Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1869-09-04
The Late Disturbance i'm Rutherford
County.

he kistc HBhSuuFUunCe AktttucEIOEu
County.
From the Nashville Banner of Sunday. ]
From two gentleman of Smyrna,
who were members of the jury sum-
mOned to hold an inquest over the
remains of Fred Tucker, colored,
shot by masked men last "Wednesday
night, near Smyrna, we obtain the
following particulars regarding his
death and the whipping of two other
negroes. They say that the troubles
originated on the day of the election
from the conduct of a drunken negro.
He had come into town drunk and
with loaded shot gun, threatening
that he would shoot some white man
before he left town that day; that he
intended to go to the polls, and that
no white man should accost or ques-
ton him. A young man ordered him
to go home with his gun, lest he
should accidentally shoot some one,
but the negro continued to use the
gun as before. The young man fear
of his hands, went behind house,
shot it off, and returned it to the ne
gro, who still appeared in a very
dangerous mood. An alteration oc-
cured, when the white man broke in
pieces the gun, which was worth per-
haps four dollars.
The negroes We're also much cha
grined at the way the election had
gone, the district having been carried
against Stokes.
During the night of the election
from fifty to one hundred armed ne
groes went into Smyrna and drew up
in front of the house of the young
man who, they alleged, had insulted
the drunken negro, and demanded
that he should come out that they
might make an example of him.
The intended victims father came
and requested them to go away,
promising to pay for the gun destroy
ed, and telling them it was too small
thing for which to kill human
being. Through the Intervention
of some colored men the crowd with
drew. On the Friday evening fol-
lowing the election some of them
again visited the town and made
threats against the people and the Ku-
klux, and stated that they were pre-
pared to meet the KukluX wherever
the latter liked, although the organ
ization was not then and is not now
in existence.
Last Wednesday night lot of col
ored men, as they stated, heard that
the KukluX would pass along the
road that night. They accordingly
armed themselves with guns and hid
themselves i'm ambush along the
thoroughfare named, and quietly
awaited events. At a late hour some
ten or twenty men, as estimated by
negroes, six or seven of whom We're
masked, came walking down the
road. Before they had reached with
in short distance of the negroes,
they were shot at by the latter's sem
tinels who precipitately retreated to-
ward Fred. fuckers house. They
We're pursued by the whites, jumped
into fuckers yard and went over the
opposite fence.
Tucker, becoming alarmed, ran out
of his house and followed the crowd,
for one of whom he was mistaken,
and shot. Had he remained I'm his
house he would hardly have been
hurt. He was peaccablenegro, anu
had no enemies white or black.
On overtaking two of the negroes
who had fired into them, the whites
administered q severe castigation.-
One of them was named Richarson,
who had acted as n vidette.
The negroes who had made threats
against the town and the lives of
white mems wives, and who col1ec-
ted in crowd in Smyrna on the
night Of the election, are represented
as the meanest and most desperate OF
their class and it is said that they
have continually mcnaced the whites.
The old citizens regretted exceed
ingly that the difficulty had occurred,
and Immediately took measures to
prevent any further disturbance
They resolved that nothing of the
kind should hereafter occur could ii
in any way whatever be prevented.
On hearing of the affray Of Wednes-
day night, many of the negroes took
flight, and came away to Nashville.
The citizens regretted that they
should have done so, as they would
have bepn nrOteptpl i'm all their riohts