The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-02-28
"a. N.yarr OF Ntaiss s5tasefs In seSth
Carolina,

Carolina.
We have given heretofore full account OF
the circumstances attending the murder of the
three Maine Soldiers killed at Browns Ferry,
South Carolina, in October, 1855, of the Presi-
dents Communication of the sentence passed up
on their murderers, and of the miscreants ny
Judge Hall of Delaware. The Special Con
gressional Committee appointed to inVesuea
this atrocious case, has just reported 'n sI
its chairman Mr. Pike. We have aireaoy
lshed Mr. Pixies speech on the cohd' a.,
South. constituting a sufficient resume ~ - r
testimony of GENERALS Schofeld, Slckies, Ihoiii-
as Raird and Wood, on this generai SUBJECT
W. .,,I,;a;,, tho report of the committee upon
.,,o snac;f;o case to which their attention was
1;ractod IT confirms the representations
which had been previously made, and runs as
follows:
Corporal Corbitt and privates Emery Smith
and Mason Brown, all of COMPANY A. First
Battery of Maine Veteran Volunteers, on the
8 of October, 1865, We're stationed at a cross
ing of the Savannah River called Browns Fer
ry, for the purpose of guarding fifteen bales of
cotton, which prior to the time had been seized
by the officers of the United States Treasury
department.. When seized it was placed in the
Ii,
the ferry, who lived within few rods of the
South Carolina bank of the river. This prop
erty, 1T Is claimed, was the property OF Craw-
ford Keys, who had engaged one Showers, VINO
lived on the opposite side OF the river, 10 carry
1T to Savannah. Showers had made prepara
Jions to receive it, and had fixed upon Sat9l,
day the 9TH day of October. as the time ior i.s
removal. On Friday, the 9th, Showers went 70
Brown and notified him that the cotton ~
question was about to be surreptitlousiy 'ancn
away, adding by way ofcaution, tna. no nnh,
self was not to be concerned IN the act, ana
odus"d BROWN to 90 to the military authori-
ties and get released from MS respohsiDlnty-
Brown accordingly informed the military Of
the intended removal, and guard OF three
,r,an were sent to the ferry on the evening of
the same day The trip to Savannah was there
mon postponed indefinitely, for the reason as
s,tyned by Showers that his steersman was
sick. s-t
On Sunday morning, the day of the murder,
one Mr.. Alfred called at Showers house on the
Georgia side to accompany him to church,
But instead OF doing SO, at Showers request
they crossed the ferry and visited HOmand's
store on the South Carolina side a few miles
from the river. On their return they met Pc
ter Keys, a son of one of the prisoners whose
participation in the murder is not denied,
and who fed a few days after the preparation.
This person was awaiting them on the Georgia
side half a mile from Showers house. Craw-
ford Keyes lived with his sons, it may be stat
ed, on the Georgia side, about twelve miles
from Browns Ferry. Arriving at the ferry, he
called across the river to the terryman employ
ed by Brown, man named Howell, gave the
false name OF Jones, and ascribed a false rea-
son for desiring to cross the ferry at SO late an
hour On the boat he kept behind his horse as
as much as possible out OF sight, and refused
to come to the light to see that the change Civ
en- him was correct. He left the ferry, and
something under an hour afterward returned
with five men on foot, al OF whom were rec
ognized as they passed the terry gate, by Brown
and Howell. They went to the ferry, short
distance rom the houses OF Brown and How
ell, and an altercrtion took place. A voice was
heard, identified as Showers ordering the guard
to throw down their arms. 4-
The guard demonstrated, and asserted that
they were at the ferry under orders. The an
swer was made, God d-n you, We have come
to throw you into the river. Shots We're then
fired, scufle took place, and shortly after the
party returned past the houses three of the
men on foot and three on horseback. As they
passed Howell's house, Peter Reyes ordered
Howell, wno was standing outside, alarmed by
the noise, To go back into his house, and the
six then passed on in the direction whence
they came. The time at which the assassin
atIon was committed was about midnight of
the 9Th OF October, the moon was about two
hours nigh, the night light one, anu the air
perfectly still. The road led past Howelfs
and Browns houses, within very few rods of
each. Brown lived somewhat nearer the ferry
than Howell, and was in bed at the time, but
Saw the party from his window. Howell was
i'll his mousse at the door. They were Old resi-
dents or the district, and perfectly familiar
with the races and voices OF their neighbors.-
Showers business called him daily across the
river To tho Carolina size, and Browns ferry
was the place at which he kept boat, and at
wtIcn he daily crosseds Howell swears that
he recognized OF the party, Crawford Reyes,
Peer Reyes, Elisha Byron, Francis q. Stow
p. h.a az ~ lrv.
owner of the Jerry, swears that as the party
passed his house Two of them we've walking to-
gether slde-by-side, and the rest were moving
III group behind; his attention was particu-
larry leo TO the two who led the party, and he
fees not the slightest doubt that they were f.
