The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1868-09-23
LATEST.

both Houses and the Governors mes
sage referred, where it will lie buried.
LATEST.
ATLANTA, GA, Sept. %.
Two accounts of the dot at Camilla
have been received, one from a freed
man, through Maj. Howard, Assistant
Commissioner of the Freedmen's Blu.
reau, and one from Sheriff Poor, of
Mitchell county. Major Howard says;
Ishmael Lunner, freedman, states
that he left Camilla on the p. m. of the
18th; that on the forenoon of that day
he approached Camilla with John Muir
ply, VIM. r. Pearce, candidate for
Congress for the I'd district, and F. f.
Putney, white, and about 40 colored
persons, all en- route for Camilla, where
Pearce and Murphy were to deliver po-
litical addresses upon the approaching
election. The relator being in advance,
was accosted by an armed and mount
ed white man, who, at first, stated that
he was in search of a doctor to attend
a freedman who was hurt by the falling
of a tree; but who subsequently stated
that he was courier, and advised the
party not to go to town, that the peo-
pie were determined that the Radicals
should not speak; that Notwithstanding
the warming heparty moved on. They
were met by the Sheriff and posse, who
accosted Capt. Pearce, and who was as
sured by Pearcs that he desired and
should speak in Camilla on political
subjects. The Sheriff endeRvored to
dissuade him from doing SO. telling
him that the people would not permit 1t.
The Sheriff then went back to Camilla,
and again returned, saying he had done
all in his power to dissua1e the people
from violence, but with no avail; that
Pearce and Putney entered town, dis
mounted and hitched their horses at
81 hot ou a.
tanning music entered town it was fired
on by mounted white men who had first
accosted him, and byseveral other white
men, and that the freedmen then start
ed to escape to the woods, and that
Pearce attempted to rally them, calling
on them NOT to fly, that the colored men
being unarmed would not stop. The
relator being mounted dashed out of
town past the freedmen on foot and
past the musicians, who had abandoned
the wagon; that Murphy and Phillip
Joiner, in a buggy, also drove rapidly
away towards Albany, and that the re-
lator dashed ahead and when about
containing Murphy and Joiner was
overtaken by four or five whites.
mounted and armed, the buggy was
stopped and the horses dashed riderless
up the road towards relator; that he
saw the pursuers of the buggy, some of
them dismounted; that be. then came
as rapidly as possibly to Albany.
The Sheriff states that Murphy had
secretly circulated circulars among the
colored men OF the county, ordering
them to bring arms to the meeting adj
vertised for the 18th, AT the request OF
the citizens Sheriff Poor with a COM
mittee of six met the leaders of the pro-
cession when marching towards town,
and assured Pearce and Murphy that
the citizens had no objection to the
meeting, but did object to their enter
ing the town with arms. Murphy and
Pearce said the guns belonged to the
negroes, who were in the habit of car
rying them wherever they went. The
sheriff replied that as a peace officer II
was his duty to forbid the assemblage
of armed men at a political meeting,
and assured them that IL they entered
town with music and banners, followed
by armed men, it would be breach OF
the peace, and he would not be
responsible for the consequences.
headed by Pearce and Putney in bug
gy, armed with double barreled shot
gun, a Spencer rifle and two pistols,
with a quantity of ammunition, as was
afterwards ascertained. The next was
a four horse wagon containing band
and a number of armed negroes; next
followed column of negro men on
foot, between three and four hundred
attended by about twenty mounted
outriders, at least one halfif not two
thirds were armed with guns and mast
with pistols. The music was playing
and the crowd were noisy and threat
ening in their conduct. Murphy and
one Philip Joiner a negro were In
buggy in the rear. James Johns an in
toxicated citizen ordered the music to
stop but 1t did not and the column
moved on. Johns gun was dis
charged but in an opposite direction
from the procession, when the col
-umn fred volley at Johns and
at Naples store, where six unarmed
citizens were wounded. Immediately
about twenty of our citizens sprang to
their arms and fired into the column,
by which two negroes were killed and
an unknown number wounded. The
negroes Immediately broke for thick
cluster of timber, one hundred yards
North of the Court House. AT this
point an attempt was made by Pearce
to rally his routed forces. Our citizens
to the number of about thirty, part of
them being mounted, charged and COM
pletely routed the whole force, Pearce
flying through the fields and woods.
Murphy and Phil Joiner escaped in a
buggy up the road towards Albany.
Several negroes were killed, and from
the best information we can procure,
between 80 and 40 were wounded, all
of whom have been properly cared for.
The Sheriff goes on to express the re-
gret that the citizens of Camilla enter
tain at theN necessity which brought
about the occurrence, disavowing
all intention OF violating the laws
of the State in what was done, and
the citizens still think 1t was their duty
to obey the orders of the Sheriff, and
to break up the unlawful assemblage.
While they say the consequences are
to be regretted, they do not boast Of
what was done by our people. We
feel that they have but discharged a
painful duty imposed upon them by
the wicked and corrupt men engaged
in leading astray, into acts of lawless-
ness, the colored people of our coun-
try. The blame of the whole affair is
put on Pearce and Murphy, and the
citizens appeal to the -making pow
ers of Georgia and the authorities Of
the United States to check the progress
of these strolling criminals that are
prowling about the homes and disturb
ing the peace and quiet Of our war
stricken people. The above account
of the Sheriff is addressed to the MEM
bers of the Legislature,