The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1871-12-14

stable was looked. We went bach To-
ward Williams house; saw some horse
tracks leading of the road into the
woods; followed them end found vii.
;ts1is hanging dead SC c .:ee With q pane.
on bis breast, which the foreman OF the
Coroner's jury next day read: "Jim Will
!iams on his big muster" Aftsr we
found the body, we went into York for
the Coroner. Jim voted the whole Re-
publican ticket; he voted for Mr.. Wal.
lace. -.
Cross-examined-Jim Williams was
the captain Of q military company.
They were; armed. with breesh. loading
guns, and had two OK three Cartridges
apiece served out to them. They lad
fired them nearly all away before the
election. / Was not lieutenant; wss
clerk OF the company, There had been
no raids before this: The company
went to the election; voted at MoCon.
melville. They left their guns. about
three miles from the polls; don't know if
they left any in shop close by. They
carried their side arms. They had .
meeting the night before the election.
arrested by the company, be. I don't
orally every Saturday, or every other
Saturday night. did hear some firing
about in the neighborhood at night. bnt
don't know who did it. / never met
any. with their guns st night, till after
threats were made Of the Ku Klux com.
ing. don't know il anybody felt any
uneasiness on account OF the company.
l have not heard that Jim Williams had
any consultation with Ed. Rose. T did
hear that Jim Williams had been told to
commence burning houses, if the killing
commenced. Mr.. Rose was COUNTY
Treasurer of York, and was a Republi-
can. L heard after Jim Williams was
killed, that he said if the election went
against rs. he intended to kill from the
cradle to the grave. Mr.. Ed. Crawford
told me that the night they came for the
guns, three nights after Jim's death.
there was no interference at the cleo
tions. We received the guns for the
militia company on the 10Th of August: :
the election was on the 10Th Of October.
Inc company drilled pretty regularly
till about Christmas, when they quit.
Mr.. Corbin-Where is Ned Crawford? +?
A. don't know. Ii is said he has left
the country.
Q. How old was Williams? A. He
was about thirty-five or iorty years oid (:
had lived In York about eighteen years.
1 regarded him as qualified to vote; he
took the necessary oath, and T received
his vote.
BY the defence-Q. How many were
there in the militia company? A. About
ninety. It was formed before the cleo
:;cn. don't know who gave the guns.
They we're said to have been sent by the
Governor. The cartridges came along
with the guns; two or three to each man
were given out. I didn't know who was
to be shot with the cartridges; didn't
know OF any white company. There
were other colored companies s-one at
York and one at Rock Hill-that I knew
OF. The whites applied to the Governor
Tor arms for their company. One of
them told me he was insulted by the way
Gov. Scott treated him. It was on the
first Monday night in March that the
murder took place.
Gadsden Steele was next called as
witness by the prosecution. He said: 1
live In North Carolina now. I was born
and raised in York County, in this State,
and lived there until last April. voted
at the last election there, and voted the
Republican ticket. I voted for Mr..
wallace The Ku Klux came to my
house on Monday night. about 10
o o'clock. was in bed asleep. My wife
woke me, and said I'd better get up
somebody was coming. l. looked out
and saw them about ten feet from my
door. They called to me for my gun.
1 told them I had none. They knocked
me about, and iobbed me in the face
with pistol. They then went round
and called out Mr.. Moore, The white
man with whom lived, and asked him
if I had gun or pistol, or belonged to
Williams company. BE replied. no;
asked him what ticket voted He said
the Republican ticket. They said to
me, cd d-n you. we'll kill you for
that" Then they ordered me to 20 out
in the road to No. 6. went out to him.
He bowed most to the ground, aud
hooked at me with his horns. He asked
me about the guns; if Jim Williams had
any. 1 told him didn't know. He
asked me to show them to Jim's house:
told me to get up behind-'Hurry M.
hurry up, We are got to be in hell before
day" 1 got up and they rode on apiece.
They asked me il I wanted to 20 with
them. said no. The man I was riding
behind halloed ont, "This id nigger
is too heavy" and then rode up TO the
fence and let me down, telling me to 20
home, and that if I wasn't there when
they come along at day-break, they
would kill me; that they intended to kill
all us fellows that voted for Radicals. I
then went round to the mill to warn the
other boys. and stayed out there till day.
About 8 O'Clock next day, heard that
Jim Williams was dead. 1 didn't 20 to
see the body; I was busy.
Cross s-examined-You say they asked
you for gun? Ayes. I didn't have
any; 1 told them I didn't know, but I
heard that Jim Williams had the guns.
1t was about three miles to Jim Will