, at
least, of the tragedies crimsoning j
r
f Kentucky's annals. In the early days
' of the past century Dr. John P. Sanderson
was murdered in that portion
of Barren (now known as Metcalf) i
eounty. Suspicion soon fell on John
C. Hamilton, a wealthy citizen of the
, neighborhood. Hamilton was tried,
^ convicted and hanged. Wholly circumstantial,
the evidence was withn
al so remarkable in character as to j
H convince the jury and the whole sur- j
W rounding population of the accused j
man's guilt, and this notwithstanding
the fact that Sanderson was his friend
and fellow traveler, the honored and
cherished guest of Hamilton's fath-!
I
er. ;
Hamilton canfe of a wealthy, proud
and aristocratic family. His exclusiveness
excited the prejudice of envious
neighbors. He was a trader,
driving stock to settlements in Mississippi,
where he made much money
and some friends. He was on a return
trip that had proved successful, i
accompanied by Dr. Sanderson, a rich
* planter, residing near Natchez. Sanderson
came to Kentucky for a double
purpose?to enjoy his friend Hamil*
ton's hospitality, and to buy slaves
in Kentucky for service on his Mississippi
plantation. To buy these slaves
he brought with him a large sum of
money, of which fact Hamilton was
fully aware. The route on horseback
lay through a wild and thinly settled
portion of the Indian territory, as
the vast region immediately south of
" * * ??? Anllas? "Hr fiqri
lS.ent.UCKy was iucui uaiivu. v..
derson was taken at the outset with
a severe illness, which harassed him
through the greater part of the journey.
Arrived in Barren county, Hamilton
and his friend went to the residence
of Hamilton's father, where it
took several weeks for Sanderson to
* recover his health.
Soon after Sanderson's recovery
young Hamilton and his father's
'guest left the house, Hamilton acting
as guide for nine miles to a point
where the road forked, one branch
leading to a neighboring county,
BrStAfA Sandorsnn nroDosed to attend
W. X ^
a sale of negroes at public auction.
m The two men were seen together at
various points along the nine-mile
stretch, the last time at a point threequarters
of a mile from the forks.
Hamilton soon after returned alone.
Sanderson's riderless horse came the
night following to the Hamilton residence.
V , Sanderson was never again seen
alive. Several days having elapsed
without any word from the missing
man, suspicion arose that he had been
foully dealth with. The people turned
out en masse to search for his body.
Covered with brush and briars, it was
' found near the road. The dead man's
hat was found in a hollow stump,
while under a log close by appeared a
brass horse pistol with the hammer
broken. In the murdered man's head
i were found a number of shot and a
piece of the pistol's hammer, unaer
the lining of his hat was secreted a
list of thirty-three $100 Mississippi
bank bills, their numbers and an
enumeration of those to whom the
hills were payable.
^ When Hamilton -was arrested hills
corresponding to the list found in
V Sanderson's hat were taken on him.
It was further shown by the State
that he had borrowed the pistol from
Colonel Gorin, of Glasgow, that the
shot in Sanderson's head corresponded
in size with the shot bought a few
days before by Hamilton, that Hamilton's
overalls, concealed in his fath9^
er's barn were blood stained. They
were fully identified by the dead
man's sister.
For the defense it was urged that
Sanderson and Hamilton were intimate
friends; that for many days they
had traveled together through a wild
country; that a little neglect during
- his sickness would have caused Sanderson's
death and Hamilton could
have thus easily secured the money.
Mississippi money was at that time
under discount in Kentucky and Kentucky
money under discount in MississiDDi.
Hamilton being about to vis
it Mississippi, while Sanderson needed
Kentucky money to buy slaves, they
had, for mutual accommodation, exchanged
money. Hamilton proved
that he had, in order to make up the
sum needed for the exchange, borrowed
$1,000 from a Glasgow bank.
*
Hamilton's father declared that he
had borrowed the pistol from Colonel
Gorin to lend it to Dr. Sanderson,
who desired it for personal protection.
When leaving Sanderson Hamilton
gave the pistol to his friend.
