Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1875-09-29
The nsssiSssPPi nu scslEHY.


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THE vIsSsiSSIPPi nSrCIlEKY.
Trnc History sf The Recent Affair
nt CiintOn by an Eye Witness.
Correspondence Of the Cincinnati Gnzet e.
CLINTON, Miss Sept. 8, 1875.
As rumors OF various kinds have OBJ
tained circulation In regard to the re.
cent massacre ut Clinton, Miss. and all
of them wide from the truth, have
concluded to give you the correct ver-
sion Of that horrible affair as witness
ed by myself.
A Republican barbecne was in full
bloom. with probably $500 persons
mostly colored-present. M. johnson
q Democratic candidate, was noticed
as being present, and Immediately he
was invited TO address the meeting
although it was exclusively Republic
can-which he did in speech of two
hours length. When johnson had
con cluded, Mr.. Fisher the Republican
nominee, was called upon to reply. He
had not spoken fifteen minutes when a
drunken white rowdy yelled at the top
OF his voice that "Fisher was a id
lying son of a b--h.' Instantly the
negroes near him protested against
this insult to their speaker, and the
marshal of the barbecue said to young
Seivcly-for that was the name of the
white rowdy, "that while his, Seively's
friend, the Democratic candidste, was
speaking none Of the Republicans 81
suited him. and" He was cut short
by Seivcly saying: "What in hi is
that your business at the same time
hitting the negro Marshal at the butt
OF the ear and knocking him down.
As he attempted to rise Seively shot
him dead, aud a chum of Seively shot
another negro dead who had grasped
Seively's pistol. These two white
men, with four others of their gang,
now started to run, and some 200 me-
groes after them. The chase was live
ly and kept up for some distance. Very
few ofthe negroes had pistols, and
those were of the most ancient and
worthless kind. AS Seively was get.
ting over fence near the railroad
track, he was shot dead, and the other
murderer got across the field and hid
in q ditch, but the infnriated negroes
rcasne mpoaaa .hina.n aud athe eight or. ten
who hau pistols iired all taeir shots
into him. The report that the bodies
of these two white men were mntilat-
cd, except as 4 bavcstated. by the ahOts
from eight or ten pistols. is falae. !
saw both ho,hcs when they were
brought into town. The other four
white men ran into town, hut the ne
groes did not pursue them. bn: return
ed to the barbecue.
Upon the arrival OF these -four white
men in the town OF Clinton, they d, :
clared 1ihat the negroes were swear
ing they intended to kill all the white
men, rayish the women and burn the
town. As all the blacks were a. the
barbecue. there were only white men
in town, and they Immediately armed
and formed into two companies, one
taking gulley and the other the cut
on the RAILROAD line, so that they came
together just between where the horses
and mules were fastened, and the
blacks, who had now sgsin assembled
around the speakers stand. The
whites got into this position before
ally ouG hl tliS Ddt bGtuC hHC" uIas
without warning, opened fire upon the
$500 people with both muskets and
shot-guns The slaughter was simply
fearful, anil it WAS boasted in town at
night that "siNty niggers were killed
at that tire.' The negroes broke and
ran through all the fields and woods,
caying horses, mules, wagons, etc.
Mr.. Clinton, white man, upon
whose grounds the meeting was held,
and whose residence is near, was en-
desvoring To get some colored women
and children into his yard out OF
harms way, when a lot of white men
who had mounted the deserted mules
Of the negl oes, rode up to him and de.
liberately shot him dead, saying, as
they did SO: you damned Radical
you will protect them, will you p
Telcgrams were sent in all directions
calling on the white men to come to
Clinton with arms. Companies came
from various places. but from Vicks'
burg came the roughest, dirtiest-look.
ing company of loafers imaginable
These fiends--ior they were nothing
else--immediately upon their arrival
commenced to shoot every negro they
put their eyes upon. l saw them
shoot two black men at about s O'Clock
next morning who came along upor
the public highway, and who, as soor
az they saw the armed -Nicksburgers
waved each pocket handkerchief al
q flag of truce. The Nicksburg mnr.
der ers called them TO come on, and
when they were within five PAGES
these brave white men literally rid
died the poor deceived darkies with
bullets.
My blood curdles now when think
of the horrible butcheries which I saw
and the still more savage and disgust
ing recitsls which they gave me o
their bloody deeds, and the great mum
ber OF niggers they had killed. l live
In Ohio and am a Democrat, but ah
these white people here are anything
bu. Democrats. Ii this is Southern
Democracy, then wash my hands o.
It'll want no Southern Democracy II
mine. The Democratic party Of tht
North must take high advanced gronnd
upon these Southern outragcs or it il
lost.
have always ridiculcd the idea O
these Southern outrages, and when
came here n few weeks since, fully
believed that the only Southern out
rage mill run in the brain of Attorne,
General Williams and Marshal Pack
ard. But, alas! | am fully convinced
from personal observation that neitheI
Williams nor the Northern people eve
knew of half the extent this persecn
ton of the blacks Is carried to, AMI
simply, II seems Ia me, because th
negroes are almost ~ non.combativ,
as sheep,
/ 1t looks queer and strange to al
Ohioan to see men walking the street
with inuskeis and bayoncts who sr
not In the army, but are only citizens
and who Tins seem to have great fea
of these negro non-c0mbatant sheep
Would a white man OF honor or res
courage do such y foolish thing? Their
ia no more danger of the negroe
rising and killing the whites than ther
il of tho sheep on the Western Reserv
doing the same thing. And nnles
tho Democratic party publicly disow
these Southern ontrages, and aid tn
General Government to wipe ther