Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-07-23
High-handed Outrage at Bush
AFbOr Characterization
or o Respectable
Citizen.
A Case for Gen. AmeS' Immedi-
ate Attention.
From the Memphis Appeal. July q.

, whose name is connected with tn,
affair." and melting out 10 them tn,
most condign punishment:
LIN ths-aatHtaaref 1863; Eyouns
man came to Olive Branch, DeSotC
county, Miss, from Arkansas. Hi
name was McGinnis, his initials be-
ing G. W. or John L., our informant
cannot remember which. He was
poor, but well educated, polite, affa.
BILE, and his subsequent behavior
proved, steady, hardworking and
honest-a true man in every re.
spect.
| Being anxious to secure some
kind of employment, he hired him,
self Immediately on his arrival in
the neighborhood to Dr. Buchanan
as farm hand, in which capacity
he remained with the Doctor fol-
several months, and by his labori,
Gus habits, honesty and politeness
won the esteem and respect of his
employer and every one with whom
| uo came IN contact.
The weather becoming warm,
some time late in the spring he gave
up his situation at DR.. Buchanan's,
and accepted an offer from DIR. F.
L. Payne, also a resident of the
neighboFhood of Olive Branch, to
attend to and run a saw and grist
mill for him. He then became an
inmate of Payne's house, and init
mate with his family, especially with
his son, Lafayette Payne. His con-
duct in this place was strictly in
accordance with the good character
that he had previously earned for
himself at DR.. Buchanan's, and DR..
Payne said of him repeatedly that
he was as good hand as ever he
had about him.
During his residence at Payne's
house, the young man, Lafayette
Payne, with whom, as we have just
mentioned, he became very intimate,
told him as a secret several scandal
GUS stories about certain young
ladies in the neighborhood, one of
whom Mr.. McGinnis was visiting.
This shocked him, and he was much
troubled in mind with the ''secret"
so much so indeed that his situa-
ton with Payne, which caused him
TO be brought in contact with young
Payne, became hateful to him and
he gave it up, going back to work
on the farm Of DR.. Buchanan. But
even after making this change, the
affair weighed so heavily upon him
that he determined to divulge it TO
the brother of the young lady,
whose name we suppress for obvious
reasons. He gave the brother the
name of his informant, and told him
to use his (McGinnis') name as au-
thority for the statement.
This was in the first week in June,
on Friday or Saturday. On the en-
suing Sunday morning McGinnis
attended Sunday school at Bush
Arbor church, and while there was
called out by DR.. Payne. On COM
ing out he found himselfsurrounded
by Payne, his sons and five or six
other men belonging to clique or
band known to be at his command.
They Immediately seized McGinnis,
and disarmed him, DR.. Payne re-
marking as he was seized, "You are
my prisoner" McGinnis demanded
by whose authority and for what
crime he was arrested, and was an
swered by the Doctor that the arrest
was made under the direction and
according to the orders Of the
Sheriff. AS to the charge, the
Doctor refused to answer, but said
he(the prisoner) would find out
when he got him to fernando
McGinnis, confident of his own in
tegity and innocence of any crimi-
nal Offense, was astonished at the
procedure, but submitted quietly
to the arrest, asking only to be
allowed to go to DR.. Buchanan's,
get his dinner and make the neces-
sary arrangements for his sudden
absence. This was refused him by
Payne, who said he could get his
dinner at his house.
McGinnis, thus arrested and dis,
armed, accompanied his captors to
Payne's house, where the party all
stopped. From Olive Branch to
fernando is twelve or fifteen miles,
and a portion of the road is through
a swamp, yet these parties, instead
of setting off Immediately as they
should have done had they been
engaged in a lawful transaction, on
one pretext and another delayed
their departure with their prisoner
until late in the evening.
After being absent a couple of
hours they returned without him,
and on being questioned as to what
had become of him, answered that he
had got away from them in the
swamp and made his escape. This
sounded like a very likely story to
the neighbors at the time, but Nc
Ginnis' character was so high, and
the deed suspected so terrible that
they could not believe that it W as
not true.
Six weeks have since elapsed, but
as yet not one word has been heard
of the missing man, and every cir
cumstance points in the most posi-
tive manner to the commission of q
horrid crime, and lays it at the door
of DR.. Payne and his confederates.
On being closely questioned as to
his authority for making the arrest
in the first place, (Which he claimed
to have received from the Sheriff.
it was found that he had no author
ity, nor can he allege any cause or
reason for the act except that Nc
Ginnis was an enemy of his. His
sons have been heard to remark
that they could quit carrying their
pistols now and go to work, Nc
Ginnis would never come back to
trouble them.
There was Justice of the Peace