The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1878-09-06
A CARD FROM MAI. J. w. TENCH.
GAN UNpLEAsANT AFFAIR"
NORTH PAcoLET, UNION Co., s

NORTH PACoLEr, UNION Co., s. c..
August 31st, 1873.
Mr.. EDITOR I'm your issue Of the 23d inst.
you have seen fit to give publicity to an occur
renee which is not at all pleasant to me and not
in accordance with the facts, and as you have e
always boasted disposition and willingness to
do justice all rouud L request you will insert
ths-a true statement of the affair:
On the 10th l made speech at Jonesville !;
before going upon the stand Mr.. Ell. Lindsey
| said to me that report was in circulation there
that had, in previous speech at Brown's 8
Store, said to the negroes, ''you have 81, 900
| majority in the State and you are fools if you
do not make of it," This, on the stand, 1
said was an unmitigated and malicious lie. Mr.
Tom Kink Littlejohn spoke, and said Randolph
mot Adolphus) Brown had told it there. then
said that il he had Be wast Che liar. On the 18th
parties were to speek Ut Browns. Friends in
sisted should make reply. consented, and
went down 10 the Store in company with Mr.
William Vincent. Passing through Mr.. Frank
AIabry's orchard pulled two apples. Arrived
at the grove in front of tho store, l sat down in
front of squad of men with my back to the
store and began eating the apples. l had hard
ly finished them when some one called me by
name, got up and saw Randolp Brown, with
q stout season ed club swung to his wrist with
string and held rather behind his right leg He
was then in striking distance, and asked me
pied Piled, hwhat h d aFe y6u going to do with your
should not talk about him. l then told him
what had heard from a responsible man, as
coming from him, and told him to 60 to that
man aud let me alone. / turned aside my heaS
to call some one who had been at Jonesville to
verify my words, when Brown struck me blow
on the left side of the head, just above the tenn
poral region with his stick, cutting asmall arte-
ry and knocking me blind and senseless, striking
me several licks while in this condition across
the back and shoulders, and preparing to strike
me another blow on the back of the head, which
would probably have killed me (his intention as
believed by many) when Bonner Cook caught
| the stick.
Now sir, if you, or any one else with dispo-
siton to do justice, can see any part had in
ga difficulty" you have better eyes than the peo-
| pie here. who, to a man, dcnounce the brutal,
| coward!y, unmanly assault of Brown, after ex'
| planation and authorities had been in the mild
est manner given him. Unmanly, because he
weighs on an average fifty pounds more than
| do cowardly, because he came up while my
back was to him and with bludgeon, when he
| could have tied me, hand and foot, with his su
perior animal strength brutal, because brutal
iy is his first and only attribute.
He had said several days before that should
not speak Mt his place, and the morning befor,
| arrived he was brandishing his club and MAX
ing his threats of beating me, to men who tried
to persuade him not TO do so. There is eydenc,
sufficient that the thing on his part was delib
crate and mature. i make no apology to tn,
reading public for this long explanation, thos,
who desire to know truth will read it and thos,
who do not would not read if only ten lines
were written. JOHN w. TENCH.