The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1860-07-07

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| We have Just rsceived DE following letter
iron FairGeld, bsiagine the welcome Intelligence
/ Of The arrese u shs villain who committed the
recent attrocious murders In Jefferson county,
.ad Of BID sass Judgment in The jail q Fairfield
Great credit i due for this prompt arrest to
Sheriff Robb Of that county, and 70 Messrs.
Harrison Smith, David L Hu1statter, Andrew
Smith, b. A. Miller, Lewis Epariock, Samuel
Espe and William A. Legardea These gentle
men started in pursuit, making excellent tine,
before any reward was offered
FAIRriELD, July ID, 1860.
EDlroR HAwKErE.-- Dear Sir Late on
Saturday evening last our citizens were startled
with the report that a strange family bad been
murdered near Batavia, in this county--that the
bodies Of mother, son and daughter had been
found in Cedar Creek in the afternoon by fisher
men, half mile north of Batavia. Our Sheriff
Robb and others started immediately for that
region, where he learned that man and boy,
with two yoke of oxen with closely covered wag-
gon, had passed along the road near where the
bodies we're found late Friday evening. His sim
gular, Strange, excited manner, attracted the no.
tice Of those who happened to see him, and sus-
| picion at once marked him as the murderer
Sheriff Robb, David I. Huffstutter and Others
promptly followed after him and found that he
had crossed the Des Nome above Portland
thence to Lebanon, thence miles from Upton,
Scotland county, No., where they overlook him
in the prairie on Sunday evening and returned
to this place with the prisoner about o'clock
| p. m. to-day.
JOHN KxPHARr II the name of the hoary-head-
ed villain. He formerly lived near Trenton, in
Henry county, and is we'll known In Washington
county, where he has lived since he left Trenton
| 10 or - years ago.
gather an imperfect history Of the acts of
this old villain from the little boy who is found
in his company William Willis (carpenter) the
boys father, formerly lived In Muscatine, Iowa.
The boy remembers that John Kephart came 10
Nuscatine to move the family South. On tho
Journey they stopped two months in Cass county
No., at widow Snyder's, where Kephart helped
to husk corn. One morning, soon after break
Fast, his father, who had eaten brcakfas. well,
ook suddenly sick and died in less than an hour.
The boys mother, the murdered woman, Jane
Willis, told him that Kephart gave his father
.trichnine in his food. After the death Of Willis
t seems they went to the 8 Cherokee country
where Kephart kept grocery and sold whiskey
], the Indians. This Summer they moved near
Sort Des Moines. After living there some weeks
,r months, they started for Kansas city. On last
Thursday they stopped near the bridge at Eddy
Vile, camped on. Mrs. Willis cooked supper,
after which, complained of being sick, laid down
in the wagon and went to sleep. In the night,
,omctime, the boy awoke and saw that she had a
leep cash in her head. The three children ali
got out of the wagon, and Kephart chased Joseph
I. aged IL, and Maria Jane, aged I, about half
an hour, under and around the wagon with the
ak in hand, until they too were killed. lie then
placed them by the side of the mother and
pounded their heads with the wagon hammer.
He left Eddyville soon after the murderous
deeds were finished and travelled over so miles
to the pace where he no doubt hoped to hide
the unfortunate victims from human eyes. A
grey headed old man, over so years old, travel
ing day ard night with an OK team 80 miles,
with the dead bodies of q mother and two
children in the wagon to find place Of con-
cealment the living boy, James Harvey VIII
lis, by his side-and then when the place WIS
found, he stripped his victims, put their gar
ments into the wagon, took the mother first and
then the children, and hid them under the water,
placing log upon them to keep them down.
The boy, James, says that he has brother,
Sylvester Willis living in Louisa county.
On Friday, after leaving Eddyville, he looked
again for his wsgon-hammer and found it stick
in the boys head!!
The clothes of the victims were all found in
his wagon.
Kephart and the woman had quarreled about
some money. He charged her with stealing lbs
money. She claimed that the money in dispute
was given TO her by her son.
The money was found by the officers hid in a
leg Of soap grease in the wagon !
The writer Of the above informs us that there /
is intense excitement in Jefferson county, bat 4
that they are Law abiding people and will leave
the law to take its course Kephart is entirely
safe until he is regularly convicted and hung by
law.
Our attentive correspondent at Fairfield has
furnished the following additional items of inter
ost in regard to the murderer and his victims,
and an account of the last act in the drama,
the hanging Of the guilty man, without judge or
jury.
FAIRFIELD, July Sd, 1860
Editor HnckE Eye:
DEAR Sal visited John Kephart, the
murderer Of Mr.. Jane Willis, her son and daugh
ter, this afternoon. He says that William A.
Willis, the husband Of the murdered woman.
formerly lived in Louisa county, at the Sand
Banks or Toddtown, not FAR from Columbus CITY,
where his son, Sylvester Willis, a lad 10 years.
Did, now lives. Mrs. Willis has brother, Join
\. Brewer, near Davis p. O., Washington coun.
y, Iowa. More than year ago Kephart took
Willis and family south, in Cass county, Mo-,
lear Harrisonvlle, Kephart rented farm OF Il
fidow Snyder, who has son Henry. Keep
art denies that Willis is dead, and refers to
Vim. Mccoy, Hammersville, Cass county, Mo-,
tho, he SAYS knows that Willis is living. He
avs that Willis left his family there and returned
. Iowa In December last Kephart left Mis-
ouri with the Willis family and moved to Wash
ngton county, Arkansas, On the 1lth of May
asst went to Fort Scott, thence soon to Oceola,
here he stopped to pay taxes on land, thence
0 Fort Des Moiues few days. next to Oskaloo-
a, Pella, and then to Eddyvlle, where they
amped few days below the Bridge, near the
iyer. He says that Mrs Willis and the children
'ere with him at Eddyvillc, but after that his
,emory is oblivious. Here his confession stops.
vents, persons, roads, days and nights seem
orgotten. He does not answer inquiries fur