Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1876-07-27
Opening the Campaign for Tilden in
the South-The Bloody Shirt
First Gun in South Carolina
again-Who the Hero
Butler is

dSdu- w no the Hero
Butler is.
There is village in South Carolina
named Hamburg where there are
more negroes than whites. There is
a colored militia company there or
gained under the laws of the State.
On July 4th the company while out
on parade was approached by two
white men who with offensive lam
guage demanded that tie company
break ranks and allow them to drive
through. The Captain declined to
do SO. The company was then sum
moned to appear for trial for obstruct-
ing the highway. Pending the trial
the plaintiffs attorney, Gen. Butler,
an ex-rebel General, demanded that
the company be disarmed. The Cap
tain maintained that his men were
regularly and lawfully armed by the
State and he refused to comply. But
Ter then sent across the river to Au-
gusta, Georgia, for help to enforce the
dlsarmlng. The streets of Hamburg
were soou filled with armed white
men from Georgia, far outnumbering
the colored men who retreated to
their armory for defence. After sew
eral attempts on the armory, the
whites forced their way in and cap
tured twenty-nine of the negroes.
Gen. Butler then instructed his men
to take their prisoners over to Au-
gusta Georgia. Jail, and he went
home. His men took their prisoners
out on the road, released them and
told them to run. They ran and their
captors fired into them killing seven
and wounding others. Then these
white savages went into the town and
pillaged it, not even sparing the
houses of some who had toaiied to
them and were as obeisant as any
slave to his master. They mutlated
the bodies of some of their dead
victims with hatchets and bayonets.
The above account is compiled
wholly from the rebel-that is, the
Tilden-papers published in the vi
entity Of the massacre. Taking the
facts just as they give them which
exhibits the most savage brutality
Butler and his men or Sitting Bull and
his men? Yet we have neighbors all
around us who hope to turn all of us
and our Government over to the pow
er of just such men. Bad as this &C.
count is more truthful one is that
the young bloods who first molested
the company, drove along the street
facing it, when the company halted.
After parley between them and the
Captain he had his company open
ranks and let them pass through.
The next day they had some of the
officers OF the company arrested and
then trial was postponed until the
| 8th. Before the hour of trial 200 to
800 whites from the surrounding
country were gathered in, armed with
guns and pistols. The members Of
the company feared to appear for tria
and hid 10 their armory. The whites
went and demanded that they give III
their arms. They refused and were
fired upon, but as the whites could
not without hazard dislodge them
with small arms, they went over tc
Augusta and brought across the
bridge piece of artillery which they
loaded with canister and fired until
the men were driven out. Some O
them were killed then and others
captured. Next morning five of then
were taken out one by one and sho
by their captors. Others were turned
loose and fired upon as they ran
Those killed did not all belong to thu
militia company. They were sho
while begging for mercy, and tn
mothers of some imploring for thei
boys lives.
The Butler at the head of this affai
is nephew Of the Senator Butler il
whose behalf Bully Brooks ASSAULTED
Sumner.