As to the blood-stained overalls,
p * Hamilton averred that they had been
stolen by a negro to go to a daDce,
rANTIAL
CE WAS WRONG
ned the Annals of KenI
Man Hanged For
lerson's Murder.
where he got into a fight, involving
much blood-letting. The negro had,
it was claimed, concealed the garments
in the barn till an opportunity
might offer to efface the blood stains.
I Hamilton's defense lacked the corroboration
then deemed necessary.
John Rowan, one of the most celebrated
of the many famous jurists
whom Kentucky has given the country,
defended Hamilton with masterful
skill and ability. The prosecution
was conducted by Solomon G. Sharp,
destined himself to meet, a few years
later, with a tragic fate. Thoroughly
convinced of Hamilton's guilt, Sharp
showed him no mercy. Hamilton's
immediate relatives were almost
alone in believing him innocent. He
died protesting his innocence.
The sequel came in 1869, when
nnn/M.nl DiAViorH IT Pnccoan nf PCpTI
UCUCi ai uivuaiu x*? XWWWVM.V*) vv..
tucky, then United States minister,
| was visited at Tegucigalpa, Honduras,
by Colonel Gibson, a rich planter
from near Vicksburg, Miss. Colonel
Gibson informed General Rosseau
that thirty or thirty-five years before,
a man hanged for murder in eastern
Mississippi, had made on the gallows'
threshold, a confession, clearing up
the mystery of Dr. Sanderson's death.
The condemned man confessed that
I he and a companion, both fugitives
from justice, were hiding in the ra
vine where Dr. Sanderson's body was
| subsequently found. Seeing Sanderson
approach, they rushed forth,
dragged him from his horse audi
wrenched the pistol from his hand.
They struck him with the pistol,
breaking the hammer, part of which
i remained in his head. Having rob
bed their victim, the murderers concealed
his body and fled. They had
heard of Hamilton's execution for the
murder, but maintained an obdurate
silence. One of the guilty men was,
soon after Hamilton's execution, led
; to the scaffold for another murder,
I but he kept silent as to his share in
the Kentucky tragedy. The survivor
; felt it a duty to clear the mystery.?
I Springfield Republican.
Lawsuit Proving Costly.
i
Alton, Mo., Jan. 18.?Twenty-five
cents' worth of feed for Mrs. Ella
! Sulver Voorhees's horse in Alton a
year ago is going to cost somebody
! more than $200 when a real, old time
j "lawin" match is finished.
A year ago George Loehr says he
i found a horse in his lot and that he .
! placed it in his barn and fed it. The
horse had strayed from Mrs. Voor|
hees's place and she claimed it.
! Loehr asked 25 cents for the feed he
\ had provided. Mrs. Voorhees refused
to meet the, bill and replevined the
horse.
Then the "lawing" commenced.
! Loehr took the Case to a justice
; court and thence to the city court.
The first hearing ended in a mistrial
last April. The cost then amounted
to $108.
The trial has been re-opened in the
city court, and, the costs meantime
have crept up close to $200.
Both litigants are firm in tneir m|
tention to fight the matter "to the
bitter end," and declare they are in
the thing for the sake of "principle."
Victims of the Mine.
i
A hundred men dead in a coal
! mine. Three or four hundred women
and children moaning and wringj
ing their hands at the entrance to the
mine. Scores of workmen down in
{the earth, risking their lives to rei
cover the bodies of the hundred. Investigation
of cause of the explosion.
i'Publication of some very fine theo!
ries about cause and. effect of black
i damp. Coroner's inquests. Denun|
ciation of corporation greed.
And next day public attention goes
| to a backwoods murder case, or the
! high-toned elopement of Mr. John
| Doe with Mrs. Richard Roe, or a prize
| fight in which is involved the hope
! of the white race,
i Those dead men earned barely a
! living. Their families were poorly
housed, poorly fed. poorly clothed,
and the source of that poor living
j lies maimed and black-dead and use'
* 1 J 1 ? ^ At* A MA ??\ A
i less, in tne aarKiiess ui uie uimc.
i What becomes of the three or four
j hundred widwos and orphans? They
; are the real tragedy of the mine horj
ror. Paths of vice are open to the girls
and boys, and the widows stand upon
a cliff, the sides of which are jagged
j
rocks, and at the bottom of which is
degraded old age.
