Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1874-10-01


negroes organized a Democratic club, /
which is daily increasing in number"
The dnsm1ts of the killing, and its re-
suit, fully appear in the four concluding /
lines of the above paragraph. The second |
account of lvey's murder is from the
Meridian Miss Mercury, also Demo- /
cratic newspaper:
ASSASSINATION OF A CoLoRED MAIL
AGENT
Yesterdy afternoon, as the Alabama
and Chattanooga train was coming this
way, about three miles beyond York, and
six this way from Livingston, man stood
and tagged the train down with his hat.
Charley Briggs was the engineer, and stop
ped his train. Immediately as the train
stopped, some three to six shots, various
ly stated by eye witnesses, were fred at
Thomas L. Ivey, the colored mail agent.
He is said to have uttered q single ex-
c1amation of pain, and, from the terrible
character of the wound, was, doubtless,
killed instantly after. The train brought
the body to this city. 1t is supposed Ivey
came to the door of the car to observe
what the train was stopping for, and so
gave his slayers the fair opportunity they
wanted. It is said there were assailants
on both sides of the train. Their work
was quick and decisive, and they disap-
peared in the brush, and no one of all the
| people about the train recognized any
one. ",oi- E
'tOur good friends across the border
will allow us to use this item, which came
4 from their State, and take notice that we
make no charge against the Sumpter
4 county Democrats, and insinuate' nOth-
ing except, from what is deemed reliable.
information, that the deceased was dan
i Fr,41 of fIa
nifty" 'ae=s n
The most intelligent account of the
murder of this man, however; is from the
report of United States officer, who Wis
tied the scene of the murder soon after it
occurred. L extract that part of the re-
port which bears upon this case: son
Saturday, August %, 1874, Thomas L.
Ivey, route agent on the A. and G. rail-
road, between Meridian and Livingston,
I was brutally murdered in his car, while
in charge of the United States mail, and
in the usual discharge of his duty. The
circumstances of the killing can only be
cleaned from the evidence of the engi-
neer of the train, who says: about three
O'Clock in the afternoon, on August 20, ]
| discovered man on the track, waving
the signal of danger. Immediately put
on the brakes, and the train was stopped
in cluster of thick underground on each
side of the road. Then the report of
number of guns or pistols was heard and
Ivey was found shot to pieces" When
the friends of Ivey took charge of his
body twenty odd bullet holes were found
in it; his jGlUs qUere cut open and his tongue
pulled oatt By the roots. (See report thereof
in the Daily Alabama Journal, September
81 The ''charge" against Ivey was that
he was niger" and, "meddlesome" in
politics. AS apropos to this murder, I
append the following from the Selma
Daily Times of September g.:
"The killing OF Tom Ivey, the negro
. route agent, the circumstances of which
are noted elsewhere, has, SO we are in
!, formed, caused considerable excitement
among the negroes in this city. Some of
them, so we are informed, have used some
very imprudent language concerning the
matter. If, as some of them assert, Ivey
was murdered by Ku-Klux, would not
} these blatant fellows do well to dry up ?'
The purpose of this band of outlaws
was simply to get rid of Ivey, for after
, the killing occurred, the train and mails
! were allowed to proceed untouched, and
unmolested. This is the second route
} agent murdered on this route.
E Again, 1 gather from the Meridian Mer-
/, curry (Dem.) an account of the killing of
: of August "a, 1874. Nothing is known
e as to why these negroes were killed.
: They were all shot. The correspondent
o of the Mercury, writing from Gainesville,
. Ala, August 26, 1874, faceti0usly re-
d marks that "tWo of the crowd went dead
o in corn field" This Democratic CORE.
+ spondent concludes his article as follows
# "All these deaths occurred on the 24th,
= except the negro woman, who was killed
e early on the morning of the 25th. Mr.
It Vincent (the gentleman who gave the cor
# respondent the items of news) being asked
n if it was a good night for killing, an
b swered, No, it had been dry for som,
i weeks"
The next ''case'' I will offer is that O
the assassination of Simon Edwards
which clip from the Meridian Gazette
- The murder occurred near the Alabam;
- line:
le 'ETHE ASSASSINATION OF SIMON EDWARDS
P. Several weeks ago, it will be remem
es bered, Simon Edwards, a well-to-do color
y ed man, living some eight or nine mile
J. in an easterly direction from Meridian
ID caused to be arrested several young mel
b. living in that neighborhood, charging
OF them with assault with intent to kill
Is. Upon hearing before Justice Morris Q
as this place, an alibi was proved and tn
ed prisoners set at liberty. All parties con
is nected with the affair returned quietly t
he their homes and no more, SO far as ha
IT. come to the knowledge of the community
at was thought about it. .,....
at "On last Friday night, August 81, 81
es mon Edwards was taken from his hous
lie by band of men. some ten or more /
ed number, and most foully and brutal
q murdered. On the same night, or rathe
IL ell 1f
he roe Keeton, a young man living at Toon
an suba, about thirteen miles distant asst
is Meridian, and five or six miles frol
=" where the killing of Edwards took plac
us was found dead in front of the depc
ng building at the above named place. A
in might be expected, the air is filed wit
ne rumors and counter-rumors as to tt
se- causes that lead to the death of youn
Keeton, and by whom the killing Of bot
,al Keeton and Edwards was done.
Use "On Saturday, as the report of the a
'er sassination of Edwards reached Meridial
me Deputy Sheriff Lowry, with Coroner M
ed. Roy and jury of inquest, proceeded
st, once to the place, and, after the examin
in ton of the witnesses according to law, r
Ill turned verdict in substance as follows
de- Come to his death by gun-shot wounC
at received at the hands of some unknoW
lgs persons: There were three eyewitness,
IL to the murder of Edwards the wi
his of the deceased, eolored woman of ia
ng intelligence, the other an old woman, IL
ng mother of the deceased, and little gi
lly about ten years of age, his daughte
ill After the investigation by the Coroner,
tut warrant was issued by him, based on
affidavit sworn out by Bvalina Edward
Id the wife, for the arrest of Willis Merit
i'll James Barefeld, Fayette Sims, and Wi
ro- liam Sims. The parties all responded
nat once to the call of the officers deputiz,
tn to make the arrest, and on Tuesday a
tbs peared. before Justice Morris, to answ