Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-08-02


Powell Clayton returned to Arkansas
a few days after James Fitch, his servile
tool, the infamous registrar of Johnson
county in 1868, and Of Pulaski in 1870
come to Pope ostensibly to crate on the
fourth of July, at the Minstrel barbecue
The two barbecues held by the Reform
party on that day outnumbered the
/ Minstrel affair. This showed the hand
writing on the wall. That evening
Fitch, DOdsOn and HickOX repaired to
! Dover, the county seat, where they met
] Deputy Sheriff Williams, and the diC-
! bOlical plot and massacre Immediately
| thereafter executed We're cOncocted.
/ Friday morning, the fifth, Williams
went home in pursuance of the cOnspir-
acy, and the three other parties left Do
| yer for the southern portion of the cOun-
| ty. That night Williams pretended
] to be
SHOT BY KUKLUX.
Nobody believes a word of it. The cir
cumstances and the positive proof rem
der il impossible to he true. DOdson
and HickOX never returned to Dover
until they had collected their armed
band OF assassins, whom they dignity
by the name of posse, Arrests are
iZens, of the first rank in the commu-
nifty. Circuit Superintendent Stuart is
of the gang. Then follows the ride of
death-the thin subtertuge of an ambus-
cade-the wholesale butchery of defense
less prisoners. Then ensue the infa-
nous deeds of burglary and robbery, the
breaking up of schools, warning on lit
tie children, and the terrifying of the
citizens Of a whole county, and portions
of other counties.
THE ARMED MARAUDERS
are at large, and the Chief Executive
hobnObs with them and sends them
arms. Warrants are sworn out against
them and still they are not arrested.
Dodson, HickoX, Stuart d Co. are in
daily consultation with May, the Circuit
Judge. The marauders are invited to
court. They come loaded down with
revolvers and dOuble-barrelled shOtguns.
They swagger about the streets of Rus
sellville breathing out threatenings and
further slaughter. The examining gcourt
holden by Judge May finally sits, and
forty whelps appear for
THE PROSECUTION
to expose the damnable plot. The de-
PENDANTS wear their weapons within the
very courtroom. Their counsel, General
Gannt and Judge Wiltshire, assisted by
the Prosecuting Attorney of the Circuit,
I. NJ. Gibson, waive examination and
are admitted to bail by Judge May in
the sum of five thousand dollars each for
DOdsOn and Hickox and much smaller
amount for the other defendants, to an
swer at the next Circuit Court to the
charge of murder in the first degree.
Thereupon, on sthe sole affidavit oftE.
w. DOdson, the head assassin, Judge
May issues warrants against ten of
TIRE FIRST YOUNG MEN OF. POPE.
and they are brought to Russellville 10
answer the charge of constituting the
ambuscade, which it is pretended by the
DOdson posse, fired on them. The ex-
animation is set for Thursday, the
twenty-fifth, at Russelville. Promptly
ON that day every one of the defendants
appeared for trial. They come with
cloud of witnesses. They declare them
selves ready to prove that at the time of
the pretended ambushing, each of them
was miles away, not dreaming of the
murClerOus designs of the Sheriff and
his mob. Judge May comes over from
Dardanelle in the morning. The dav
drags on. DodsOn, HickoX, Stuart and
Cloniger hang around town, armed to
the teeth,
THREATENING
if the defendants remain over night to |
run in on them and kill them. The
court is not opened until after dinner |
Then proceeding for contempt of Court /
against Captain Barry of the Darda-
nellie transcript, for publishing an ar
ticle commenting on these proceedings |
in his newspaper, published in another |
county, from the one in which the eX-
amlning court was sitting, was taken |
up by Judge May sitting as a commit |
ting Magistrate of Pope county. This /
case had arisen since the other case had !
been set for hearing that morning, yet |
II was allowed the precedence, and oc-
cupied the time of the Court until five /
O'Clock. Then
JUDGE MAY
insisted ON adjOuming. First, however,
the other csse was called up and pressed
for trial, and finally the prosecution
stated they would be ready early in the
and asked the court that it
should be taken up at nine o'clock
the next friday morning and dis
posed of that day With this assur-
ance, the court was adjourned until
nine o'clock the next morning.
The defendants were allowed to
return home for the night, on their
promise to attend in the morning. Dod-
son and his gang scattered and all was
still.
THE NEXT DAY,
promptly, the defendants arrived again
with their cloud of witnesses to establish
/ triumphant defense. Dodson, Hickox
md five or six of their followers strayed
N. Captain Barryis ease had not vet
Deen disposed Of Nine o'clock came but
10 Judge May. Ten O'Clock, eleven,
welve. The general inquiry is, where
5 the Judge? The citizens of RUSSELL
Vile prepare dinner for the defendants
It their own expense. The afternoon
irags on, but Judge May neither comes
,r is heard from.
THE COURT DISSOLVED
By the operation of his default. And
hus ends the feeble effort to divert pub
ie attention from the horrible record of
he late atrocity, and cover up guilt by
crime on innocent citizens.
Then the weary defendants and wit
lesses who have been torn from their
crops and compelled to travel
niles to attend court, some of them being
90 poor almost to pay for dinner, are
illOwed to return to their homes. This
S the truthful record Of justice and the
aw in Pope county. We suppose we
viii not be guilty of contempt of court
When we say of Judge May, as man
md not as a court or Judge, that the
.ffiicted citizens of Pope county regard
Tim as no better than Dodson, Hiekox,
stewart or Cloniger, and as the boon
of murderers, highwaymen,
obbers and assassins.
.ErTER FROM A PRIVATE CITIZEN TO
,JUDaE ". N. MAY.
TlOVFp TnIv ., 1872