Yet how seldom does the miner,
as he goes down in the earth daily to
risk life, consider what will come
to his wife and children if sudden
death, so frequent in mining operations,
comes to him! God only knows
what becomes of the living victims
of the mine horror. But it is all huj
manitv's duty to know.?Denver Post
i
KILLED BY HIS OWN GUN.
Distressing Accident with Williamsburg
Farmer the Victim.
Kingstree, Jan. 17.?News reached
here this afternoon that James Dean,
a white man of the Hebron neighborhood,
in Williamsburg county, had
accidentally shot and killed himself
this morning. It seems that Mr.
Dean and Mr. R. L. Mimms had gone
out in the woods to get a load of
wood, Mr. Dean taking his gun
along. They ran into a covey of
partridges and Mr. Dean killed two
nr thrpft of thorn. While coming
back to the wagon, and holding the
gun by the barrel, he attempted to
cross a log, when the hammer of the
gun struck a log and the gun was
discharged, the whole load taking
effect in the neck, and completely
severing the jugular vein. The
wounded man expired almost instant.
Mr. Dean originally moved from
Lydia, Darlington county, to Johnsonville,
in this county, and only
three weeks ago moved to the plantation
of Mr. Mimms. He was a good
citizen in every respect and the whole
community has been saddened and
shocked by his untimely death. He
leaves a wife and two children.
J. S. Crosby Killed Himself.
St. George, Jan. 19.?News has
reached here that J. S. Crosby, a
highly respectable white man, who
lived at Harleyville, killed himself
yesterday morning about 7:30.
There was no one in the room at the
time save a small boy, who screamed
at the report of the gun, which
brought assistance immediately. The
facts were hard to obtain, but from
what could be gathered Mr. Crosby
sat on the edge of the bed, placed
the muzzle of the shotgun to his
heart and with a fire poker pulled
the trigger, which killed him instantly.
The entire load of shot penetrated
his left side.
There is no known reason for the
rash act. Mr. Crosby was considered
to be one of the best citizens of the
county and besides a host of friends
to mourn his loss he leaves a wife,
two daughters and two sons. He was
about 55 years of age. He was a
brother-in-law of Mrs. J. A. Hiers,
of this place.
Mule Eats Piano.
New Orleans, Jan. 17.?"Mule ate
piano shipped. Send another next
boat." This message was received
by a local piano house from an "upriver"
purchaser, whose $500 instru
~ i J
ment Had Deen rorwaraea via a iv?i?sissippi
river steamboat. In its usual
pine box the piano was installed on
the lower deck next to a lanky, sleeping-looking
mule bound for the cotton
fields of the upper bends. .
Although provided with plenty of
oats and hay the mule ripped off a
portion of the piano box, disposed of
six octaves of black and white ivory
keys and ran the chromatic scale up
to "G" in the treble clef. He had
gnawed away the mahogany panels
in front, masticated felt dampers and
hammers by the dozens and completely
wrecked the melodious "insides" of
the instrument.,
"Steamboat Bill," stoking a boiler
20 feet away, said the mule "must
have had his foot on the soft pedal,"
00 ha diM Tinf hoar a nntp When dis
covered the animal was unconcernedly
gazing longingly across the river
at a grass covered levee. It will cost
$330 to repair the piano.
Refuses Text Book Probe.
Columbia, Jan. 17.?The senate expressed
its confidence in the State
board of education and vindicated
them of any charges which might
have been made, either by insinuation
or rumor, when it refused last night
to order an investigation into the recent
changes in text books and killed
Senator Earle's concurrent resolution
calling for the appointment of an investigation
committee for this purpose.
Strong defences of the board
and tributes to the high personnel of
its membership featured the speeches
of the senators opposed to the proposition
to appoint an investigating
committee.
BREAKS LONG SILENCE.
Couple Had Not Spoken to Each
Other for Many Years.
For twenty-nve years l,ouis rtaser
and his wife lived in the same house
at Mayesville, Ky., without speaking
to each other. Last Sunday,
without any apparent reason, the
wife broke the silence by asking her
husband to have a cup of coffee. He
replied: "I believe I will."
