Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1866-04-05
TIEE LAFE SAB AFFAIR on GENERAL
F8RREsT's FARM.

Quoted herself like a Christian country
TIEE LAFE SAB AFFAIR OK GENERAL
F0EREsF's FARM.
a Pan Statements of the Faets BY an ez
Federal Orneer, who was an eye
Z witness of the Diiiisnity-
We copy the following letter from til
Post Of yesterday, written by an ex-Fed
eral officer, who was present at the tim
the difficulty took plaes between Gen
Forrest and the negro man Edwards.
[ places all the facts connected with th
matter in a lucid Light, and gives an un
biased account Of the unruly conduct o
some Of the negroes in that quarter:
sUEFI0WER LAEDING, Miss, March 81
lfessrs. Editors. Allow me to give
I You an account Of q serious and most un
! fortunate affair, which transpired here
! this afternoon Gen. Forrest had inst re
turned, about four O'Clock, from the land,
ing. and noticing from the paper thai
/ the cholera was reported in Mobile. went
out 70 the quarters aud set the freedmen
I who hsd been allowed 20 quit work al
i noon at work cutting drains about the
] houses and cleaning Up the premises in
I habited by them. A freedman by the
name Of Tom Edwards passed along and
Z was told by the General 70 Ok up about
I his quarters. He made no reply, but
4 passed into his room and, with his knife
l In his hand, commenced curslng ana
abusing his wife. The General followed
I him and told him be must not abuse and
Z whfp bis wife: THAI he would net allow
I il. Tom replied he would whip his wife
when he pleased. The General said :
4" II you don't stop and shut up III fail
you with this broom; :" giving him, al
( the same time, a light stroke on theshOUl-
der with II, when Ten replied by striking
at the General with his knife, cutting
him on one Of his fingers. The General
then grasped an ak Standing by and
struck Tom a blow on the head which
instantly killed him.
I arrived at the scene about O'Clock,
and found about q hundred of the freed
men greatly excited, and disposed TO mob
violence
Afterward the General came out and
made them q speech. depl0ring the affair
and STATING the particulars. and promis-
inz 10 await a legal examination.
While some Of the negroes exhibited the
audacity that not Two in q thousand
white men would show, the others were
controlled by the efforts Of some OF the
most intelligent and better Of the freed
men, and they finally dispersed to await
the future. These are the facts, as ] saw
and heard them.
The General has sent for the Deputy
Sheriff, who passed here to-day. The
citizens Of the neighborhood are being
notified, and viii assemble tomorrow,
when an investigation viii be had and
an inquest held. From the circumstance
Of the case, It viii merit and attract
much attention. That it is most uufor-
tunate, q felt by all, and by none so
deeply as the General himself
Being somewhat c0nversan6 with the
existing relations Of affairs here for some
time past, / would most respectfully re-
quest a suspension Of opinion on this
case, both North and South, until the
facts are eiieited by judicial proceedings.
Twill now add some transactions which
had previously occurred here that I had
purposed writing, bus have had no Op-
portunity to mail you. On my return
from Memphis on the 18th ut, I learned
that during my absence lone week. one
Of the freedmen in my employ, his wife
and son, had deserted, and, as I suppose,
left for the freedmen's {" Mecca Mem
phfs. The second day after had gone
be refused to work, and for two hours
cursed, threatened and abused my part
ner and assistant-both eX- e nited states
officers. Not wishing q difficulty during
my absence, they suffered his insaits for
two hours, for which they would have
Knocked down a white man, or been
severely whipped in the attempt Mrs.
