New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1854-08-21

Iney say tnab 30 long als tHeee uouHhaln men 10
not interfere nor take part in the war, there
will be nothing to fear
ATRocIoUs NUMBERING copy the following
account of most diabolical murder in this State
from the Baton Rouge Gazette of the 10th:
We have just learned of most awful muir
der committed on the Sth inst, about two miles
from Harrisonburg in this State, under the fol-
lowing circumstances
Benjamin F. Stanly, a gunsmith, aged about
81 years, who has been for several years a ter
ror to the Observation-Disclosures carrying his
gun and threatening to shoot persons who deer
hunt in his vicinity, and frequently killing their
dogs-killed John G. Pitt, an old man aged rs
years, who lived not far from Stanly, and had a
field near him. On the Saturday previous,
dog was heard barking in the woods near Stan
ly's; he went out with his gun and shot the dog
when he had killed him, he found it was his own
dog, which SO enraged him that he swore ven
geance against Pitt and his dog. Upon the
morning of the murder, as Stanly's wife states,
when he got up he swore he would have salts
faction Of Pitt and his dog. He then started
down towards the field, and little while after,
she heard gun fire and dog howl, whereupon
she started off towards the field, and before reach
ing it she heard another report. When she got
to the brow of the hill overlooking the field she
saw Pitt lying on the ground, She Immediately
went to her nearest neighbors, mile off, and
gave the alarm (Pitt's residence was a mile
from the field in another direction When the
neighbors got to the field, they found Pitts dog
lying. on one side of the branch dead, and Pitt
himself on the other side, lying on his back,
dead, having been shot through both his knees
with rifle ball, and his neck broken, and blood
oozng out of his ear.
Mrs. Pitt states that her husband got up that
morning with the intention of going to the field
to will 10 fn6lor al hand to- uas al
that he would not take his dog with him, as
Stanly had threatened to kill it. The dog how
ever, got out and followed him. He took his
gun for the purpose of killing coons, although it
was found nearly two hundred yards from him
in the field, where doubtless he had left it, when
going outside of the field to the branch, evident
ly for the purpose ofgetting water. When found
he still had his spectacles on his nose, and his
tracks showed that he had been bending corn
and had not crossed the branch towards stanly
1t seems he must have been sitting down at the
time he was shot, with his knees drawn up near
his head. His neck appeared to have been struck
with the muzzle of the rife
Stanly has escaped, and the horrid deed has
created the greatest excitement throughout the
parish.
The following is description of Stanly's per-
son and habits He is about 81 years old, feet
10 or II inches high; has thin, gray hair; is of
dark complexion, gunsmith by trade, and sell
dom leaves home without rifle or double
barreled gun, one barrel of which is rifed He
is slow and precise of speech.
HALLUcINAT1oNs OF GREAT MEN.-Spinello,
who had painted the &c Fall of the Angels
thought that he was haunted by the frightful
devils which he had depicted. He was rendered
so miserable by this hallucination that he de-
stroyed himself An artist, who was much en-
gagged in painting caricatures, became haunted
by the distorted faces he drew; and the deep
melancholy and terror which accompanied these
apparitions caused him to commit suicide
Muller, who executed the copper plate of the
Sixtine Madonna, had more lovely visions. To-
wards the close of his life the Virgin appeared
to him, and thanking him for the affection he
had shown towards her, invited him to follow
her to Heaven To achieve this, the artist
starved himself to death. Beethoven, who be-
came completely deaf in the decline of life, often
heard his sublime compositions performed dis
tinctly. 1t is related of Ben johnson that he
spent the whole of one night In regarding his
great toe, around which he saw Tartars, Turks,
Romans and Catholics climbing up, and strug
Cling and fighting. Goethe, when out riding
one day, was surprised to see an exact image of
himself on horseback dressed in light colored
coat, riding towards him.
RAILROAD CoLLIs1oN.-C Conductor Killed.
The Cincinnati Commercial of the 10th says:
We regret to learn that a collision occurred on
| the Covington and Lexington Railroad, near
| Grassy Creek, about twenty five miles from
Covington, by which Mr.. Sparks Perry, the
Conductor, was instantly killed, and several
passengers seriously wounded. The collision
| was between the regular passenger train coming
down, and freight train going up, and hap
pened between eight and nine o'clock yesterday
1 hpr-n hnn,