The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1856-02-01
From the CINCINNATI rommsreial. 18th inst.
DREADFUL TRAGEDY,

AbOub tSa @OClOChr Oh party Vi
eight slaves, two men, two women, and four
children, belonging to Archibald X. Gaines
and John Marshall, of Redwood Station,
Boone county, Kentucky, about sixteen miles
from Covington, escaped from their owners
Three of th2 party are father, mother and son, /
whose names are Simon, Mary and Robert the
others are Margaret, wife of Robert, and her
four children. Thethree first are the property
ofMarshaH and the others of Gaines.
They took sleigh and two horses belong
ing to Mr.. Marshall, and drove to the river
bank, opposite the foot Of Western Row, where
they left them standing in the road, and crossed
over to this city on the ice They were
missed few hours after their flight, and Mr..
Gaines springing on a horse followed in pur
suit. On reaching the river shore, he learned
that resident had found the horses standing
in the road as above stated nearly dead from
the hard drive that they had experienced and
half frozen with the cold. He then crossed
over to this city, and after few hours diligent
inquiry, he learned that his slaves were in a
house about quarter of mile below the Mill
Greek. Bridge, on the River Road occupied by
a negro named Kite, a son of Joe Kite, of in
/ famous notorety. He proceeded tothe office
of . 5. Commissioner, Jno. L. Pendery and
! procured the necessary warrants, with u ).
Deputy Marshal Ellis and large body of
assistants, went at once to the place where his
fugitives were concealed. 1t is as we'll here to
state that Kite had been formerly owned in
the neighborhood of Redwood Station, and
was purchased from bondage by his father
On reaching the house, Major Murphy, a
neighbor of Games, and who was acquainted
with Kite called on him to open the door, and
said that their resistance would be useless
/ This Kite agreed he would do, but delay ed so
long that the officers attempted to force it
open, when a window was suddenly thrown up
and one of the negro men, Robert, presented a
pistol and fired. The bail wounded Mr.. Pat
terson, a resident Of the Fourth ward, who had
been deputised to assist in the arrest He
was standing in front of the window, and OBJ
serving the intention of the negro, threw up
his hand at the precise moment the pistol was
fired. The bullet cut off one of his fingers,
and then struck him in the mouth infcting
severe flesh wound. A second party of officers
came up, and the doors were forced open, and
were secured, but not until Robert had fired
three times but without effect. After the con-
tlict was over a bloody and melancholy spec
tacle presented itself One Of the Slave chill
Idren was discovered lying on the floor with its
head nearly severed from its body, two others
boys, aged about four and five years were
bleeding from wounds in the neck and head
and an infant in the arms of Margaret had its
head much swollen and was bleeding quite
freely at the nose. The officers state that
Simon anil Mary, the eldest of the party, made
no resistance, but that Robert and Margaret
fought with the ferocity of tigers, and that dur
ing the affray she struck her infant on the head
with a fire shovel; in the opinion of many with
the intention oftaking its life.
During a conversation with Margaret, she
stated to US that she was eating breakfast, in
company with the other fugitiYes, when she
heard some one cry out: They are coming
they are coming" They sprang up in alarm
but before they had time to fy, their captors
burst in upon them. She fought with all the
strength with which she was capable and can
not, tell how her child was killed and the
others wounded but only knows that the
4 death and the woundng occurred during the
ARRAY. This is her story, but it is evident
that the bloody tragedy was perpetrated while
the officers were seeking admittance, and she
is said to have acllnowledged the fact Of killing
her child and wotnding the others during the
decentralization to the arrest. The Coro-
ner's inquest will throw some further light
upon the subject.
The captiyes, as soon as arrested were
| pl>ced in express wagons, and driven rapidly
to the office of the United States Marshal, on
Fourth street between Main and Walnut fol-
lowed by large crowd of excited people
On reaching the Marshal's Office, the wounds
| OF the children were examined when it was
found that one of the children had received a |
flesh wound on the neck abont three inches
in length, but barely penetrated the skin-the
other scalp wound, about the same length
They are but little hurt, and Yesterday after
noon were playing about the Marshal's office, |
apparently unconcerned On questioning the. |
little fellows they said that some one in the
house threw them down and tried to kill them, |
but they either did not know, or would not
reveal who it was. The slaves on reaching |
the MarShals office, seated themselves around /
I the stove with detected countenances and pre-
served moody silence, answering all ques- |
tons propounded to them in monosylables. or |
refusing to answer them at all Simon is APP
parently about So years ofage, and Mary about
| fifty. The son of Mr. Marshall, who is here /
in orderif possible, to recover the property of
his father, says that they have always been |
faithful servants, and have frequently been on
this side of the river. He relates that they |
never expressed any dissatisf elton in regard
to remaining in bondage.
Robert is young man about % years old, |
Of very 1.-THE and active form, and rather |
mild and pleasant countenance; he is also |
spoken OF by his owners as being an excellent |
tseryant. Margaret is dark mulatto. appa-
rently about the same age with her husband: |
her countenance is far from being vicious, and /
her senses, yesterday, appeared partially stul-
titled from the exciting trials she had endured. |
After remaining about two hours at the Mar
shal's office, Commissioner Pendery announced |
/ that the slaves would be removed to the Gus
tody Of the United States Marshal until
o'clock this morning, when the case would |
fOr