Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-05-29
JUSTICE IN DAVIDSON.
The HOusen Murder Case and Some
Of its Lessons,
Why the Hangman's Office is a
Sinecure.

ter. That was one OF the most savage, IN
human and diabolical crimes ever commit
ted in Tennessee. Il was greatly involved
in mystery, it is true; but four persons, to
whom circumstances pointed with terrible
suspicion as the guilty parties, were ar
rested and tried, and nOt-One has ever yet
been subjected to the penalty which the law
prescubes as the deserts of a tiend so in
imical to society as to perpetrate such a
deed.
Wilkes Barnes, Jere Stokes and Dick
Nolan, colored, and Mrs. Geraldine HOusen,
daughter-in-laW of the mmd eTed woman,
are the parties who have been put upon
trial. Barnes was the first arraigned and
was convicted as an accessory before the
fact and sentenced to Sc. We al hand labor in
the penitentiary for life. He moved for
and obtained a new trial on the ground
that The Jury convicted him on the second
count of the Indictment, as accessory,
when the Oflense Of the principal felons
was not made to appear, his confession,
proven upon the trial, being acceptable as
evidence only against himself. This ruling
of Judge Frazier appeared to us at the
time as nothing but just and still appears
to us in that light.
Barnes then agreed to testify as a witness
for the State, provided the Attorney Gener-
al would enter a nOlle pTOsequi as to him.
This policy seemed wiseSt to the State, as
there was no other direct evidence against
Barnes associates under the accusation,
sergeant jenkins, to whom hrs. HOusen
had confessed, having died Of the cholera, }
and a nOlle was entered to secure Barnes
testimony.
Now armed with Barnes as a witness,
the physical facts Of the locus IN quo and
evidence Of two confessions made by de-
fendant-one to a cOlOred man in Jail and
the other TO MIR. Tyne Sneed, q reputable
citizen Of Williamson county, the Attorney
General began the prosecution Of Dick
Nolan, strong in the hope Of sOlv-
Jig the mystery, and bringing
the laws retribution upon the heads Of
Barnes associates IN the commission Of the
murder. Nolan was tried tWice-a mis-
trial being entered in the first instance and
a verdict of acquittal in the second.
Mrs. Geraldine HOusen was next tried,
and she was acquitted. Through the enter
prise Of the press and other
means the community was fami /
iar with all the circumstances aud
known facts in the case. The court on
that occasion excluded the defendant S
confessions to Fletcher Fields and w. I.
Robertson from the testimony. We would
not undertake to criticise this ruling; we
only know that the Attorney General relied
to a material extent upon those confessions,
which were published during the period
and which were to the effect that the muir
der was done by Stokes and Nolan at the
instigatiOn of Barnes and the defendant.
Jere Stokes was tried and convicted OF
murder in the second degree and sentenced
to hard labor in the penitentiary, for a term
Of 49, years. He appealed to the Supreme
Court, which during the last term reversed
the judgment Of the court below on the
ground that the Judge refused to admit the
testimony Of NOl2n's wife. IS We stated
Yesterday, he has been tried again, convict
ed of murder in the second degree and
awarded twenty years in the penitentiaIy.
The Jury agreed that he was guilty within
4 very sh0It time after retiring and, as
has been intimated, would have
probably found for murder in the
first de-Jee, but for being precluded by
The former verdict. They gave him the
extreme limit Of punishment possible TO
inhigt under the circumstances and tie
law. Both Ms. HOGsen and Dick Nolan
were placed on the stand by the defense,
and Wilkes Barnes and Others by the pros
ecutiOn. The Attorney General was sue
cessful in proving those same Old c0nfes-
sions to the satisfaction Of the jury, and it
vas doubtless upon these mO:e than any
thing else that the verdict was reached.
The names Of the jury We're as follows: +.
Cunningham, 4. Matthew'S, c. Raspberry,
L. &. White. f. Is. Drake, W. b. Hill, q.
Is. PAYNE, a Stretch, john II. Stone, L. \.
Barnes, 7. ;. Lever, \. A. DenLam.
Unless a new trial is obtained this is the
end Of the proceedings IN the Criminal
Court against the murteT5Ts Of Mrs.
HOuseu. Whether attributable TO tie ma
ture Of the case, or TO defects and technical
tiles Of the law, or to the want CT skill in
the investigation Of the mystery and prose
cutiOn OF the accused, or to faults OF iuries,
or to errors Of the court, the result satisfies
neither the law nor law-lOving citizens. \
single negro convicted Of murderin the sec
Onl degree and sentenced 20 20 years in the
peuitentiaTy, Thus is thu law avenged for
the murder Of an aged and helpless woman,
evidently through q conspiracy. IL may
be q mere UIsfJrtuDe-uOhOdy's fault L is
no more than Justice to the Attorney Cen
eral TO say that the failure is not due TO
want Of energy, or faithfulUess on his part.
He has shown himself a shrewd and per
sevaring prosecutor. Nor DO we feel war
ranted in Criticising any branch of the
court on account Of the result in this case.
Judge Frazier is in many respects an adj
mirab.e Judge, as iIee from faults, no
doubt. as most men would be in his posi-
ton, though lacking, We thinE, the firm
ness necessary to the rigid administration
of Justice 50 badly L eded in this COM
munity,
But the TACT cannot be disguised-the
Criminal Court Of Davidson does not enjoy
the true and answering confidence Of the
people. This no branch Of the court, from
Judge to Constable, can deny. The inefii-
cheney of its administration Of the law, in
bringing the greatest criminals TO justice
is a matter Of constant and UnfayOTable
comment on the streets. The
UNION AND AMERICAN has no respect
for the opinions Of a mob, but the writer
cannot help recalling the ieerS and con-
temptuOus wells that rent the air whenever a
word Of remOnstranc8 in favor of dieting
the law take its course was uttered in the
midst OF the crowd which assembled to
lynch Reed on the night Of the 3Oth ult
Il is against mObs that we are writing now.
Giving publicity TO the current Of Senti-
ment may have the effect Of working q
reformation.
Our juries perhaps bear the burden Of
complaint, and with Justice. The para
graph published in this paper concerning
The Raymond Thomas jury has excited a
good deal Of comment and has UnquesLion
ably met with general and pronounced ap-
prlval In this community. We DO not
know 10 the letter how the facts were pre-
scented to the jury, but We supposed they
were brought out on the trial substantially
as they had become matters Of nOtOriety.
A Franklin Boys Luck in Cincinnati.
We notice by the Cincinnati papers that
Walter +. Carter, q pleaSant-manneTed and
intelligent young man Of Franklin, Tenn,
who went to that city few days ago for
the purpose Of entering Nelson's CONNER
cial College, was upon Lis arrival victim
lied to the extent Of a tifty-dOllar note by a
confidence man named DeHan. DeHan,
notwithstanding his propensity TO lie,
steal and gull, is at the head Of a business
academy, lOcatedveTy near Nelson's Com
mercial College. Ascending by mistake
into DeHan's apartment, Carter found
himself in the presence Of that person.
SIS this Nelson's Commercial College,
he inquired.
G. ''NO, sir; Nelson sold out three years ago.
l have it now"
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