The comet. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1877-1882, 1879-02-22
MISSISSIPPI TRAGEDY OF
FIFTY YEARS AGO.

BY ELIAS Stafford, ESQ,

|
From The Picayune.
/ Reader, before beginning the perus;
of the facts constituting the truthft
tragic narrative about to be presenta
to you, look at the map of the State c
| Mississippi, cast your eye along tn
southern boundary to where it crosse
the Pearl river and there you will fin
marked the old town of Columbia
which brings you near to what the law
yers would call the "venue" of tn
principal events about to be narrated
| Columbia, the county site of Marion
county, is small town, never having
population of more than dozen fami
lies, and these mostly the families o
officers of court and merchants. Th'
map shows roads which the reade
may imagine to be stage roads, but NJ
stage was ever there, the mails being
| always carried on horseback. TIL,
county has an area of over 1900 squar,
miles, with less than 900 voters
When the winter rains swell the chan
mel of Pearl river one or two steam
boats from New Orleans come W
bringing freight for the country anC
return laden with cotton, making but
few trips during the season of naviga-
ton. The whole region thereabouts is
mostly barren "piny woods" and the
loneliness of the decayed old town has
lately been emphasized by telegraph
line running through it between other
points of Importance. In 1921 the seat
of the State Government, by some log
rolling or other parliamentary trick
cry, was fixed at Columbia, and the
session of 1922 was held there, from
which the old town is now sometimes
facetiously spoken of as "the ancient
capital of the rosin-heel empire"
The capital was then removed and
Columbia became herself again. Now,
reader, you may almost naturally asl1
what interest can possibly attach to
such region as that just described.
But wait and learn. Remember "Bale-
donia stern and Wild" and you shall
yet see that this unpromising region
possesses weird and romantic interest
beyond anything that commerce,
wealth, or any of the constituents of
progress could possibly throw around
t. an Interest which under the m gle |
influence of the pen of the "wizard of
he north" might have awakened to
lew life even the dying numbers of the
Lay of the last Minstrel.u
About three miles north of Colum-
ia, on the road which runs parallel
With the river, in Il lovely spot near the
Dad, is spring, giving forth then as
oW, copious flow of water, which
al at that time acquired celebrity
N its mineral and curative properties.
5 soon as the seat of government was
Gated at Columbia an arrangement
hich, though it proved TO be only tenn :
'rary, was thought by many to be
rmanent, an enterprising and thrifty
lizen by the name of Stovall conceiv- &
the idea of making that place a
shionable resort, and in pursuance of .
5 design built at Columbia large, g
nd for that day, an elegant hotel, one ;
ing OF which was occupied by the :
legislature during its session in that +
Wn. He also about the same time n
ught the plantation at the Springs, !
id erected, a short distance from the n
rings, q large frame hotel and the +,
buildings necessary for watering a
ace, the whole fronting and over a
)king tie river. The fame of GO u
mbia Springs" or ''Stovall Springs" I
they were sometimes called, spread r
rough the country, and the attrac- a
m of the waters, and more than that 4
e superb deer hunting and fishing II
:ilities of the place soon attracted e,
ge numbers of Summer visitors. most %
whom came from the region near IL
Mississippi river between Baton Va q,
uge and Vicksburg, including the a
mites of Wilkinson, Adams, Jeffer- Il
and Claiborne, and many from the To-
es of New Orleans and Natchez. a. a.
arly all came in their own convey VI VI
es, which during their stay afforded a. a.
lities for driving over the level ue
Is i'll the vicinity of the Springs. -
ny ladies We're there, and the crowd ~
'ed their time in feasting, dancing, ~
ting, rowing, ten pins, billiards, .'n
ting, fishing, and other gayeties az az
amuSementS. ~
the Summer of 1926, when the ,'T y
on was at its height, the crowd at
Springs were unusually large and mi
liant, there being quite number of ~ "a
ngulshed persons there, and, for NJ,
better preservation of order and ~ ~
rum in the social arrangements of L tit
place, the guests formed themselves LIE
a sort of social organization, and S.naa
ne of its acts well known gentle h la,
planter of high position living , no,
Natchez was made master of GER yo"
MES at the table, and to him were W."
red all questions of precedence as o o,.o
eats, etc. Among the guests was "Su
e Richard Stockton, of Natchez. S,i
as will be seen, is the central fig 9 nal
# the tragedy. He was the son n noet
e Richard Stockton, of New .Jer- L ieo'
who signed the Declaration of In iiis
ldence, had been Il Judge of the -, "a a
'ior Court of Mississippi, and was " v
2 time of these events Attorney ue ':
raj OF the state. His family name ma
llnstriOus descent gave him pres WIN VIII
which was fully sustained by his lail,
lid scholastic and judicial attain VIII
Qualities AnntLnn . ~ aillIaple still
1ant of New Orlaans I 'n't IL was d gay
ysoh, who was accompanied by '"'
life. One day lady friend of the
ms arrived from New Orleans. as and
ing III once with them. In TAX even
ats at the dinner table, the Paw ters
ook the seats usually occupied by of liz
aud, without consulting he and
authority or any one gone
and, as Mr.. Payson after Fad,
declared, without intending or frava
of any improperly. we NJ
their visitor by their side. tins of So
ing others Of the company lower in az
~ 's'i''e " i mistake was at its f
.n,.ro,'' AM '7l'"kion, who sat dane,
5, 'i"ie spiTlted remark "braI
en-, angry and insulting Response. sanc
%, -, VI ee'emioili'S I'D VAN call ton,
y =" o,''e'' me excitement in the ~
III ,,i'' auJ me whole company Singh
were about drawing pistols at
her, when a distinguished Iady
herself between them, and with n
mt and wild prOtestations be- DEL