Difeubacher chen undertook to pacifY
him. when be insHlteG and abused
her. calling epithsts that would not look
well ia s respectable newspaper. That
night the negro went over % Forests
and the next day fsturned
with two men and fOur women the three |
men armed with a revolver, a Spencer /
rife and q dOuble-barreledsh shotgun. They I
again threatened the white men, aud 4
then entered our premises and COM |
menced carrying away our property. On I
being demonstrated with, they brought I
the Spencer rife TO a charge bayonet I
position and cooked it. The white men 4
inally got a dead aim little ahead and /
made them " ground arms"
On drawing the load from one barrel Of |
The shot gun, which ] now have in my /
possession, ] found It TO consist Of a fun /
,hargeof powder, aheavy charge Of duck |
,hot, one bueksh0t and aUC common bull /
ets. As he said he meant 70 shoot Mr., I
rann, Judge be loaded to kill That /
legro's name is John Wilson; heavy /
ct pOck marked, formerly lived in /
south Memphis. He Is wearing good /
clothes helonging 20 me, and / hope the i
Bureau may arrest him, for 4
which win pay fifty dollars, if justice is |
ione both parties,
I found such q glowing audacity To-
ward white people, among the baser Of \
-he freedmen, backed by a m0bbing to-
zether from adjacent plantations, with 1
Are arms loaded 70 kin white people and I
loticed such an increasing disp0s tiOn 1
among some % idleness and vice, that j I
'elt that the good and order, the peace
and quiet Of thia section. both white and 4
black, called for the presence Of an officer I
A fuii statement Of the facts, written
5y nay partner, before my return, to- 4
getheF with my views, as full and strong /
IS I could write them, with an earnest 1
and urgent appeal b. Col. ThomRs tosend /
an officer here at once TO Investigate
affairs, and deplOring results that might
snsus as, also, a statement from Gen.
Forrest and another from Or. e. NJ.
were prepared and taken ia
person by Mr.. Miller 10 Nieksburg, and /
presented 10 Col. Thomas sdjutant gem
srsl on ths I'D, Mr.. Miller returned
8ere on the 24th, having received the
that an officer should be sent.
While many Of the freedmen work
Vel and prove worthy, Others are lazy
.hd stubborn and those are the ones
who are most vicious, Insulting ano abu-
i've. There Is no punishment for crime
leue. and the vicious roam at barge 70
.ause trouble and destruction TO others.
Ia oonciusion, I may now repeat, as ]
grote Col, Thenaa, thai the peace and
,uiet sf this section are in jeopardy.
Hoping for the sake Of truth you may
,ublish this, and If 50, promising you
arther particulars az future time
ana S''' b B Fi;.'pIFFENBACHER.
SrvDAy, April !, P.M.-The f0liOw-
ng Is the verdictof the coroner jury
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, CoAHoNA CorSTY,l
April l. lsao.
We, The jury Of lnquest. summoned 70
-iew the body Of Thomas EDWARDS q
negro man OF feeedmau, deceased, nav
ng been duly sworn, fnd that the sald
Edwards came to his death in the alter
l0On Of the 8lst ultimo, from q blow on
be back Of the head delivered by N, =.
forrest, With an age. during ga aiterca-
lyA H7thErAA -s1ld tiaIAt-i attn4AAe AAoA-
he Interference Of said Forrest 81 pre-
vent the deceased from abusing bis the
1eceasedis wife.
NEI. >. sIEELE, TEHas. HEEHY McNEILI. (
q - JOB -, +. H- hAFPIs.
b. tifF zNsAcffH, j. y. bANuT,
Gas. S. GRAEF. CHAs VI. IAEs
huGH hnA1Is, R0Ha casa,
NJ. A. AITCHEL.Ia JsO, L. HrrCHHEaos.
Gen. Forrest has surrendered himself
70 W. W. show, Deputy sheriff Of The
county, and VIII proceed TO Friar's Point
Az AiEsRaFifEiRs Bodstead,
A curious invention is described bv the
QcalDeL n Is an air-puTifyinQ bed
stesdii which is commended by eompe-
tent persons as a practical application OF
scientific principles. The sleeper lies in
4 sort Of reservoir Eihioh is supplied BY a
constant current Of airpurified by passing
through filters Of lime, char
coal and ice. These alters arc in an ap-
paratus which in outside appearance is
merely a large beadh0ard 70 the bed.
apparatus, on headhOard, IS about
siK feet high, aud leRgthens the bed
about one foot. There are two lofcns al
a