Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1871-08-02
Ku.kLux INVESTIGATION.

MahNskOMNE &ANHCNs-AhS hNAoCmGD 10
far fn Favor of the PrfsOners-An-
, other Farce BY the Emitted states
Omcers-
l The examination in the alleged Ku-
; Kluxing business, which is said to have
taken place at Salisbury, IN this State, In
the middle part of June, was commenced
, before United States Commissioner Gar
ret yesterday morning in the United
! States District Court room, Waldran
block, in this city.
The first witness called was Mr.. Black,
Of Salisbury. He said he was the fore
man of the jury of inquest thst looked
into the case of the alleged ku-Kluxing
of William B. Garrett, about the 18th of
June last. The body was found in the
bed offs creek, lying on 8 sand bar sur
rounded with briars. The hogs had eaten
the lower jaw and part of the neck away.
The witness continued, '"There had been
others there before me. l found five or
six persons there when l went; Garrett
had married my sister. he lived in our
neigbborhOod about two years. He
moved Arkansas a year ago, He lived
twenty miles or so below Helena.
About two months brought his
wife back to Salisbury. He was
arrested because there was q reward
out for him.. BOwden, the constable, told
me this. He told me on Monday, after
Garrett was found hung. 1 never in
| QuAEEu u DQWubu as " INV AO buOukub
Garrett came to his death.
John Black, brother of the first wit
ness, testified that he lived near Ssuls-
bury twenty-fOur years. Knew W. B.
Garrett two or three years. Did not see
his dead body; saw him in the neighbor-
hood on Wednesday morning before his
death. l don't know anything about his
arrest. l heard 1t Friday evening; learned
of his death Monday morning about 8 or
9 O'Clock. l didn't go to where his body
was. The place where his body was
found looked as though somebody had
been killed there. | saw the mark of a
rope on ? gum tree. lt was q week or ten
place.
Wright lived in Salisbury since 1857,
except during the war. Knee William
b. Garrett; l saw him last, dead, about
the middle of June; 1 saw il about three
quarters of q mile from Salisbury in q
creek bottom. 1 was appointed foreman
of the jury of inquest by Squire Fer
guson. I examined the body; some
of the lower Jaw and part of
the neck had been gnawed by the hogs
He was black. He was shot in the mid
/ die of the forehead. 1t had the sppesr-
ance Of having lain there twelve or fifteen
hours. It was in the creek bottom; the |
place is sandy; there is a growth of brisrs
there. 1t was six feet from the road; may
have been ten or twelve. Saw marks on
the limb OF q tree as if made by
q small line, but it might have
been made by any other means.
I had heard tbs Garrett had
know the " block house, in salisbury;
it is situated to the eastern p6rt of the
town, near the Memphis and Charleston
railroad. 1t is in the direction where the
body was found. 1t is used there as our
station or gussd house, or place to keep
1900 nh. anwn mau1nnnnannaa IN Il
isskept by our tOWn constable, but we had
none at that time I can't say who kept
the key of it. He was arrested about IL
or II O'Clock on Friday 1 heard Colonel
Emory say he gave Garrett something TO
eat while he was in there, and also Mr..
put him in there. know all these de-
PENDANTS, Bowden, Chapman, Smalley and
Red; their general characters are good; I
have never known them TO be anything
but law-abiding men. We did not hold
the inquest in view OF the body. We
went and examined it. 1t was in q bad
condition. so / had it inferred, and I went
back to Salisbury and held the inquest.
Mr.. Robinson was examined; he made
statements on that examination which
led me to suppose that he knew some
thing about 1t. BoWden was elected
town constable, and when the county of
Bell was formed he was elected district
COusNdDl6s 1 uOAE kuCM Wu5kucT uo Was y
lawful officer or not. The block house is
fastened on the outside by q paddock. I
should think it not difficult to enter il
from the outside. Bowden never served
.ssiconstsble since he was elected.
n. ID. Lewis was next examined. Lived
in Salisbury, Tennessee, for the last six
months. l was there about the 18th of
June last. l knew a person by the name
Of William J. Garrett. l saw him up IN ]
that nelghbOrhood that time; l saw him ]
alive. / know he was arrested. Mr.. Bow {
dsn arrested him; Smslley was with him. /
l can't tell what time he was arrested. ]
he was put in the oalabooss st Salisbury. ]
1 visited the ~calaboose while he was there.
