The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1874-02-27
wILLIAMSPORT ITEMS.

A very strange death, or rather death
caused by very singular arr y OF cir
cumstancPs, occurred at The residence of
Mr.. Gus. Houser, near this place, some
thing over a week since. The subject
was young negro man, about twenty
one years of age. The negro was living
at the time with Mr. SdmI Baker, near
Sha " Grove, in Hickman county. but
previous TO this year, had been living
with Mr.. HouSer, with whom he was
rather tayorite. About a week before
the death of the negro, Mr.. Houser
heard he was at Columbia, sick and suf-
fering greatly. Immediately on hear
ing his, MIR. Gabe Houser went after
him and brought him to his fathers
house, procured medical attention TOR
him, and did all he could to relieve his
sufferings, which must have been, and
were no doubt, most terrible. His feet
were gashed and bruised in a most hor>
rible manner, and added to this, had
been frozen. Indeed just before his
death they were a mass of complete
rottenness; so much so, that several of
his toes dropped off while he was being
clothed for burial. The immediate
cause of his death was lock- Jaw. The
circumstances which led to his death.
as tar as could be gathered from his own
statements, which cannot be relied on,
only as corroborated by circumstances
and the testimony of others, are as fol-
lows: He had at different times had
some alterations with different persons,
some white and some black, and being
OF a very timid nature, had fears that
some of these parties meant to waylay
and kill him. With this impression no
doubt, on his mind, he started from Mr..
Bakers to come to Williamsport. He
was met by several persons about dark
coming on toward town, and was seen
H., - E1a14 Ice
oftOwn. Nothing unusual was noticed
in his manner by any of these persons.
Yet very near this last point, is where
he took his fright, and where, he said,
he was rushed upon by number OF
persons, whose object he thought was
10 kill him. There is no further cons
sistency in his story after this, except
as to the route he travelled; and the fact
that he pulled off his boots that
"throwsthem off his trail" His boots
were found very near the spot at which
he said he pulled them off. The sur
face of the ground over which he ran af-
ter pulling off his boots, was OF the
toughest and rockiest character, which
sufficiently accounts for the gashes and
bruises on his feet, which were greatly
aggravated by their afterward having
been frozen. He was seen next day af-
ter this, high up ON Lieper's Greek, 60
ing in the direction of Santa Fe, was ac-
cOsted, appeared crazy, and insisted
that he was holly pursued by band
determined to Kill him, all of which
was wholly imaginary. After this he
was seen next day at Santa Fe, or that
immediate vicinity, imagining himself
closely pursued by crowd intent upon
his life; next he was heard OF at Column
bis, as has been stated; from thence
brought to Mr.. Bouser's, where he died.
He was at no time in his right mind af-
ter he was seen by Mr.. Houser, yet was
at times partly rational, though alto
getber wild in reference to the story of
his flight and pursuit, telling many i'm
possible things, and but little that was
even probable. Esq. NJ. M. Russell
summoned Jury of Inquest over his
body. and, aided by the Jury, made eve-
ry effort to elicit all the information
possible to throw more light upon the
affair, but learned nothing further than
is stated above, in accordance with
which a verdict was rendered. We
have been thus particular to give de-
tails concerning this matter, in order to
conotroYert many unfounded rumors
that have gone forth in regard lit, both
to the prejudice of the neighborhood and
some of the citizens. The general i'm
preston is that the negro's death was
caused by injuries done himself in run
ming. through fright, produced by an
imaginary cause.
Death has seized upon another victim