Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1860-07-13
THREE FREE MEN CARRIED INTO
SLAVERY

About o'clock last Sunday evening,
our usually quiet village was visited by a
band of the most barbarous men | ever
witnessed. Tt seems by what was devel-
oped at the trial of some of the parties
yesterday, that several men from Missouri
have bad their headquarters at Ashkum
the past three weeks or more, where, with
the assistance of one George D. Smith, a
trader in Ashkum, and a Mr.. Cornelius,
formerly Kentueklan, who lives in the
immediate vicinity of Ashkum, have been
working up plan for several weeks, to
kidnap some colored men who have been
living in this town. About s O clock thew
had managed to get five of the boys into
the " Sellus House, where Smith made
himself very free in entertaining them,
when eight other men, armed to the teeth,
rushed in and presenting their pistols told
the boys they were prisoners. Two of
the most powerful Of the boys made
rush, and knocking down several of the
rufians, made their escape, the other three
were pounded severely On the head with
the butt of their pistols, overpowered,
hand-cufed, thrown into a wagon and
driven off before any alarm could be Civ
en-, all done In the space of ten minutes.
What makes the affair the more diabolical
is the fact that one of the men carried off
never was slave, and one had been freed
by his master, the third one might or
might not have been slave, but little was
known of him. 1t appears from what we
learn since the affair occurred, that one
Of the boys that escaped probably had
been slave, and that his master was one
Of the band who figured here It appears
that this slave owner made bargain with
Smith and Cornelius, of Ashkum, that if
they would assist him to take 'Ned,"
one Of the boys that escaped, that they
would catch as many more as they could,
take them South, sell them and divide the
spoils. After the three were taken they
were driven to Ashkum, about four miles,
where they were put on board the cars of
the Illinois Central Railroad Company
There seemed to be perfect understand
ing between the kidnappers, and the Con-
ductor of the train g much more"-as the
cars hardly came to stop before the ne
groes were thrust on board, and the train
moving. A sufficient number of citizens
went on the train from here to prevent the
negroes from being put on board, and were
fully prepared to have done so, had the
train made the usual stop-but before half
| of the citizens who went on the train could
get off to render the required assistance,
| the train was in motion, and as | learn,
the kidnapped negroes were taken to ST.
| Louis. So
In addition to the nine kidnappers, who
were doubly armed with reyolvers and
bowie knives, the section men who work on
the track of the Railroad Company, for
| about fifteen miles distant, numbering
about twenty-five, were in attendance, ap-
parently to render assistance if needed, all
stout able bodied Irishmen.
| hope and pray that it may never be
my lot to witness another such scene.
In haste, yours, truly, J. E. K1NGMAN
| In addition to the above we have the
| following from an eye witness:
| july 3d.-We have to-day five persons
on trial for assisting the kidnappers-three
Irishmen of Clifton and two Yankees Cor
| something else) Ashkum. We have en-
ployed an able lawyer from Kankakee
City, and shall give them thorough ex-
animation. Conductor NIuchmore, on one
of the Illinois Central trains, came up this
morning and informed us '' that the slaves
CD had been taken to ST. Louis, and he
cursed Mr.. White for daring to show his
indignation at such proceedings, and thus
injure the interests of the railroad compa-
n.y." The conductor also stated that chad
any of us interfered we certainly would
have been shot, and that the damned Mig
gers were no better than so many beasts,
and he did not consider the Republicans
much better.
LATER.-Three of the men on trial have
been held to bail in $500 each to appear
at the next term of court.