l heard Mr.. Browden say nothing about '
arrest; / dOn't think / heard Smalley J
say anything about his arrest. 1 visited
the ~calabOose again on Sunday. He wss I
there then; the door was open, the 9
was broken. / went there about |
eight O'Clock. 1 heard noise at the block '
house on Saturday night. / was about l
one hundred or one hundred and fifty Q
from it IL wss nine or ten O'Clock; G
my brother, d. I. Lewis, and Mr.. Stem ;
son, were with me. We wen toward the L
guardhcuss; il was a dark night; there o
no moon. / heard no voices; / saw
nobody about the ~cslsbOOse; Isaw persons I
sitting on Moore & Co.'s platform; 1t v
about half the distance between me e
and the platform. I went to bed q few 4
after that. 1 saw the body * II
Garrett ~sfterward; his face and NECK we're y
eaten away by hogs; most Of the front q
part Of the throat was gone; the back of a
5he neck showed the mark of a rope. In s
conversation which took place ia Cham q
Ders' house, Chapman said he knew Gar II
to be g horsethief, aud he must know !
who took PegrRm's horse, and there was o
a way % make him tell, and he ought to c
be made to tell. None of the defendants 9
lere were present. O
The witness here said that he felt timid- "
~ in giving ia his statement. b
q Why, Mr.. LeWis2
A. l thought l might be made to suffer o
or iE. Il
q Are you afraid OF these parties here? 81
Witness (after some hssitation): Yes, o
in, / am. II
On the crOss-exsminatiOn be said that Il
10 felt afraid instating what he had, but N
Ie told all he knew. n
ID. T. Lewis examined. Is q brother of q
previous witness; knew William ]. nj
saw him about z o'clock Satur- 80
IEy night before he was killed; saw him 10
n the c~alaboose; went there to see him; pl
Or. Spike came there shortly after; Sc
to see him; l used to be very well
cqusinted with him; l heard inst Bow re
sn and Smsllsy put him in; / saw mis- th
ody Sunday evening; 3 negro boy first se
)und 1t late Sunday evening; he came ra
SOhA anu gave tub d16Ems 4 went OUT | OIL
see it; the hogs had torn the hesh nom To-
is breast, u there was q hole in his fri
Irehead; there was the sign Of a rope on tn
limb of 3 tree. OF
Q-Do you know anything about his
eng taken out Of the g~uardhouse9 II
A.-LSte Saturday night 1 heard q noise
from there, and I could discern
moving in the direction of the Fir
u~srdhOuse; l could not tell whether they tic
ere men or horses, but in g short time l no
eard q knocking, q fuss, at the guard MI
ouse, and l thought there was some one viz
3leasing Garrett; L saw no light at the du
,labOose; l heard only One knock at the on
.labOOse; the paddock was q pretty large spl
Zed one; shortly amer | saw Sam Powell, Or
colOred man, come from the d. g.
'ction of the calaboose; the body raj
as found about q mile from town. Nj, pie
lacks house is he nearest place. 1t is pu
'out 300 or 400 yards, 1t appears that af- thu
T they killed him they threw his body Is
q briar thicket. on
A. J. Stinson has been living In Sauls- to
nine months. know Garrett when It'd
see him. heard they arrested q man of abI
at name, but / did not see him. / heard
nalley say that he had arrested SIR. Gar
tt. He said he had arrested him on sus-
clon OF taxing DE-. Pegram's horse, and
ere was q reward out for him. clerk 4
7 Squire Ferguson. never heard that IA
ere was q warrant out for the arrest of cor
lrrett. l don't know that there was a is
ward offered. Neither Smalley nor Va
widen were officers. The corporation sou
4 through; the Mayor resigned; there J
IS no corporation. mo
B. K. Emory, ia the course of his ex- tel
said: There wasa bottle found WI
hit at the time which, perhaps, con reg
ned some whisky. Some one remarked G
it was the bottle which BUD Lewis Col
q given him the evening before. Sam. d.
well, cOlOred, stated to the Jury Of in ct {
est that ne aaW aOnla of than 90 To thai N