Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1876-08-02

clean, and which hands are yet ready to
do further deeds of violence.
AS in the case of the Gair murder,
there was no excuse for the quintupled
murder at Mount Pleasant. It is al
legged, according to Maj. Bascom's
apology for the murderers, that one
James Ellis, colored, was shot by a
band of colored Regulators. Ellis was
known in the neighborhood as a bad
man. A few nights previous to the
night on which Ellis was shot be had
attempted the life of one Of his fellows.
It was cowardly and wicked act to
shoot Ellis; and the man who did the
deed, be he white or black, should be
punished according to his deserts. The
bull-dozing Regulators
, HANGED FIVE MEN 45oc
for the murder of Ellis; men said to be-
long to secret society organized for
mutual protection In a parish where
regulators are allowed to ride and hui
man life is held as worthless. There
are several good reasons why the five
men should not have been hanged for
the murder of Ellis. The first is, they
were hanged by strangers, who had no
business to be there, and without an in
vestigation by officer, tithe law; it is
certain that five men were not guilty of
killing one man, though four out of five
might have been accessories; there is
nothing to show that Ellis was not shot
by white men, one of them who did the
deed for the very purpose of bringing
about the after result of negro-murder-
ing called riot and retribution; the
most important reason why the five men
should not have been hanged for the
! murder of Ellis is the fact that Ellis is
not dead He was wounded, as We
have been informed, but survives. That
is small matter, however, in the opin-
! ion of the White League Regulators.
They rode out to kill; they rode out to
break up the prosperous colony of
colored planters at Mount Pleas
ant; they brought terror to the neigh
borhood they visited; they rioted and
murdered, and rode back to their officers
to receive congratulations and brevets
for brave and meritorions conduct while
obeying orders.
Incidental to the main tragedies may
be mentioned the
BRUTAL AND CRIMINAL TREATMENT
practiced on the Rev. Minor Holmes
and others in church at Port Hudson.
Minor Holmes is colored Baptist
preacher, who inherited his religion,
integrity, and good character from a
pious family of note in Virginia. He is
not a politician. He owns alittle place,
of 10 acres, rents 10 adjoining acres, in
East Feliciana, and has eight head of
stock. Holmes works his crop on week
days and breaches to his apostles on
Sundays. AS an example of an honest,
d hard working man, and useful citizen,
he is the peer of any white Regulator
who ever shouldered a shotgun in the
Felicianas. G3 cf
On Saturday afternoon, Holmes left
his home and went to Slaughter's
. warehouse and store, which is at Port
Hickory, about mile from Mount
Pleasant. While trading at the store
5 he first learned that Ellis had been
shot on the night previous. The citi-
zens were trying to find out who the
assassin was, and young Mr.. Slaughter
told Holmes to get in his buggy with
him, and go to Port Hudson, as the
people would inquire what he knew
about the matter. Holmes still regards
MIR. Slaughter as his friend, and it APP
pears that neither suspected harm.
Arriving at Port Hudson, Holmes was
turned over to guard of citizens-men
he knew and who knew him
and he remained unframed at
Campbell's store during the night of
Saturday and the most of the following
day. About 5 o'clock Sunday afternoon
he was informed that the people were
/ satisfied he had nothing to do with the
secret order at Mount Pleasant and that
I he should be protected. By this time
the strangers had arrived, armed Regu-
lators, no less than 100 in number.
Robert Young, Capt. Keller, Scott,
McVeigh, Capt. Jinyear, and other
citizens of Port Hudson, appeard par
ticularly anxious to protect the four
teen men in custody and took them to
the white Baptist Church and placed q
4 guard over them, feeling that the stran-
gers meant mischief. About twelve OF
the strange Regulators pushed aside the
guard at the church door some time
near midnight and demanded the names
of the men pull in the church for safety.
Learning that Holmes was we'll known
preacher, one of the bulldozers said:
LET Us HANG THE - PREACHER,
anyway. It was a preacher who made
fuss at Woodville." y The rufians had
ropes with them, and first put one
around the neck of a yellow man named
/: Tucker. The rope was passed over q
beam which crossed the church near the
| pulpit, and Tucker was put to the tor
ture of being lifted once of twice, but
was not much hurt. The brutes then
!, made Tucker, who was nearly fright
, ened to death, put the rope around the
neck of the Rev. Mr., Holmes Holmes
heard the order given to pull on the
: rope, and knew no more until he came
! to his senses and found himself lying
on the floor, wet with water which