The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1868-09-30
Remarkable Revelation,

Remarkable Revelation. Z
THE SPIRIT OF A MURDERED NEGRO rDExrr.
FIEs HIS MURDERER. -
From tho Memphis Ledger.
There are some of our readers, probsb}y.
who remember . murder perpetnted on t6e
State Line road, about Eve miles from IL
city, in the spring of 1865, the circumstao-
l1ces attending which were at the time en-,
veloped in profound mystery, and ELECTED,
the wildcat speculation, and conjectureor
among the citizens of the neighborhood -
Mr.: Robert L. White, who then resided on,
the State Line road, but who has since
moved to Kentucky, owned q negro ser
| want by the name Of Tom. In the same
neighborhood, but about one mile Of the
road, also resided Mr.. j. NJ, brother Of
Mr.. r. L. White. The latter had come 70
the city and purchased q bill Of goods fox
his own family, and had also brought ont
several small articles for the family Of his
brother, which on his return home he had
sent word to his brother to send and get.
On receiving this message Mr.. r. l.. Whit
ordered bis servant Tom to harness one x
bis horses to the buggy and 60 over aftsr
the goods. This was in the evening, and
Tom, after Harvesting the horse and hitch
ing him to the buggy, set out after the
goods as directed. Several hours elapsed,
and about dusk the horse, which was !
very gentle animal, and one which had fer
q long time been in the possession of the
family, was observed coming up the road
at an easy gait, drawing an empty buggy
after him. Tom, the negro, was nowhere
to be seen, nor were the goods in the baG-
y, where they should have been. At6rse,
the suspicion was aroused that the negro
had possibly stolen the goods and run
away to town. This, however, was put q
rest the next morning. Mr.. White, on his
way over to his brothers found the body
of poor Tom lying across the road. with his
skull frightfully fractured, and his brains
scattered around him. At point in the
road, q few hundred yards from the body, .
clot of blood was discovered, and the track
of the body as if it had been suddenly turn
ed about and started back. BY what
means Tom had come to his sudden and
cruel death no one could tell. Suspicion
could not be attached to any one in The
neighborhood, and all efforts to ferret ont
the crime proved futile. The mystssios
affair. however, made deep impression On
the minds Of those residing in the locality,
and has been frequently brought up in eoa,
versation since. No explanation had besna
arrived at, however, it would seem, sstl
one evening last week, when party q
ladies and gentlemen met to pass the evea-
ing at the residence Of Mr.. E. A. White, 3
third brother Of the family in questiQs,
among whom the subject Of spiritual msAi-
festati0ns was preached, and with the Iol-
lowing unaccountable result:
4 The party were seated around tshle
| land it may be here observed that Of a
articles of furniture table is most indis-
pensable to spiritual manipulations) snd
among their number was Mrs. Fclts, the
aged widow Of the ex-sheriff of this coun-
TRY, who on the question under discussion
coming mp, incidently remarked that she
had been told that che was medium, aBd
converse with the spirits of the departed.
This remark was received with laughter,
and one Of the party playfully suggested
that II she was medium she should sum-
mon the spirit Of the deceased Tom. and
question him "a to the manner Of his death.
Mrs. F. acting on the suggestion, at once
went of in q trance, and after remaining in
this state for few moments, said thaE
Toms spirit had appealed to her. and
would make revelation of his murderer.
i The matter was now becoming serious,
and the party were oil attention, while the
I medium, true to her word, began to repest
slowly the revelation as it purported 70
come from the deceased negro. The revs-
lati0n was, in substance that Tom hx3
been knocked on the head and robbed ri
twenty dollars, the proceeds OF o pistol b
had sold that the murder was committed
at the spot where the clot Of blood vas
discovered on the road that the body NJ
placed in the buggy, the buggy turned
around and the horse started home that
later proceeding few hundred yards, TIE
body was thrown again from the buggy.
, where it was found BY Mr.. White the III.
lowing morning, and finally, that the muf-
derer's name was John Andrews, that b
was negro still living in the neighbor-
hood. Here the spirit ceased, and The
question was propounded from one listscef
TO another, was there such negro as John
Andrews in the neighborhood No ocs
seemed to know such person.
II An old servant on the place, snd former.
" slave Of Mr.. White, was called in and
the same question put to him. Yes, be
said, there is such negro in the vicinity,
but be was no longer known as John An.
drews: About three years sgo be I'D
come into the neighborhood from Lonisi.
ana, and was FIRST known Is Andrev.!.
bnt that shortly after his advent he 81
changed his name to Tom Auer, BY which
| he was then called. The party ell knew
Tom Auer, and Tom was at once set dOwa
as the murderer. The party, completely
dumbfounded with the adventure OF the
morning dispersed to Retrospective homes.
and the next morning one Of them coming
into town, laid the whole matter before Col.
Beaumont for his advice and action, apd
here it at present rests. We give the
story for what it is worth, and as told By
the Colonels informant, ~
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