Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-08-18
Its Origin and Cause.-The Militia Or
ganized for the Purpose Of Killing
the Whites The Negroes OBJ.
struct the Highways and
Curse the Whites.
General Buffers Efforts TO Prevent
BlOOdshed-The Captain Of the Mil
itia Orders his Men to Fire on
the Buffers.
The Negroes Defy the Authority Of the
COurt-NO Shooting by the Whites
Until MerriWether was
Killed-Etc.


half of the persons accused OF being
concerned in the Hamburg riot, throw a
flood OF light upon the affair, and will,
it is hoped, put it before the country In
its true aspect. The witnesses are eiti-
Zaps OF good character and high stand
-T+s WY vtsv.sS 81 Justice tf1uiH words
would outweigh the words Of excited
and alarmed negroes who, in many
CASES, are proved to have made extraor-
binary blunders, il they did not foully
perjure themselves. In nearly every
case, it is proved that the persons
charged with the killing at Hamburg,
as principals or accessories, were far
from the place at the time that the crime
was committed. This will be shown
whenever they are brought to trial. Our
more immediate concern is with the
causes and origin Of the afray, as made
apparent by the testimOny submitted for
the defense on Thursday. The fight took
pace, il ~hculd be remem Dered, July Sth.
The parties were body Of armed re-
groes, clsimirg TO be militia company,
and 8 number nf wi lite citizens OF South
Carolina and Georgia. John Lee (cOi.
ored), Of Aiken, swears that Doc.
Adams, in June last, told him he was
organizing militia company at Ham.
burg ITO kill the whites" F. Taylor (col-
ored) swears that he was told the same
thing, by Adams, at about the same
time. Both these witnesses are Rsdi-
Gals. Edward Rumley sWesrs that pre-
vious to the fight, on different occasions,
armed bands Of negroes patrolled Ham
burg, stealing cattle and destroying
fences. Other witnesses confederate
this. J. It. Butler swears that on July
Sd an officer and two pligstes of the ne
gIo militia halted him and tried to pick
q quarrel with him. Aaron Butler (cOl-
ored) swesTs that on July 4th Attaway
boosted to him that the militiaintended
to kill the Whitfs, and several negro
women who were present said the men
would shoot the whites and the women
would cut their throats. George Hen
derson (cOlored) swears that, on the
same day, he and another colored man
wero invited by Attawsy to Join the
company he was getting up to kill the
whites. This is evidence enough Of the
purposes Of the organization or IeOrgan-
iZation of the militia company. We now
come to the overt act which led to the
fight on July s h. Two young men, on
July 4th, were driving along the main
road in Hamburg. When they reached
q point where well and q ditch cover
half the road, they were met by Doc
Adsms's militia company, who cursed
and abused them, spread themselves
across the road, and refused to allow
them to pass. They were detained tif-
teen minutes, when the militia broke
ranks, and the young men were allowed
to drive on. The averDent of the ne.
groes that the two white men interfered
with them, and would not pass or,
although they could have done SO, is re.
butted conclusively by the Sffidavits of
the young men themselves. They are
men of character and standing, and the
conduct of the negroes toward them Wss,
as we have shown, consistent with the
apparent purpose of the armed negroes
to force q collision with the whites.
Proceedings were taken against Adams
and his militia company for 0b5tructing
the highway. The hearing took place
On the sixth. Adams was go iDsolent in
court that he was rebuked by Trial Jus
tice Rivers and placed under arrest, and
the further hearing was adjourned to
July Sth. Rev. ]. p. Meahng swears
that on July 9Th, Attaway, after the pro-
ceedings in the trial Justice court,
walked up and down the street, cursiDg
the court and the whites, declaring that
he was ready for fight, and SO exciting
the negro women that they yelled out,
"Start it now! start 1t now! We want
to hang on some white mans col
lar" The same gentleman swesTs
that Doc Adams said, damn Rivers
and his court; while have company
no damned negro or white man shall
rule me-" Prince Rivers c0rroborates
Mr.. Mealing's statements concerning
the conduct of Doc Adams and his ar
rest for contempt. This same day Aaron
+. Tyler was cursed and threatened by
the armed negroes in Hamburg; and
Mr.. d. s. Henderson swears that he was
told by EX-Speaker Lee, pending the
trial, that Sparnick, the Radical judge
of probate, said that good thing, polit-
ically, could be made out of the affair of
the fourth, and that Spsrnick tubse-
quently represented the State. 1t should
also be noted that Jerry Whitlock (col-
Ored) swears that on the fourth Of July
he heard Attaway make threatening re-.
marks against Henry Getsen, who was
riding by. This Mr.. Getsen is one of
the two young men who were halted
and abused by Attaway's men in the
evening. We have now brought down
the narrative to July Sth, when the final
hearing of the case was to have taken
place. The whites who knew then what
the public only know now, had every
reason to expect an attack of some sort.
Mr.. Mealing swears, however, that OF
the opening of the court only
seven white men were present, and
but two of these were armed. Colonel
A. P. Butler swears that he drove to
Aiken in private carriage, and not at
the head Of band of armed men, and
that during the riot which occurred, be
and General Butler did all they could to
restrain the mob from violence, and he
swears positively that be did not fire
gun or pistol, or order the killing of q
single man. On that very Cay colored
courier rode from Hamburg to Horse
Creek, told the colored men there to
hurry over to Hamburg, and went on to
Beach Island. At midnight the same
courier went back to Hamburg with ten
armed negroes. These facts are sworn
to by Mr.. II. E Carroll. And more i'm
William F. Flint, the Waterman on the
Charlotte, Columbia, and Augusta rail-
road bridge. sWesTs that, on the morning
of the eighth, John Thomas, one Of
Adams's company, passed him on the
wiz 8 Win q pASbpA III LIS d1uO
that ne said that AGams had been arrest.
ed, but "the boys were not going to
allow him to be tried" TIE deponent
further overheard Doc Adams, that
afternoon, give orders to his men in
the aTmoTy to fire upon tie Buffers
as they came round the corner
from Prince RiUers's office. ]. H Lamar
swesrs, also, that few days before tbs
riot he heard two negroes talking in the
woods about meeting on Friday night
in Hamburg, ard telling each other that
they wanted every man at his post. An
other link in the chain is the testimony
as to the status of the militia company.
Charles Harden, the colored assistant
marshal Of Hamburg, sweaIs that Rivers
said that the company was not a regular
militia company, and that their arms
were taken without his knowledge. This
Is corroboratad on oath by Prince Rivers
and by Stephen Whiteman.
Not being regularly organized militia
the surrender Of their arms
was manded by the whites. Then the
negroes swore that they would not sur
render them, but would die arms in
hand. And fifteen responsible white
citizens swear that the firing was begun
1y the negroes in the armory, and that |
Mr. Merriwether had been killed by the |
negroes before the whites had fired q |
Jingle shot. What WIS the temper Of
n n affar