The New York herald., 1878-03-26
HANGING IN SOUTH CAROLINA.


OF AN ENTIRE FAMnY-AN INFANT CHILD
LEFT TO PERISH IN BURNING HoUsE-DE-
TAILS OF TIE CRIME AND IT'S ExPIATIoN.
icy TELEGRAPH TO THE HERALD.
CHARLESTON, s. c., March 2b. 1878.
One of the most horrible crimes ever committed In
South Carolina cxpiated Friday afternoon,
At Barnwsll Court House, about ninety miles
from Charleston. On the night OF January
8 small cabin IN Barnwei county, In
which dwslt . negro named stephen Enicks
with mis- vile and two young children, was burned
down and tho calcined remains OF the family found
about two A. N. among the runa Ste
phsn and his wie were found pretty
nearly where they wont to sleep.
and the remains of the children were found near In
the adjoining apartment. Under Stephon's head was
found clot Of coagulated blood. There was but one
door to the house, slightly fastened with
piece OF trace chain and railroad spike thrust
through the links from the inside. There were no
other meaus OF ingress or egrsss, but the door was
very would have yieled 70 the slightest vio
lencc.
coored people OF Williston ana the surrounding
country The murdered man EDicks was an excep-
tion 10 his He was careful, saving ana inaus-
trious and had accumulated consideraole money.
SUSPICION AROUSED.
At first the nre was thought DO accidental; but
the position OF che bodies aud the act that no trace
could be found In The RUNS th silver money which
known 70 have been boarded IN Tho house LED
vs.. Of Su play T. oew WIS TO S
mystery. A negro, named Fortune Bush,
il was discovered, had on the day after the ire
exhibited TO q negro woman pocketbook, alter
ward proved to be identical with one belonging TO
Enicks, IN which he kept his money Bush boosted
leave with and would 70 away soon as he got MS
wife ''hxed." IL was found also that another negr"
| named Dexter McCreary had been with him on ihe
night OF the ire and near 10 the house OF Enlcks
ARKEsr 0P MCREARY.
Dexter was arrested auout fourteen miles on from
his usual place OF abode He had all his worldly Roods
on his person, the shape OF Two or three pair oil
pants and five or six shirts He subsequently con-
iessed voluntarily to several witnesses the whole de-
tails OF The tragedy. -
On the night OF tho 3D., ABOUT eleven or twelve
O'Clock, he ana Bush met by appointment near
Enck's house Tor the purpose OF plunder'
Fus.uns Ss .ns entered sns house by pushing up
plank the floor, entering tho outer cnamoer and ad-
mon.v nos near Enicks tho wife awoke and caisa out
"Wno Is theren Fortune. who had An axe In his
hand, struck her down by blow on tho head and che
foil. she dropped the infant from her arms Before
husband could fully recover his consciousness the
Durderous axe Of Bush descended on the head OF
removed 10 the attainment OF their burgarous pur-
pose, they ransacked the house and obtained the
crime Bush pulled the bedcothss over the bodies,
spriuklsd them With kerosene from bottle in his
pocket ana oee nro 10 Inc mousse
The oaLD BURNED ALIVE
When the murdorers retired they fastened up tho
houss containing tho dead parents and the living
offspring. thus offering them up as sacrifice on the
funeral pyre. Retreatng to q Held few yards
in front OF the house, they watched the
progress OF the flames and listened without spark Of
ply the agouizng OF tho eldest child ILL.,
amid blood and ire ana smoke. It's little spirit went
Tnn confession was fully oorroborassd by tho de-
veiopments the trial some weeks later, when tho
two wretches were convicted 0y jury OF their own
race.
The murderers slept soundly through their last
psalm singing. Their appeutes continued good
TO the last, and they have given their
vious lime Of execution the condemned were
gagged IN prayer aud tho singing OF hymns McCreary
exhibited marked youoillty 10 his plous oupour'ngs.
On bended knees no would pour ior,h con.
tinuous cham Of dsJonted and inooherent
utterances Sometimes these utterances would
bc denunciaIory OF some nameless enemy,
at others deprecatory OF their wrath, while the
strain would De interminRled with wild. weird.
| ike recitation chant Indicative OF spiritual
triumph. The scene was strange and the
whole manner of the worshipper my stical and wild.
the con,or.,ons OF the oeay ana tho oowng Of The
worship, while the unearthiy cadence OF
sdoration ami penitence. Bush, on the other hand.
indeed from rst last IN this tragedy, mas been
less demopstrative and decidedly more reticcnI For
stolid indifference and contempt Of death l have
mover seen hts superior There was no bra.
sangfroa, chatting naturally and cneeriuliy with his
w,ie and even indulging in a quiet good natured
chucke over some ol her remarks ON the very eve o
| a ghsstly embrace by the KING oil Tsrrors-
EXECUTION.
In accordance with the OF the recent act
the execution TOOK place within the walls Of tho jail,
or wilhin tue temporary stockade which Tor time
represents jail. lew select persons, invited BY
the sheriff. the relatives OF the prisoners and the
counsel the State aud the prisoners respectively
were permitted TO be- present. The crowd outside,
| chiefly colored was dense, but quiet and orderly
From an earl
tended by the pastor OF the ored Baptist Church,
| who continued with them to the last He admon-
ished them, 10 view OF their near approach 70 The
grave and the presence OF the Almighty Judge
TO dismiss all VAN hope OF mercy in this world
OF escape from the awful doom now impending. and
to make full and Tree ooniesYon of the crlme Of
| which they had been convicted. 10 the last the
prisoners persisted IN declaring thor innocence.
THE sCAFFoLD.
At ton minutes past T. n. they cendcd the
scafold. Bush in few curt sentences declared his
innocence and his readiness to die No tremor OF
voice, auiver OF the limbs betrayed the
| Creary, he stood on the scanold, showed
moro nervousness and proceeded 10 harangue
the party present apologeticaiy. He endeavored te
issue but his whole harangue was ul OF paIpablt
| contradictions Tho Sheriff announced TO MN tho
time up. Amid the ods OF their black caps they
cried out
"Gooaby, snerin You will never have to account
| for this"
They each thanked him and Jailer Lambert for the
| kindness shown them, aud at twenty-five minutes
| past one +. NJ, amid protestatious OF innocence
| the drop fell with them, und they were
| launched into eternity. McCrcary's death wa.
| instan taneous; his neck was dslocatcd by
the fall, and not quiver was manifest when he fell
Bush, the other hand, gave three convulsive up
ward movements o the body land then all DE-
O'Connor examined the bodies minutes alter tn,
Al quarter to two p NJ. the bodies were cut down
placed III collins and delivered to tue relatives oil the
deceased.
PRORARIE MURDER