Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1865-12-29
(From the Memphis Appeal 9th inst-l
TIE BLanDiEST BBTeHERY ON REC0RD-A son
MURDERS A FAMILY.

james Thompson, of Mississippi, after
an absence of ten years In South America,
abeut year ago returned to his father S
house near BrooksVille, on the Mobile
and Ohio Railroad. James has recently
been organizing a colony for Brazil. he
sold stock from the place, and his last act
was to place one hundred bales of cotton
on a flatboat, on the Tombigbee River,
which flows within few miles of Brooks
Vile.
The father had made over much of his
property to his son, who claimed to have
become citizen of Peru, to save it from
the Federal forces, but at last became sus-
picious of his son, and it appears left
home on Tuesday of last week, for Gaines
Vile, to obtain legal advice as to the prop
er steps to take In restraining his son. Ii
appears, however, that this move was
made quietly; and that the relations OF
James with the family, which consisted
of step-mother, three half-sisters, and a
half brother, were entirely cordial. There
is also a full brother, named Joseph, who
it was feared was accessory to James. On
Sunday morning James approached the
house and enquired of the negroes in the
yard if all were we'll.
He then entered the house, and 1t ap-
pears shot his sister Margaret with shot
gun as she was in the act of dressing her.
self She had one stocking on and an
other in her hand. The shot took effect
in her right shoulder and side, nearly
tearing the arm from the body and mang-
ling the side most horribly. The mother
was heard by her daughter Jemima who
was up stairs, to beg her son most pite-
ously not to shoot; but a second report
followed, and the mother was found dead,
shot in the right shoulder and her side
on the floor back of the bed. The moth
er and this daughter must have died in
stantly Clay was heard by the girls
above stairs begging his brother not to
shoot him. The two girls up stairs clos
ed and bolted their door; but the terrible
man assembled the stairs and forced it open.
Jemima slipped by him, rushed down,
and was on the threshold OF the door,
when she was seized by the shoulders and
flung back into the room and shot in the
back of the head with a pistol. She must
die From the direction of the fatal shot
she must have been on her knees, begging
for her life The murderer then again
went up stairs and shot the last and
youngest sister, named Emma, in the
shoulder and breast She got under the
bed, where he fred two shots at her. She
abandoned this position, and placed her
self behind wardrobe. Here she re-
ceived two shots. one in the side and one
in the left thigh. This young girl may re-
cover.
James now left the house, and proceed
ed to the river, where his cotton boat was
moored. He met his father and the Sher-
iff of the county. He aimed deliberately
at him, but the cap snapped. He fred the
second barrel, but it was knocked up by a
bystander, and passed harmlessly over
the fathers head He then drew his pis-
tol and fred twice, one shot taking effect
in the body of the father, who now
clenched the desperate, and after fierce
struggle he was bound.
The hue and cry was raised, and citi-
zens from BrooksVille followed the rfiuan
to the river, who were, with difficulty re-
strained from burning him. He is in jail
at Macon.