Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1866-06-02
FROM NIIssIssIPPl.
A Record of Violence.

following letter from one of its correspon-
dents:
Yesterday, May 4, the writer wns on rne
| train bound North from New Orleans. !he
cars were crowded with ministers return'rg
/ from The late General Conference Oh .ne W.
E. Church South. At one OF the stations
in the afternoon, gang OF oesperaooes ca'ne
| on Ioard the train. They were drunk,
heavily armed, and were bent upon mischief.
| They supposed the preachers on board were
Yankees, and said they would 'cean them
out 7, They drank more whisky, with
which they were well supplied, insulted.the
ministers, began mutilatng the cars by
breaking the window blinds, and swearing
vehemently. The conductor interfereG, when
pistols were drawn and two shots fred, bat
fortunately no one was hurt The gang was
led by an exRebel Colonel. One OF the
preachers, Mr.. Rosser of Virginia, knew the
Colonel, and soon succeeded in convincing
him that the preachers were not Yankees,
but goot Rebels, and his friends, whereupon
the Colonel and his gang became quieted,
and at the next station lett the train. The
telegraph had announced that load of
preachers was coming and called for an
extra dinner to be in readiness. These
"roughs" had heard of it, anc took them to
be Northern preachers /; and, had they been
Yankees, there is no doubt that some one,
and, perhaps several would have been killed.
Last Thursday night at Meridian, three
men went to the Office of Major Knox, in
charge cf the Freedmen's Bureau at that
place, broke down the door, and fred two
shots at the Major, when he returned the
fire, and they fed. The next day the Major
received q letter stating that il he did not
leave the place Immediately he would be
killed The troops at Meridian have been
mustered out which explains the assault.
have Just seen letter from Union man
at Columbus, Miss, written April &c, and
among other things it contains the follow
ing:
E "To give an idea of the prevailing feelings
of the people of Columbus toward the Gov
ernment, will state that on the second day
after the departure of the troops, 10y order
of the municipal authorities, the Government
barracks, left in charge of the Agent of the
Frecdmens Bureau were torn to the ground
and on the third day the teachers of the
colored schools received polite note, in
forming them that they would either have
to leave or take The halter, and that right al
once. 1t was asserted that no Yankee should
? come here to teach negroes. Yesterday, ono
of the most prominent druggists of the city
, and one of the most rank Rebels in the
9 country, stopped one of the teachers in the
= street, and called him - Abolitionist
and said he should not come here to teach
negroes how to read and write.
| "The colored people have determined tc
support their teachers, and they now guard
their premises at night. Last night two mer
were seen slipping around the school-house
: They were halted by the colored citizens or
guard. The men broke and ran off, wher
. they were fired upon by the sentinel. 1t is
atto ~; 70 h,,r l,f
schcol-house. There is some excitement
) about it to-day.
0 This is something new for East Mississippi
. and we are led to ask what does it mean
Was their former kindness put on fer effect
D On last Monday, in Grenada the Rev. NJ
Bardwell, agent of the American Missionary
Association, and Superintendent of the
Freedmen's schools, of that Society for thi!
(Nliss) Department, was brutally assaulted
t by an alderman of that city, without any
provocation whatever, choked, and beater
with cane. l have to-day seen Mr.. Bard
well, and he showed me the wounds upor
, his ear and the side of his head where ht
was struck with the cane.
He is man well in years and Of feeble
health, and made no effort to defend himself
The law-abiding alderman went and com
planned Of himself, and was fined $40, ant
was then congratulated for the brave deed
At O'Clock, on the night of the same day
the above occurred, April 80, in Grenada
Lieut. j. B. Blonding, of the Veteran Reserve
Corps, on duty in that city in connection
| with the Freedmen's Bureau was assassina
ted. He was shot three times, in the head
the chest and the abdomen. Either wount
would have proved mortal; and yet, will
these three, he lived until 10 o'clock tht
next morning when he expired. He wa
l invited to take an evening walk oy pre-
tended friend, who led him near an ole
. vacant house, where the assassins were Sc
1 creted, and from which they fired.
e Capt. May of the Veteran Reserve Corp
S is the Sub-Commissioner of the Freedmen
$ Bureau at Grenada. | have just seen lette
II from him, and two letters from Miss. c. A
HarwOod, one of the teachers there. From
8 them we learn these facts On Tuesda
: morning, while Lieut.. Blonding was dying
! a committee waited upon Capt. May, will
D he and the teacher were watching and weep
ing at the couch OF their expiring friend, ant
3 told him the teachers must leave the Place
4 and asked him to send them away. He tol'
G the committee that the teachers were no
II Government employees, and that he had n
$ authority over them and, of course, coul
! not send them away.
: Next came committee of coincidence, de
y plorinG the sad event of the assassination
d etc, and while they were yet "condoling,"
3 third committee of warming" came TO Capt
3 May that he must leave-that if he did no
. he would be the nert man murdered! ! One @
Il the teachers left, bus Miss H., like the tru
/ sentinel, remained at her post In one G
a her letters to Mr.. Bardwell, she Miss c.
y Harwood) says:
s Just now see but one or two things t
70 be done; either give up the schools an
Y abandon the place, or let Carrie Segur come
. and she and | will live in that little oil
e cabin by ourselves, and try to get alon
~ some way. No one will board us. wen
: TO see Mr., -, but he was fred upon las
z night, and says he must leave. His wifi
= was down town trying to sell off theirfurni
II ture, and they are going back North. If
g were not here / should certainly have n
desire to come into such Il community, espC
ciallyno under these circumstances but
's am here-haVe a flne school under way
&c The school house will DE done in few day,
e and | would like to remain. But | do nc
Il feel like urging any particular course
I. &,