Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1871-05-05
From the Raleigh Sentinel.

last orr usually quiet community was
shocked by the intelligence that on the
previous evening whole family, consist
IuE oE six souls had been slaughtered IN
Morgan township. not far from the Nc
Dowell county line. Information. subse
duently received confirmed the dreadful
tlie, giving further particulars which were
.abstantially as follows:
Sias Weston, a free negro before the
war. has for many years been living with
Polly Steadman, white woman of loose
character Polly has, or hadfour children
(whitc) the eldest about fourteen, the
Youngest nearly two years of age. Silas
and Polly lived peaceably together, and
were In better circumstances than most OF
their class.
Some time ago three notorious charac-
ters-Govan and Columbus AdaIr, and III.
Bernard, were charged with the THEFT OF a
quantity OF brandy and bound over 10 MIC
DoweII Comfy Court, which meets on the
1T inst Silas had seen the thieves carry
inC of the booty, ard was subposned as the
principal witness for the prosecution. The
hd4irs threatened his life if he ''peached;"
hut Sila3 expressed determination to
bring the rogues to Justice. What we now
proceed to state IS the sworn deposition OF
tie woman, Polly Steadman.
On Wednesday evening, April 25th,
shortly after rightfall, while the family
were preparing to retire to peaceful re pose,
the faithful dog on the hearth began to
J4rk violently. Polly looking through the
chinks between the logs received a pistol
bullet in the eye. With wild scream she
sprarg back and at that instant the door was
broken down and in rushed Govan Adair,
Columbus Adair and Bernard, firing as they
cane. Silas fell dead with two balls IN
the head.
One OF the esaassins stood over the CHILD
rem as they lay upon the floor. shooting
them through the head like o many pigs.
Polly stopped to creep under the bed but
was flung back. Then she began to fight
ike u tiger. One Of the buthcrs attacked
her with knife; finally with five deep cuts
IL the body, with her throat deeply gasheu
and pistol ehot through the eye, this
POOR creature sank to the floor and WIS
Licked into Il pile Of broom straw prepare
tory 10 the grand alHO d0 f.
Meanwhile every voice iii the family
had been stilIcd ; SIX lifeIles bodies Jay Oh
the bloody floor the old mum on the
hearth, The mother haggIed in pieces il
the straw, and the children in their night
clothes, lying where they fell OF had bt CT
i05tled by rude fc-t.
The tends contemplated thoir W ri: 10
make sure i had been dOEe thoroughly,
and prepared to hide their tracks Piliug
mp clothing, straw aud other Combustib!u
matter they applied the match, and then
away into the darkness,
\ as, they lad Lillon their tracks They
could retire to peac oful beds Was not
the county oyerrun With ku-hIux? In
this they had Judge Logan'5 opinion. See
his letter to Gov Caldwell. read i'll Con
gress, published IN the Globe, and repnb
lished within five hundred yards Of the
Judges doorl And it was understood to
be Que OF the objects OF the ku-kiux not
TO allow nltSceqettGttlOtl.
SO, this negro and this white woman,
having been slaughtered and burned By
persons unknown, who but the Ku klux
could have done it? But murder will
out" And now occurred what may we'll
sound marvellous. Polly Steadmap, scorch-
ed by the flames. arouses herself, seizo5
her youngest child, who gives signs of
life, ana crawling towards tho door, tries
to drag ont another child, but nature fails,
and the body lies just outside the TIRES
mold. Then, with supernatural strength
Polly staggeTs the distance of half mile,
to the residence Of Mrs. Williams and gives
the alarm. 1t IS too late; three bleached
skeletons grin from the ashes and Bills
tered corpse lay without the door
As soon as possible, messengers were
dispatched for Sheriff Walker and for
medical assistance. Before either arrived,
Polly supposing herself IN e.rt7emes-the
last agonies of death solemnly testified
against the murderers. She knew them
well, they were her near neighbors, and
were not disguised. Her testimony was so
clear ana positive, it carried conviction to
MI who heard it. Accordingly, A Hanes,
ESQ, promptly issued q warrant for the
arrest Of the suspected parties. They
were found at home-One of them in bed,
though late in the day. Sheriff Walker
arrived shortly afterwards and conveyed
n yVbnrP
closely confined.
DR.. John W. Harris, who was IN attend
ance on the suffering woman all day yes
to-day, informs us that Polly Steadman is
in a very critical situation, but that the
child is likely to recover.
Commenting on this horrible affair, it
is proper 10 state with emphasis, that all
the parties are of the lowest order of SO
ciety, and that all of them-the slain and
the slayers, are radicals of the deepest,dye.
The Adairs, for years, have attended the
polls for no other purpose than to insult
and intimidate conservative voters So
'stroOly loil" were they, that even with
murder in their hearts they sought to
make the deed rebound for the benefit of
their party. lad they merely wished to
kill SiIas Weston, to stop his evidence
against them, it would have been easy to
have done SO in an unguarded moment,
when he was alone at his work. But by
killing the whole family, and burning
them up, the blame would ever have been
laid on the so-called Ku-klux. Judge
Logan might have written another appeal
for troops, and J. i. Carpenter once more
chased the imaginary Governor to tho feet
of the Nye of Nevada. Far be it from us
to speak harshly, much less unjustly of
men under charges of so serious a nature,
but where evidences of guilt are so plain,
and the crime so leinous, it may we'll be
asked if the gallows is not too easy a death.
More anon. r. A. S.
Rain after Great Battles.
It was observed during the late kwar in