The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1871-10-13
HORRIBLE AFFAIR AT JET
FERSON, (O.) NFIRMA4tt'
A Crippled Boy Buried Alive by
Two PlayfellOWs.

Last Ouuuhy uSAA aAN' W
Jefferson county, Ohio, a little crippled
boy named Johnny Parsons was buried
alive by two boys aged respectively five
and nine and was taken out dead several
hours afterwards. The first reports of
the affair in the Steubenville papers were
overlooked; but the following account oil
the examination of the youthful muir
derers, taken from the Steubenville Ne1s
Of Wednesday evening, will give our
readers the substantial features OF the hor'
rible occurrence:
Yesterday afternoon, the two boys
James Hoiley and Phillip Sheridan, an
account OF whose horrid act in burying
alive the little cripple Johnny Parsons ap.
peaFed in our columns, Monday, were
still at the County Inhrmary. Mr., Por.
ter, the Superintendent Of the Institution
made application on Monday tor their ad.
mission TO tho Reform School. An &c.
count of the hearing before the Probate
Judge this morning is given below:
The little cripple was buried near the
Intirmary on Sunday. Holley and Sheri-
dan were both ut the funeral and saw him
in his coffin. Sheridan, as before stated,
Is only five years of age. He Is evidently
of Irish paTentage, He has pleasant
face, well Drowned and freckled. Yester-
day he was playing about the lnfrmary,
careless and happy as could be- When
brought in by Mrs. Porter into the pres
encc OF strangers, he was somewhat dis.
concerted at first, and ground his eyes
with lis fists in the effort to cry, The
gift Of nickel frightened his face, and,
| though not very communicative, he was
smiling and gOod.natured throughout the
chat. Holley, the other boy, is four years
the older. His mother is said TO be a
Colored woman, who formerly worked in
Steubenvillc. His complexion is clear,
and his hair light in color and straight,
and he shows no traces of dark blood 1t
Is said his lather is q white man who was
formerly well known in this city, Hol.
ley's appearance indicates his character.
He Is ugly, surly and mOrosc. Mr. Porter
says that he attempted some time ago TO
hang Parsons, the cripple he buried last
Sunday. Since Sunday, Holley has been
kept in close confinement In one of the
cells in the Intirmary, Monday night
he succeeded in crawling through the
small aperture In the cell door through
which food Is passed to prisoners. lie
was discovered and remanded to the
cell, but made another attempt yester.
day and failed. He only got part way
through the aperGture and had TO cry
for help to assist in getting out With
considerable reluctance the boys gave
their respective versions Of the terrible
affair. II seemed almost beyond belief
that they went to work with the DELHI
crate purpose Of burying their Comrade
alive. According TO their story, however,
Holley planned the deed carefully, and
only made little Phil his accomplish
when he had prepared and fully deter.
mined what he would do. The boys told
their stories rs follows:
Questlon-IIolley, what made you bury little
Johnny
Hoiiey-I didn't like him very we'll
| Q.-llOw degpw was the hole you dngi
Alt came up about as high as Phil ip'g back.
IA little more than three fcet.l We laid him
down In II. lie didn't kick much or fight lie
Just cried,
Here Philip said "Jim and dug the
hole. | didn't put dirt In Johnny's
mouth. | didn't want to bury him so he
wouldn't live. | put him in there just
for fun"
Question to IIOlley-Dldn't you dig the hole to
| put johnny In
AnswCr-Yes, We dug II with pick. We got
the pick down at the coal bank. got II good
Z ~ Nhn tn AMI 40
In. On
l Question to Sheridan-lIOw did YOU get John.
ny down to tho place where You had dug the holei
Answer-Wo told him to come down went
down ahead Of him. lie alled the hole irstratc.
Wegot him MP by the pens linear the house, and
three or four hundred yards from the spot where
be was buried lie was sitting up there playing.
lie was behind when We went down. i run
along 10 get the hole ready. jim laid him down
In II lie did fight some. held him while Jim
put tho dirt on.
ey-[Tnteruptingl--1t was Phil that put
the stones on Johnny. lie took hold Of his feet,
and took hold Of his arms. Phil told him we
were going TO bury him when we were going
down.
Mrs. Porter says, as has. been stated
before, thata little COlored boy at dinner
on Sunday said that "Jim and Phil had
buried Johnny down in the hollow" No
attention, though, was paid to the re.
mark. The dinner bell was rung several
times, and the missing boy not returning,
one Of the women about the Infirmary
took the colored boy and went In search
ofhim lie was found, as already stated,
buried in hole three or four hundred
yards from the house. When the search
began, Holiday and Sheridan ran away
and hid. They were not found for two
; or three hours after the body had been
taken out by Mr.. Porter. The hole they
dug Is beside lane which leads down
from tho Infrmary. Yesterday the pick
which they used was found lying near
: the spot, and five or six fiat stones, which
the two boys had brought before they
went after Parsons, were beside the
grave. ..e.-. -..
THE EXAMINATION THIS MORNING.
HOlley and Sheridan were brought be-
fore Judge Martin this morning, on the
application Of Mr.. Porter for their adtnis.
sion TO the Reform School. The Judge
took the testimony Of DR.. J. +. Purvi.
ance as To the physical condition Of the
boys, and that Of MIR. Porter as to their
conduct at the Inilrmary. Applications
for their admission were made out, and
will be forwarded TO the proper authori.
ties. Meanwhile, the boys will remain In
Mr.. Porters keeping.
... p. #
! The DesOlated City.
Mr.. ]. W. Miller, of the Cincinnati
Commercial, has visited Chicago since the