G. Showers and Crawford Reyes. The news OF
the murder was carried the next morning to
the United States forces at Anderson, where
it may be stated, the Reyes family resided. A
detachment came to search for the guard. The
three soldiers were found In the river a rod OF
two from the Shore Each of them was shot
through the head; two of them with wounds
which must have caused their instant death,
the third evidently having been drowned. The
hair OF each was so burned as to show that the
pistol had been held close to his head. Their
horses, arms and equipments had been taken
away, and never have been traced since, with
the exception of one horse, imperfectiy identi-
feed, and found three months afterward in the
possession OF one Sargent, whose business was
tculariy attended to the purchase and sale of
Government branded horses for the purpose of
running them out Of the State and beyond the
reach OF The military authorities. The cotton
was left at the ferry undisturbed. OIL
No special cause was assigned at the trial for
this cold blooded murder The young men
assassinated had been stationed al Anderson
about two months, and the resolutions of a pub
lie meeting he'd at Anderson two DAYS after
the murder, testify to their good conduct
while there Their only offense seems to have
been wearing the UNIFORM of the Republic,
and obeying the orders OF their superior Off
GERS. OF those committing the murder, the
Keyes family seems to have been one of the
most prominent i'll Anderson, and Showers, a
man of sufficient consideration to have been
at one time a member of the Georgia Senate.
This ASA. sinaton was committed while Gen.
Gilmore was in charge at Charleston, and
Gen. SIckles states that when he took COM
mand, Gen. Gilmore called his attention to
this case as one OF great atrocity, and one
which the Interests of the service, in his opini
ion, required to be thoroughly investigated. A
mihtarl commission was convened by Gen.
Sickles, and proceeded to try those charged
with tile murder, who were all arrested exceps
Peret heyes and the person who was not rec
ognzeu by Bryan and Howell. A long and
Thorough examination of the witnesses was
made, occupying some thirty days. The de-
fence was skliully managed; an abb was at
tempted to be proved on the part of Showers
by negroes, and who testified the fact, but sub
sequentiy changed their testimony and swore
they had been trained by Showers to make
their previous statements. 1t was attempted
to shake the testimony of Howell and Brown
in various ways, but after q patient and dill
gent Comparison of statements, the counsel
found the facts as we have already detailed
them. The ev dence is spread over many hun
dred pages Of record, and it amply sustains
the conclusions at which the Court arrived
The Commission found the two Reyes, Stow
ers and Bryant guilty, and sentenced them to
be hanged. The sentence was approved by
Gen. Sicklcs, as to the elder Reyes and Stow
ers, but on account of their age, and being un-
der the influence OF their associates the sem
tence was committed, in the cases of the
younger Reyes and Bryant, to imprisonment
for life. The case was Immediately presented
to the President, and applications were made
Tor pardons or for transfer to the military tri-
bunals. Letters from several leading men of
the South, such as Alexander H. Stephens.
Gov. Orr and II. V. johnson, appear among
tine papers laid before the President, and with
others, we noticed a petition insisting upon it
that tie Presidents avOwed policy led the pc
titioners to ask with confidence his interposi-
ton in behalf of the culprits. "i" DUG ''
Hon. o. III Browning, now Secretary of the
Interior, for fee of $1,000, made an argument
to the President in behalf of the persons, and
argued that they he brought within the range
OF writ of hdbedS corpus in Northern court.
Numerous petitions and letters urge the Pres
ldent to direct the prisoners, to respond
to writ of hdbeds corpus on the expectation
taat the courts alter the decision in the Mill
gan case, would declare the trial without au-
thorlty OF law. These papers were all referred
by the resident to the Advocated Gen.
eral, VINO reviewed the case at length and af-
hrmed the decision of the military t,,hunal
Subsequently writ of hdbeds coy-Dus was ia
sued from the United States District Court Of
South Carolina, by Judge Bryan, but General