Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1876-12-09


her primary affidavit, so Wells comes
to the rescue.
She had said, They took an axe to
cut me. but the axe few off the han
die"
President They frstchopped
you with an axe?
A.-"Yes, sir, and they struck me in
the head with pistol, &c.
She had made affidavit that her legs.
were chopped all over with an axe.
The testimony is in reality the state
ment of Gov. Wells, with the woman
occasionally called in to corroborate.
But now see her in cross-examination
Mr.. Gauthereaux had asked her
whether she did not state to Mr.. lid
well that colored man killed her
husband.
She breaks out furiously, "Oh, no !;
they were not there. There were two
colored men there, but Tidwell told
me not to tell who they were. Oh, no,
oh no No, no, no aoe amt going to
haze 1t that loay. Oh, no, sir. They
were white men. They all came back
and tried to kill me, but they can't
have anything that way"
We amt going to have it that way"
She is conscious of being one of par
ty; who are they? Who is we?
But so far we have Eliza Pinkston
by herself. Now for other testimony.
Only two witnesses were allowed.
They were respectable white men of
the parish, one of whom owned the
place the Pinkstons lived upon. The
two witnesses in rebuttal furnished not
only complete disproof of the case as
an alleged intimidation of Republican
voters, but also point to a possible So
luton of the real history. The wo-
mans own first statement to Tidwell
probably gives it: "She told me that
if it was not Brooks friends at Qua
chita, she thought it was Parks or
POsey's negroes that they were Radi-
Gals and she was a rabid Democrat,
and she thought they came there for
the purpose of killing her"
Brooks was a man (see Tidwell's
testimony with whom Pinkston had
had quarrel, and the most likely
theory was that he was the murderer,
having been heard to threaten Pink
ston but if motif there was any po-
litical significance at all in the crime
then it was the reverse of what the
returning board wanted. 1t was case
of Radical persecution of a known
Democrat
She gave, however, three different
accounts of the transaction that day.
One of them was that crowd ofwhite
men were the criminals, among whom
she mentioned a man named Parks,
who had been dead three months at
the time. Again, she describes her
husband as having been namelessly
mutilated before he was killed. This
was done more in detail in her pre-
limlnary affidavit before her appear
ance at the board) The body was ex-
amined and no such mutilation existed.
She said her baby's throat was cut
from ear to ear before it was thrown
into the lake; the body was recovered
and no cut existed on its body. In
deed, previous attempt she had made
to expose and abandon child makes
it very doubtful whether the murder
ers killed herfchild at all.
Innumerable other discrepancies
might be stated, but we have done en-
ough; the case breaks down every
where, and on this wretchedly got up
case the board relies as its principle
evidence for setting aside the election
of President. In that point of view
it needs no further comment, but
something must be added as to the eV-
Hence it furnishes of the condition OF
Louisiana.
The whole matter exhibits state OF
affairs in Louisiana only paralleled by
the unreolaimed paganism of Central
Africa. 1t does not appear that any
effort was made to vindieate the law
against the perpetrators of this crime,
no coroner's inquest held, no one COM
mitted for trial, no legal notice at all
taken of the matter till it was wanted
to coin an election outrage from. Ey-
cry magistrate and sheriff and consta-
BILE in Louisiana is Radical, and I'M
der Radical influences no effort is made
to control or suppress crime-no crime
is punished under them. The negroes
are Intentionally kept in state of ig-
porauce and barbarism that they may
be the blind tools of political agents
the funds appropriated to their educa-
ton are stolen, and when crime takes
its growth on soil so well prepared for
it, it is cherished and treasured up
that distorted account of it may be
made out for the outrage mill. Com
pare the negro Of Louisiana and South
Carolina who has lived under carpet
bag rule for eleven years with him
who in Georgia and Tennessee has
been under Democratic rule, and it is
like passing from light to darkness.
The Republicans have made much Of
their Pinkston case, but we predict
that they will be tired of it long be-
fore the Democrats villas tired as
they soon got to be of their Francis
Thompson case.
We give for what it is worth a rue
NOR ola proposed compromise mooted
10 the New York Herald.
tits averred that Mr.. Hayes re-
quested an interview with Mr.. Lamar,
if that gentleman was willing to stop at
Columbus Ohio, on his way to Wash
ington, Mr.. Hayes desiring to inter
change views on the present crisis in
national affairs Mr.. Lamar declined,
believing any conference between him
self and Mr.. Hayes to be ill-timed at
"a Al ] ~