Hardly had he uttered the remark
than he was attacked with heart
trouble and died.
The incident leading to the tragic
climax was not disclosed until Thursday,
when his will was- made public.
The dead man, who was a large property
owner, willed everything to his
wife. His body was cremated-and
his ashes cast to the wind from the
Cincinnati suspension bridge.
SALKEHATCHIE CLAIM LOSES.
Unfavorable Report on Proposed
River Improvement.
Washington, Jan. 16.?Secretary
of War Stimson sent to congress an
unfavorable report from the army
engineers of the preliminary examination
of the Salkehatchie river
with a view to its improvement to
Morros Crossing, S. C. The report of
Capt. E. M. Adams, district engineer,
to the effect that nearly two-thirds of
the 227 miles of the river under consideration
is of insufficient capacity
for even canoe navigation, that the
country is sparsely located with lit
tie prospective commerce except a
moderate amount of timber movement,
and that there is but little
interest manifested in its improve- ,
ment, and that the stream is unworthy
of the attention asked, was
concurred in by the division engineer
and Gen. Bixby.
Girl Lived High on Stolen CashNew
York, Jan. 18.?Joseph W.
Cushman, head of the real estate firm
of Joseph W. Cushman & Co., with
offices at No. 240 West Twenty-thirdstreet,
was looking over his books
last evening when he gasped:
"A shortage of $2,000!"
He called his private secretary and
bookkeeper, Miss Ada M. Ellis, 23
years old, who for five years had enjoyed
the full confidence of her employers.
She came forward smiling.
. "What does this mean?" he asked.
"What does what mean?" she
queried.
"This $2,000 shortage. You're the
only one can explain it."
The suggestion that she was $2,000
short in her accounts seemed to
amuse the girl.
"How did you discover it?" she
1 -3 |
asKea uoucua.ia.uti>.
"When a check for $300 came in,"
he replied. "It was endorsed by
you and was cashed by you. You
falsified the books and used the
money."
The young woman was beginning
to pale, but she was fully composed
as she said:
"Well, that doesn't make a $2,000
shortage, does it? I don't think there
is more than $1,200 gone."
"Then you admit there is a shortage?"
"I admit nothing," she retorted,
and biting her lips she returned to
her work.
Detectives Martin and Scanlon
came from tbe west Tnirtietn street
station. They and Mr. Cushman say
that Miss Ellis made this statement:
"Yes; I took the money and used
it. You know my home is in Englewood.
It's so slow out there I got
fearfully bored, so I came to New
York and rented an apartment with
a girl friend at No. 3,100 Broadway.
Several days a week I would go out
and spend the night with my mother
in Englewood, but I loved life in
New York. I gave theatre parties
and dinners to my friends."
"You couldn't have done that on
your salary of .$45 a month," spoke
up Cushman.
"Who said I did?" she retorted. "I
tried hard to make good all the
money I was spending. I heard of
how some people made big money !
on the races and I began to play
th m. It was not unusual for me to
make a bet of $100 or even $150 on
a race, but I was a bad picker of
winners. Luck was against me.
s"But I want to repeat, Mr. Cushman,
that I don't believe the shortage
is more than $1,200."
On a charge of grand larceny Miss
Ellis was taken to the West Thiri!
OVvn nroe Vmn
1161Q Street stimuli. unc nuu uu..
died up in handsome furs, and her
hat and gown were stylish. She answered
the lieutenant's questions
calmly until she was asked to give
her street address in Englewood.
"That I'll never tell you," she
cried, losing control of herself. "My
mother must not know anything
about this."
To a reporter for the World Miss
Ellis said:
"When I was fourteen my father
sent me to Paris to be educated. I
was in a convent there four years.
* * ?i - 4.1*
After my return to America my ituuer
met reverses and I was compelled
to go to work. I am in all this stew
simply because I love a good time.1'
Oushman said last night that he
beUeved at least two other persons
were implicated in the shortage.
"I might add also that the shortage
may run to many times $2,000,"
he went on. "I have only examined
the books b^ck to last September.
