Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1877-10-17
A BLACK BRUTE.
Arrest of Negro Preacher in the Pull
pit. Who Had Flogged His Daughter
to Death, and Abused Her Body After
She was Dead.
Atlanta (Ga.l Constitution,

Atlanta (Ga) Constitution
Never, either in the annals Of crime
or in a work of fiction, have we
heard of a case so noted for unnatural
cruelty or inhuman brutality as the one
which am to narrate.
While visiting Houston county few
days ago the story was told me, and
vouched for by different eye-wimesses,
reliable citizens in this section Jas we'll as
corroborated by the court record. About
ten days ago negro blacksmith named
Burt Holleman became enraged because
he could not find one Of the house keys
that he wanted, and concluded that his
child girl about twelve years old, had
lost it, and because she could not tell
where it was he commenced whipping
her with a heavy wagon whip, every
stroke of the lash cutting the skin and
drawing the blood. He continued beat
ing the child until he was completely
exhausted Then he called his wife
who found the young girl with her back
and shoulders all lacerated and the
blood still flowing freely from the gap
ing wounds, while the lash of the whip
was wet and colored with the blood of
her daughter The tiend of a husband
then by threats made the wife undress
the girl and wash the wounds of the
daughter with salt and water Being
moved by the piteous shrieks of the
child, she declared that she had rather
risk her husbands vengeance than to
inf1ict additional torture ON the child
and fled from the house.
After his wife left he gathered the
whip again and commenced hogging
the child anew for crying. Instead of
being moved by her cries and pleas for
mercy, he continued; the child actually
died under the lash. While holding the
dead child in his hands he struck it
across the head heavy blow, for play
ing 'possum."
He then took the body to dark wood
near by and buried it, smoothing the
ground over the place SO as to remove
all traces of the grave. His next move
was to tell his neighbors that he had
sent the child to Bibb county, and to
threaten his wife with instant death if
she ever said anything about what had
happened. The story of the crime
would perhaps never have been known
if some of the little negro children in
the neighborhood had not been attracted
by the childs cries and seen everything
that happened even to the burial Of the
deceased. They day or two after told
what they had seen to one of their
neighbOrs, who had warrant issued
against the negro, and arrested him in a
pull pit where he was preaching the word
of God to his colored brethren, prepare
tory to taking up Il collection. When
arrested he stoutly denied everything.
Before the court, when confronted by
his wife and the other witnesses, he still
denied that he ever whipped the child
at all. He was then taken by the of
ficers of the law to the forest where the
witnesses said he had buried the child.
After short search they found a new
made grave, and digging up the ground
they found the body of a child fearfully
bruised and mutilated When the father
saw the body of his murdered daughter
he broke down completely and ac-
knowledged the whole affair His only
excuse for beating the child was that
she lost one of the house keys that she
had no business touching. Holleman
is in jail to await trial in the November
term of the court. 1t will be remem-
bered by the readers of the Constitution
that a negro was hung in Effingham
county last fall for beating his own child
to death with barrel stave