The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1873-08-20

DETA Is OF THE TERRIBLE DEED.-The
excitement in Wilmington over the re-
cent boy murder continues, aud the evil
denoeselicited before the Coroner's jury
confirms the statement Of the Whining.
ton papers that n more brutal, atrocious
and disbolical murder has never been
committed in the State. On Saturday
afternoon, the Coroner's jury, together
with the Solicitor and Sheriff, having in
charge tho negro boy, David Martin,
proceeded to the scene Of the murder.
The place is encumbered with O thick
underground. The water is almost
black, and dense foliage ercu mbers its
banks. The path to the spot crosses an
apcient mill site, covered with thick un-
dergrowth, where but one person Gun
pass at time. at the spot there is an
opening through tac bushes, shelving
downwards some eight or ten feet. A
tall pine towers up from the very edge
OF tho water mt the foot of the path.
Beyond the creek stretches for ubout
hfty feet, flowing in sluggish current,
the bottom gradually shelving down
from the bank until it attains q depth
OF some fifteen feet. On the right
hand is the trestle work Of the railroad,
where the body was found, distance OF
somo eighty yards. Standing near this
plae, the boy described the tragedy.
Coming. down by the railroad. he says,
one OF the boys stopped and sharpencd
the blade Of his knife on the iron Of the
track, little Willie walking ahead with
the other boys AS they approached
the side Of the creek vi nding along
through this path, the sam e boy cut q
short, heavy sapling. The other BOYS
picked up rocks and bricks, great
many OF which are scattered over the
ground. Arriving Mt the spot, Willie
anu Jimmie stripped of and got in the
creek. The other two sta;d on tho
shore. When Willie got tired, he came
ashore, upon which they threw his
clothes into the creek. Willie went in
again after them, after some little alter
cation succeeded in clambering up the
bank, and hadLspread them out on the
bushes to dry, when he was struck over
the head with the stick several times,
also on the shoulder. Added by the
blows, he staggered to the brink and
then Jimmie pushed him in. The other
boy, Billy, filed Willie's breeches legs
with stones. and tho boys threw these
legs around Willie's neck as he was
struggling near the bank. The weight
of the stones carried him down. The
boys sat there on the bank watching
some fifteen minutes. till the bubbles
ceased to rise, and they knew he was
dead. Then they took him by the
shoulders and dragged him by the hands
upon the bank and turned him on his
back. One of the boys. fastening his
foot around q sapling on the waters
edge, reached down and with his knife
mutilated the corpse, wrapping the se-
parated flesh in piece of paper and
putting it in his pocket. They then
took the body, and, carrying it as far
out as they could wade. they pushed it
into the stream. They then attached
the child's clothing to the breeches legs
and flung them out opposite the tree as
far as they could and sank them there.
When Willie was first struck on the
head, David says Willie said, "Ill 20
home and tell my ma." One of the BOYS
said, "Your ma got US to do it," David
says he sat down at tho head of the bot
tom close by. whero q large tree had
been cut down and lies. while these
things we're going on.