The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1866-05-11
keNfUcky.

Kentucky.
CRIME IN TIE OZARK AND BLOODY GROUND
MURDERS. ROBBERIES. BLOOD REVENGEs
kentucky Is not an attractive place for
nervous people, nor inviting TO emigrant~
The condition of the state is simply horri-
bic, society is in anarchy, law is power
less, in whole districts murder and robbery
are organized and defy punishment. The
inhabitants Tor years have indul9ed in per-
Sonal tcudS. quarrels have been handed
down from father TO son. and one genera
ton OF desperadocs has taken up and per
i'etuatcd the hlooI-revcn.es of the proceed
ing. The war probably made the bad
state OF affairs worse : gucrriIlaS cannot
easily give up their old habits. and the
lowest rebel >oldicr>-vile specimens of
humanity TO which only the worst s!umS
OF Great northern cities can furnish coun-
!trpart-who live in idIeneSs. keep the
country III terror.
We shall not be accused OF drawing 4.
picture worse than the facts sustain. when
We give ;- Cur authority the Kentucky
correspondent oi the New York News.
We take from his letter of April 10Th
some specimens OF the trigII,tul social con-
diiion OF ;hat state Remember this Is a
rebel correspondent. writing about white
people only:
Mrs. Polly Gottom, a venerable wild
ow lady. AGED IS years. the sister OF Judge
I'rydgc>. the .ldgc fer many wears of that
district and residing near Pcrrvyillr. Ky.
was robbed some time since. William
laylor, a man OF bad rcputc i'll the neigh
borhood. WIS prosecuted for the oficnSe,
and Mrs. Bottom was the only wilnp~,
against him Onc night last week She
was toullv murdered under the most afro
cIou~ circumstances The evidence of a
!ittic granddaughter. who was Steering
with tItr Il! the time OF the murder. !rd to
the arrest of Wm. Iavlor AMI his father.
lhc evidence al the coroncr'> inquest Sat-
ioiic'l the popular mind OF the gtiil Of the
accused. and m was taken from the iail
bs a mob OF two OF three hundred persons
and hung toa tree where his body re-
manned suspended eighteen hours.
Nh. {. ". NuchoI-. living near Mid
way.ln Wnodtor,l county, in the very rich
81 and most intelligent p,rt OF the state.
sent his iIttIc boy. aged thirteen Years. to
Midway to bring nome Il brother from
,chooi. The boy WAS thrown from hi.
morse. and while cndraSorin@ to control
ltim wI- .joIncl by Il man named Gcor",
Mcvk>. who offered 10 ride Tie horse. ;lna
took the l;,l up bchiiii ..,m and ihllS pas
cI Il biack>miiil'> shop where he va,
Anown, The boy not returning home
>.arch Wa instituted for him at midnight
and these facts learned. but it was only OF
the following" morning that his dead bod,
was found lying in tie @rr>> in a tie!,
near Midway, by Il nci ghbor> son
v hrn found the corpse was beaten al
most 10 Il Jelly. and the implement o
dratt-a fence stakc-covercl with tn,
evidences oi the crime. WAS living by.
J The murderer was captured in IN nj
ioinin@ county. anl confessed that he kill
ed the boy to ct the hor>s The citizen,
took him from jail and hung him.
On I'rilav last. Patrick Donovan. ;
quiet citizen OF Bowling Green, WIS rob
ocd and murdered near his own door. hu
10 trace has been found oi the murderer
i Reform X needed in the criminal law OF
this state Ordinarily. it Is almost i'm
possible to obtain Il. Jury OF respectable ci.i
zcn> from the panel of the county whC
have not formed an opinion of the case
When it i impannele,l local Interests an,
! prrludices enter 50 largely into the i;orm;,
ton OF verdict, that it is frequently tn,
foundation Of i;.ctiOu> fcuIS that deStro,
The peace and tranquility of the Who'll,
community.
In Garland county, the Evans and Hill
eud kept the whole country in state o
civil war for many years; a regular ven
,itta crew up. i'll which the innocent chill
,ren OF the parties were slain. and 80 in
volved was the whole population on on
side or the other. that no verdict could b
obtained for such trg ghtiul crimes. 1t wa
settled by the expulsion oi the Hills from
4. their homes. Part of the family sette'
; near this city, and some years after. on
l Christmas eve. their houses were visited h
l a Gang under the notoriou: desperate
Hercules Walker. and three of the Hill
: SHOT and killed in the midst of their funi
f lies. During the war a band of guerrilla
went to Walkers house and killed him
: Here Is chain of murders in which
l conviction would be clearly y impossible
: Capt. Ed Terrell and John Wethers
5 two men employed by the United State
t government during the war, as "guerriII
| hunters" have been confined in the Jail i
this city since last summer, under chare
e OF murder. Lately ly they were taken t
t Taylor-vilIe for trial before the court the
n i'll session. but the case being continued
: We're remanded to Jail. On Friday nigh
j. last seven armed men went to the jail an
e torcibly released the prisoners, after whic
r all the party escaped and are now at larg
r breathing vengeance against all good cit
r zens. Terrell is a noted rufiian, and