The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-08-09
MURDER IN NORTH CAROLINA.

A WIFE AND CHILD KILLED AND HORRIBLY
MUTILATED by THE HUSBAND AND FATHER
EXCITEMENT AMONG THE PEOPLE OVER THE
SUPPOSED CAPTURE OF THE FIEND-NARRow
ESCAPE FROM LYNcHING OF ANOTHER MUIR
DERER.
RALEIGH, August o, 1875
Intense excitement created in this city about
three o'clock this afternoon by the arrival at the county
Jail Of party Of mounted armed men with tied
in n buggy driven by one of the guard
The spread like lightning that the
notorious and brutal double murderer Scott
Partin had been captured. In few minutes an
immense crowd had surrounded the Court House and
approaches to the jail and with cries for vengeance,
rush was made for the prisoner Without delay how
ever, Sheriff Dunn hurried the prisoner within the Jail
enclosure and then announced that the captive
Scott Partin but James Smith The excitement at
this moment knew no bounds, and it becoming known
that Smith, too a woman murderer, cry went up
'Hang him hang the damned villann The Jail doors
however, had now closed upon Smith, and the law
abiding spirit Of our people again prevailed The
circumstances of
THE CRIME
of James Smith briefly follows-Durng the last
two three years Smith, who rather good looking
of slight build and about twenty-five years old,
BILE character thirty i've years of age Towards
the close of last year the parties quarecd and Hcpscy
abandoned James and took up 1t is said, with another
This enraged Smith, and the Goth of last November he
met the unfortunate creature in the woods and sent
bullet from rifle through her neck, killing her in
stanty, evident from the nature of the wound
This murder was committed fifteen miles southeast
from Raleigh near the Johnston and Har-
nett county lines. The murderer at fed
and took refuge, it is said, in South Caro-
lima and succeeded in eluding the officers of the
law until this morning, when he discovered and
arrested in bed at the residence of his uneo near the
scene of the murder, by neighbor named wiburn He
made no resistance A guard was summoned and he
was brought in this afternoon, stated above The
of the murder of Hcpscy Austin were in
quircd into in due of time and prcscntment made
and true bill found against Smith by the Grand Jury
of Wake county at the last June term of the Superior
Court Smith therefore, stands indicted for this
murder and will be tried NJ the November term IL Is
said he admitted his guilt to the guard this morning
his way TO jail and seems to think little or nothing Of
the affair.
THE SCOTT PARrrN MURDERS
AS the readers of the HERALD outside Of North Caro-
lima may not be familiar with the details of the horrible
crime OF Scott Parn, the State papers, out Of mis-
taken Wow of the proper mode of subservng the ends of
Justice having made little mention of the matter
lest il might prompt the fugitive go beyond the reach
of the law, the following sketch of the hOrrid deed is
presented
Scott I'artn, a young man himself resided with his
young wife and child ten months old at the house Of
his father seventeen miles southeast of this CITY,
the of the Austin murder. On the 18th Of Febru-
airy last, pretcnco Of visiting his brother in neigh
boring county, he left his fathers house with his
wife and child After absence OF several days Par
Tin returned to his home without his wife and child aud
reported he had left them with some friends Colds
bOro, in Wayne county, IN this state Soon attcTward
Partin remaining for while at home and then begin
ming to wander from place to place in an uneasy state
of mind and his wife and child stll remaining absent
N
qury was made at the place where he had reported
them TO be e and at other places but no trace of them
could be found. Search now made for Parn him
self but he had disappeared. And now that foul play
had been committed became settled conviction and the
search for the living wife and child changed search
for their dead bodies From the date of the disappear
ancc OF the wife and child three to four months elapsed
Finally within about two miles Of Parn's home the
bones of COW and other matters led to the examna-
ton of the mire quicksand in dense underground
and, horrible to relate, bag was exhumcd containing
TIE MANGLED REMAINS
Of the missing wife and child among the most conspcu-
Gus of which was one entire breast of the mother and
ono ear of the child The remains were found
(jOncs and 1csh) to have been horribly manclcd and
subsequent discoveries disclosed log which tho
mutatiOn had been effected with axe and u spot on
which an attempt had been made To burn the bodies
peccmca. The discoveries left no to doubt the
identity of the mangcd bodies and the flight aud well
known conduct OF scott Partn left no doubt of his being
the ncndsh pcrpctrator. The deliberate and cold.
boodcd character of this crime may be gathered from
the foregoing circumstances, particularly rs no cause
whatever for II can be assigned by the friends and
ncighbors of the murderer aud his victims II NAV be
stated also ha; Partns purpose evidently was 10 cover
the crime by burning the rcmains but, finding this too
slow and fearing that buZlars other birds or beasts
of prey would indicate by their presence the location
Of the mangled remains, no concluded in bury what he
had not consumed by fire and selected for The burial
place the well known impossible miro or qucksand In
which, aud NJ considerable dcph the remains were
found To explain the congregation of buzzards &c at
this place Parn took the prccauOn of driving into it
and drowning or sulocatng neighbours cow
such the horrible details this most brutal muir
der Nor Is II to be wondered at that the supposed cap.
turc to-day of The cnd led TO the of settlement Al
our Court House. As already minated The pcope
of North Carolina are law-abidmg people and have
rarely rcsortcd TO lynch law But II is very doubtful
If there Is a community in State in which Partin
can be captured and tired by the slow process of the
law unless by very extraordinary efforts on the part of
the civil power At the last term OF our superior Court
Partin was indicted and true bill found and he Is now
a fugitive, with reward by the Governor on his head
1T Is believed that Partin and smith, above referred TO-
have been companions Of late though this il denied by
the latter 10 Is asserted as true that Parn was seen
last sunday IN the region of Smiths capture and was
fired upon and probably missed. a strong force of
armed men now in pursuit Of him, and his capture
Is daily expected