The girl's father was a prosperous
piano manufacturer some years ago.
It is my impression that he is dead."
The Camilla, Ga., city council has
evolved a new way of enforcing the
prohibition law. The ordinance requires
all railroads and express companies
to file reports with the city
showing the consignor and the consignee
in liquor shipments received
by them and the size of the shipment.
It is a further provision that
there shall be published in the Camilla
Enterprise the names of all
those who receive more than one gallon
per week.
Farming Implements
We have on hand a full line of Giadiator Stalk Cutters, Chattanooga
one horse and double plows, Rex Guano Distributors, Gantt Distributors,
Gem Cotton Planters," Harness, Canvas, and Leather Collars, Traces, Hame
Strings, Back Bands, Collar Pads, Bridles, Halters, Plow Lines and anything
the farmer may need on his farm.
We also have a quantity of Fence Wire in the various heights, which
will be sold at rock bottom prices. . M
When in need of anything in the hardware line call on us, and when
you purchase to the amount of $50.00 we give you Free of Charge a hand!
some Standard Talking Machine, and guarantee to sell you as cheap as any
of our competitors. '
J. A. HUNTER I
THE HARDWARE MAN. BAMBERG, S. C.
A National Searchlight
THE SENIOR PARTNER disturbed ' W
The little boy of one of the firm's traveling
men was critically ill. The distracted mother
begged that her husband be notified.
A Long Distance Bell Telephone call located - .
him, but he had gone to a neighboring town to
soli goods.
MB. ' '*
Would the Telephone people reach him? The Telephone
people would try. They found him and he started for home
at once.
The Universal Bell Telephone System is a national search- /. , . ' ^
light. It seeks the distant person for you and locates him if it : 'v!
is possible.
By the way, have yon a Bell Telephone?
S S0UTHERN hELL TELEPHONE
AND TELEGRAPH COMPANY
11 Will* Credir You |
eft * I have just received a shipment of brand new bi- _.
cycles of the latest make which I will sell you on Mm
easv terms. A small amount when you get the
J wheel and the balance in weekly payments. I also r ^ 1
have a large supply of bicycle supplies and will 'J/it?-.
repair you old wheel at a reasonable price. Auto- * y '
A mobiles, Bicycles, Guns and Pistols repaired on ^
' ' ?? , 1 ??
CDHQT PDHOF rARRAP.F PI. A NTS
X llV/k/ A A -W4 Am mm w+ w
PRICES, 1000 to 4000 at $1.25 per thousand; 5000 to 9000 at $1.00 per
thousand; 10,000 at 90 cents per thousand. Special prices on larger lots
and to parties getting up clui> orders or acting as our agents.r
We make a specialty of growing cabbage plants and have all the leading V; *
varieties viz: Early Jersey Wakefield; the earliest cabbage grown; Charleston
Large Type Wakefield, second earliest. In late varieties we have tlje
Sucession and Short Stemmed Late Flat Dutch, both producing large flat %
heads. Our plants are all grown in the open fields and will stand the most '
severe weather.
We guarantee count, safe delivery and satisfaction. We have special express
rates to all points. Our personal attention given to all orders which . &
are shipped same day received. Send cash with osder as it saves us
trouble and you expense, but will ship C. O. D. if preferred. Catalogue /
mailed on request. '
THE CARR-CARLTON CO., Box 60, Meggetts, S. C.
. 4
\ 5'j
% ^$0
/ Down on the rainless coast of Peru and adjacent islands,
/ throng thousands of pelicans. , orTh#??^
ViirHc Kvn nn fish and their excrement is the richest
/ guano in the world. It is Nature's own plant-food, made in
/ her factory without acids and high-proof chemicals and contains
I plant-foods that man has never been able to imitate.
I And now we are balancing Peruvian Guano to suit varied soils
I and crops with high-grade Ammoniates and Potash.
I We have joined Nature's skill in making to the skill of scientific
\ mixing.
\ The 3,000 tons of Mixtures which we sold last year brought
> an avalanche of testimonials?an insistent demand for more.
T * 7~: Anr WviWt j?nH full information.
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