The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1873-06-13
THE JURY FRAUD IN EDeEFIELp.
OUR JUNE CouRp--snoRT, SHARP, AND
~e DECISIVE

On Monday morning last, at 10 A. NJ,
the June Tern of the Court of Common
Please and GAe neral Sessions for Edge6eld
County was formally opened. The rite
was not ouly solemn one, but profoundly
novel; for il must be remembered that
Courts in Edgefed are tradition--some.
thing that has faded t. the complexion OF
''The Mysteries of Udolpho" and Jack
the Giaut Killer" Judge Carpenter was
present, looking like cross between bear
and wild boar We once knew just such
q looking Judge in France and the people
called him Le !S,,rglier And IN the
Judges manner the boar and bear traits
are also very tremendously blended Soil
citor Ruukle was present, youthful, hyacin-
thine, and with an air of having no earthly
part or PARCEL N the business The lawy-
crs were present. You all know them.--
The Clerk and Sheriff were present. Dit
to. The colored constables were present.
Ditto All the limbs and outward -four
ishcs Of the ''pslladinm;" but, alas not the
palladium" itself No Jury No means
of safe deliverance No underlying stone
of Magma Charta!
Not a great many citizens from the
country were in attendance. The rains
have been so constant and labor is so pre-
carious, that they must perforce stay at
home and attend to the salvation of that
other and dearer palladium "--cotton---
But still the Hall of Justice was full
The Judge having mounted the bench in
a very characteristic fashion, annoucncd that
he had been notified officially of tremend-
Gus jury irregularities in Edge6eld and
that he wished the matter to he forthwith
riddled, ripped up and Siited and was de-
termried moreover that it should be And,
en- f"ssae,, he informed all officers of the
Court that il they did not do their whole
duty, they would undoubtedly have "a hard
road t. travel +" Imagine this phrase on
the bench in former days! But still there
was riddiing and ripping up look out OF
his lionor's eyes and lower Jaw that de.
lighted and onchaiued the audience. 1t
was like the opening scenes of bull fight
LIS Honor was the bull, glory Andalu-
suian monster while Messrs Barker, Strom
and Ballnger were the trembling and
quailing Matadores.
MIR. loumans now rose and read nfiIa
Wits from Sheriff Wall and C)e-A-ot.the-
Court Ramsay, terribly crimiu atng Barker,
Strom and BallinS"s In the jury villanes
And then this attorney said word, and
that attorney said word, and tho other at
torney said word his Honor tomahawking
in num,E,us words all berween. And then
h'' 't%tr ~ iss maii. "sfof IL ufiu used
70 dcahnG n rascals, ore cred the Sheriff
to So and fetch him the Jury Box. This
th" Sheriff quickly did--bringing il from
the Auditors office, where it had rested
since the day of hugger- r-mugger drawing.
And upon being placed before his Honor
and opened, 10 well nigh half the tickets
were found uRf9IdeG! Great sensation
Astute Judge Nefarious Commissioners
And after this, his Honor asked the Solici-
tor what he designed doing in the premi-
5es, and the Solicitor, relIgiously maintain
ing an air of having nothing upon earth to
do with 1t, replied in substance, if we mis-
take not, that he didn't know what to do
Hcreupon the Judge gave Barker, Strom
and Ballinger until 2 o'clock P. M. to
make showing, and adjourned the Court
Promptly at 2 o'clock his Honor again
entered the arena. aud roared for the com
batants. They entered, led by Messrs
Gary & Gary, their counsel. The audience
was crowded, and intensely interested and
amused. The counsel Of the miscreants---
we moan defeudants-now read elaborate
counter affidavits, in which Barker, Strom
and Bailingcr were purged with byssop,
and the damnipg onus thrown upon Wall
and Ramsay. And then the Judge an
nounced that all the afidayit-givers, and
others, pro and con, might be riddled and
ripped up in cross examination. And they
were ripped aud riddled Barker, undoubt-
edly leaky before, was 30 perforated that
he can never hope to hold water again
while the County Auditor, who is also IVA.
clnthine, and with a like air of having
nothing Upon earth to do with it, made the
astounding revelation, that he had never
read the Act defining his duties. The
whole thing was intensely astonishing, in
tensely amusing, intensely rotpier
And then the counsel for the defence
spoke lengthily, vauntingly and ingeniously
for their clients----being slaughtered eyery
now and then, in very amusing style. by
the presiding officer. And ifnrncdiate.y
upon their wiedipg up. tho Jatige, with the
aitl aid tnas1not, Of man in nlenayerie,
with q long iron spear, stirring up the ami
mails, gave huge bite at the thing, and
snapped il off as if it had been dessicated
bnlrush. He stated that he had been en-
deayoring to find out if there were grounds
for indictment and prosecution against the
Jury Commissioners, and that he clearly
saw there 1ere such grounds; and further
more that he had found these jury villanies
in three Counties out of the four forming
his Circuit, and that he was solsmnIy de.
termined that no man or set of men should
further clog the wheels Of justice. Here
the audience app'su5ed him, and were fear
fully sangtered for their pains He, next
ordered that Bench Warrants should i'm
n,ediste!y be issued against Barker, Strom
and Ballinger, to appear at the next term
OF the Court of Sessions for Edgefield Coun-
Y. and, upon il being represented to him