Knoxville Whig and chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1875-1882, 1875-08-18


came, that would be there on Tuesday
to go into writings about the land I
had bought. l then started home, a
distance of about one mile, believing
that Mayors had told me the trIth,aud
that Ausmus was dead. / then
thought US | had been seen that MORN
ing going with Ausmus into the wag
on hollow, and had beon ,oou alone
with him down in lnw "
Campbell Williams "a .. o
! testified against me on 81, .llt
| would be charged witt ,- murder,
and would have to prov. my nnp-
cence. This l knew | could not do,
! for no one was present 4 the time
Mayors told me he did the murder. /
had also told Mayors that would new
er tell il to any one. l will also say
! that the red race of men, from whom l
descended, have given up their lives
rather than divulge the secrets of heir
| fellow men, after promising they
never would. But l knew | must
| tell it or leave the coun-
| try, and for this reason left the coun-
| try and vent away. But when Aus
mus and myself were alone in the
wagon hollow, sitting upon a log talk
ing, at the time spoken of by young
Williams in his evidence against me,
we saw the little boy coming, and Aus
mus proposed to hide and scare the
little boy, | then dropped back behind
the log we were sitting upon and hurt
my forehead against limb, and when
| got home my wife saw it and asked
me If l had been fighting. | told her
all | had done was in self-defense |
then believed l would have to tell all
about it or leave the country, and /
had promised Mayors that | never
would tell it. Aud for this reason /
sent for my mother, borrowed some
money, and started in canoe to rela-
tives of my wife in Rhea county, Ten
nessee, by the name of Bratchen. AS
| Twas going down the river i'm canoe
passed my father-inlaw, Henry w.
Mayors, going in the direction Of the
place where Ausmus was said to have
been killed. He asked me where that
fray took place. l told him in the
wagon hollow. He then asked me, as
though / had done the killing myself,
if l did it in self Defense l then
told him would tell him all about it
at convenient time. This conversa-
ton was given in evidence against me
by Henry w. Mayors himself, also by
J. t. d. Smith, who said he was con-
cealed close to the river and heard it.
| did not know he was there at the
time.
When l got to my relations in Rhea
county, | made different and false state
ments about what l had come there for l
told some of my relations there that there
had been fuss in Claiborne county and
that l expected Thomas Ausmus was dead.
l remained there until the - day of Jan
1urxr T,gto hS,,, 4l,n,, axvN
morning, but was arrested that night by 9.
II. Rogers and VIM. II. Cawood, and some
six or eight other men. l did not know
who they were. Rogers and CawoOd tied
me and started to convey me back to Clai-
borne county, charging me with the muir
der of Ausmus, and tried to get me to
own it, or tell who did it. | told them at
first had nothing to do with the murder,
and refused to make any further statements
about it in any way. They afterwards gave
me liquor and told me it would be the best
for me to tell anything l knew about it. |
again told them | did not do the killing.
They then told me they would release me
if l could tell them lwhere the papers Of
Ausmus were hid. l told them that L did
not know anything about the killing, but
thought could find the place where l was
told something belonging to Ausmus was
hid. They then asked me who hid it. l
told them Greenlee hid it. did not know
they would arrest Greenlee, but as soon as
they got to Claiborne county they arrested
him. l then told them he was innocent,
and to turn him loose. was taken to the
place where l thought the pOcket-book and
papers of Ausmus had been pointed out to
me by Wesley Mayors. The crowd chat
was along looked in several places, and
think d. +. Rogers found it, They said it
was Ausmus' pocket-book and papers.
They threatened me, and attempted to get
me to own that l had done the murder.
was afraid of them, and | can not now say
what l then told them. While they had
me in their custody at the blacksmith shop
Of VIM. Ausmus, there We're fifty men
gathered around me some Of them rela-
tives of Ausmus. They were all talking
about me. Some Of them talked of mash
ing my head with a rock; others said |
should be shot, and others said 1 ought to
be burned Jasen Russell, a brother-in-
law of Ausmus, attempted to take my
shirt of, and was prevented by O. III. Rog-
ers who had me under guard. Rogers drew
pistol and made him stand back. Under
these threats of violence l made any
sort of statements that l thought they
wanted me to make. Lafayette Ausmus,
the son of the murdered man. asked me if
Henry Mayors had anything to do with the
murder. l told him if he did l did not
know anything about it. Ausmus then
shlu II l ulu not lupllcdLe henry Mayors
with the murder of his father, he would
fiji me with pine splinters and set me on
fire. 1 then told them that Henry Mayors
was connected with the murder. They at
at that time had Mayors in Jail for the muir
der of Ausmus, but l did not know it,
They robbed me of six dollars and sixty
five cents, which was all | had, and they
claimed that it was Ausmus' money. /
can not tell whether Ausmus lost any
money or not; but know the money they
taken from me was not his, and l think
they ought to give it back TO my wife and
little child. / was then carried TO Taze-
well, securely bound and chained by the
leg, where | have been ever since, except
when / was taken 10 Knoxville to attend
my trial in the Supreme Court. Since l
have been lodged in the jail of this county,
have often been visited by the relations
and friends Of the Ausmus family, trying
TO extort confession from me. l, on one
occasion, told them they had threatened
and scared me 10 make false statements,
and that they could now go away, for was
out Of their hands
He here gives the names of witnesses
whom he charges with false swearing,
and adds:
have now given my whole connection