The Texas Republican. [volume] (Marshall, Tex.) 1849-1869, 1868-07-10
The Kingston Murder.

, w VI 'ne Soutn, u Is n spo
4, peculiarly suggestive of scourit,
VI from the current noise and excite
A lncnt of the world A number q
Its citizens SO daily to Boston, bu
IN the main its population are ~n
, ployed near their own homes. A
J. visitor in the town fortnight ACC
would have deemed il the last place
" IN which to encounter crime in its
most fearful aspect. Yet here has
- been done deed, ;hs mystery and
s. horror Of which have rarely been
ol equalled.
On the morning of " cdncsday.
. May "a farmer Of the town.
g driving his cows TO pasture, had oc.
casion 'o-pass through ore Of the
pine groves which are feature Of
:. that region. In doing so he came
! upon the body Of man evidently
< murdered under circumstances Of
most aggravated brutality. The face
of the dead was terribly battered
aud the head itself was crushed into
the earth rs if the ruthless murderer
had lifted a heavy stone in both his
hands and repeatedly brought it
; down on the skull of his victim with
all the violence of which be was ca
pable. II was as if man had been
killing rattlesnakc, aud to make
sure had stoned its head until il was
thoroughly smashed into the earth.
-Four places where the ground was
stained with blood showed the scenes
OF successive stages of the crime.
The murdered man, though no, of
wholly strong mind, was physically
powerful, and evidently made dcs.
peratc struggle for his life Struck
from behind and stunned at first, it
may be, he was afterwards stoned to
death.
At first no one could be suspected. |
The neiehbors ali knew each other, /
and not one bore character ealcn. /
lated TO excite even tho faintost sus.
I piclon. The murdered man had last
been seen at the house Of Samuel
Andrews, friend, and deacon in
the Congregational Church a man
who was without reproach in the
community. 1t could not be that he
had followed from his own door his
own friend, and bruially stoned him
to death. Yet on him suspicion
soon fixed, and round him eircum.
stances have woven net work of
evidence from which he seems un.
likely TO escape Some operatives
had seen him go in the direction Of
the river with bundle, and return
without it. BY singular chance,
owing to high water in the river, the
looscned contents of this bundle,
thrown into the water to be carried
into the deep ocean, were caught and
held by oyerhahging willow branch.
es, until they were found aud Sc. !
cured.
They proved to be shrcds of cloth. ,,
ing covered with blood, and out Of +,
them was made, without diligently ;
needles sticking to them. When ,
these facts we're brought TO light, it
was remembered that Andrews, on
the evening Of The murder, although
he had appointed religious meeting
at his own house, was inexplicably
absent. His explanation was that A;
he was at work in his garden. Blood
was found ON hs vest. He said he ,
had been killing chickens. Micro ,
scopical and chemical examination
proycd that il was human blood with
which he was stained. Then some
ladies recalled shat they had met
him and spoken to him in the eve
ming, and that he held with his
hands to a ce.rail while he stood
with them. Upon examining this
rail it was found to bear blood marks
as if it had been grasped by blood,
stained hands. Even the wife OF
Andrews remembered that he was
restless and nervous during the night
after the murder. A Ratchet be-
longing to him is missing. IL found
with blood on It, il will add another
to the points of apparently eonelu'
siye evidence that Andrews is the
murderer.
Sill other circumstances strength
On tho evidence agains, Andrews
Tho murdered man, Cornelius
Holmes, brother Of Alex, Holmes
tho richest man in the town, was
worth some thirty. i've thousand dol [
lars. and had made will, in which I
he gave twelve thousand dollars to
Andrews, without any apparent
reason. This will was carried to be
registered by Andrews himself on
the day after the murder. me We
tim of this crime was wholly IN
offensive man. Only the desire Tor
money could have prompted the
deed And the circumstance that
ain hundred dollars were found on
tho person Of the murdered man,
Who had habit Of carrying all his
ready money Whenever he LETT ms
hou.e. indicates that il was not direct
robbery that was attempted by the
murderer. Andrews declares that
Holmes mus, have had fifteen hun,
dred dollars with him Evidently, II
he is himself the guilty man he
seems to be, wishing 70 have !,
thought tina, some one did me ueod
whose direct purpose was robbery i.
t The terribly painful aspects Of
? such a crime as this, tho brutal
s,oning to death Of an inofienSive,
man, and the turning Of suspicion to
deacon of the church, hitherto an
q exemplary man, mark this as one OF
the strangest crimes on record an
d,ews denies all knowledge OF the
{ murder. and maintains pretty com
!, nosed and firm attitude toward the
!, evidence and toward friends who
!. urge him, if guilty, to confess. As
!. Usual, the plea of insanity IS already
n suggested, on the ground that some
IS ancestor became crazy. A prelimina-
w exawination is waived, and the ease
. GOES directly before the grand jury,
y And will probably be tried at the
! mex, session Of the Superior Court
:. Meanwhile the accommodating evil
y dcuce will undoubtedly unravel com
) ple,ely the mystery Of the else.
D Bosros, Jrsr ., 1868.
J, Tt. ,,urderer of old Cornelius
Holmes. in Kingston, IL now pretty
Of generally believed to be Deacon An
n. drcws. who was arrested Tor the et'"'
VI - l.a ..ncc The chain o