The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1880-06-03
BLOODSHED IN COuET.
An Exciting Scene Mt the Sessions In King
| stree.
Correspondence Neus and Courier.

All EXClIlnE SCGuG III LuG SCSblONb AIHH
stree.
Correspondence News AMI Courier.
K1NGsrREE, May 26.
The most exciting and tragic scene
that has ever occurred in a Court of this
State was enacted here to-day. 1t was
in the case of the State against W. w.
Ward, indicted for forgery.
The readers of the Nears and Courier
will remember that at the March term,
1879, there was tried at this place q case
of foreclosure, where James Harper was
the plaintiff and w. w. Ward defendant.
Ward held a receipt of Harper's for
S2,400 in payment of a bond which Har.
per denied was a genuine paper, and
which Judge Mackey, sitting in equity,
pronounced forgery, and ordered that
Ward be indicted. The criminal suit
was begun yesterday and concluded to-
day. James Harper was the prosecutor.
When the jury rendered their verdict OF
guilty and the Judge ordered the sheriff
to take charge of the prisoner, Ward,
who was sitting inside Of the bar of the
court, and who was perfectly sober, de-
liberately arose from his seat, drew his
pistol and fired at Harper one time and
one time at w. K. Lane, one of his wit
nesses. Harper escaped untouched, but
Lane was wounded in both hands. AS
quick as possible several gentlemen
sprang on Ward and disarmed him and
he was taken off to Jail. When the fir.
ing occurred Harper and Lane were both
sitting inside the bar, which was crowd
ed with the lawyers, officers of the court
and citizens, all within few PAGES of
Ward. That no one was killed. is mi
raculous. One of the balls buried itself
in the wall of the house, and what be.
came of the other one has not yet been
discovered. Great CONSERVATION and ex-
citement prevailed in the crowded court
room, and one or two negroes jumped out
of the windows to the ground, distance
of twenty-five feet, uninjured.
Judge Aldrich ordered a warrant to be
issued against Ward for assault and bat
terry, with intent to kill. The Judge has
not yet passed sentence on Ward. The
forgery case has excited great interest,
and was ably conducted by Richard Do
zier, Esq, for the prosecution, and by
Messrs. Barron and Lambson for the de-
fence. The jury wasan intelligent one,
composed of ten white men and two ne
gross.
Ward Sentenced to Seven Years In the
Penitentiary.
K1NesTREE, May 20, 1880.
When Ward was called up for sentence
he asked the pardon of the Court for his
conduct in shooting at Harper and Lane
in presence of the Court, but said he had
no regrets or apologies to make to the in
dividuals who had robbed him of his
liberty and property; that he could not
resist any longer. The Judge then de-
livered forcible and impressive SEN
tence, in the course Of which he said
Mr.. Harper was your friend, I am in
formed; he was one of the sureties on
your official bond as sheriff, lent you
money from time to time, and finally let
you have $4,000, which was secured by a
mortgage of hous 'nd lot in this town.
He INDUCED you by extending the credit,
until, being himself embarrassed, be felt
obliged to foreclose his mortgage. On
the trial of that cause you produced a
receipt for $2,400, which, although signed
by Harper, he pronounced to be FORGE
ry, alleging that he had written you a
note about corn, the ink of which you
extracted by by chemical preparation
called "ink eraser" thus preserving the
blank paper on which the note had been
written and his genuine signature, over
which you wrote the receipt for 81, 400.
Unhappy man! Not content
with the base attempt to defraud the
man who had befriended you, not salts
fed with interposing all the delays in
your power to prevent the collection of
the debt, not humiliated at the exposure
of the fraud you attempted to practice,
not overwhelmed by the weight of the
perjury you committed in the effort 70
support your fraud, not repentant of your
treason to friendship, you had the hardi-
hood yesterday to attempt his life by
base and cowardly assassination. When
the jury handed in their verdict, and the
Clerk read the fatal word "guilty," you
dlew your concealed weapon, and in this
temple of Justice, in the very presence
of the Court, attempted to murder the
man you had wronged, and to sprinkle
his blood on the very altar of Justice,
firing two shots at him. By the mercy
of the good God your victim escaped un-
harmed, and the jurors, the officers of
court and numerous spectators uninjured.
It was the most audacious violation of
the sanctity of the hall of Justice and
the majesty of the law have ever
known. 1t proves you to be very bad
man, whose heart is fatally bent on mis-
man who has no social re.
straint, whose vices and whose vengeance
cannot be controlled, except by the iron
hand with which offended justice guards
those who seek the shield Of her protec-
ton. How you escaped adding murder
to your crimes of forgery and perjury, is
one of those mysterious occurrences
which the ingenuity of man cannot
fathom. Perhaps God in his mercy turn
ed the balls to give you time to repent.
1t may be that the prayers of your
young and stricken wife who, with her
little children will now have to struggle
with poverty and shame, found gracious
audience at the Throne of Grace. This
that devoted wife, with her old
father, came to me to appeal for mercy.
With tears and sobs she told me of her
desolate condition, of her young children,
of the baby at her breast that cannot
lisp its fathers name. 1t made me very
sad and sorrowful to tell her had no
power to stay the sentence of the law
This is one Of the consequences of crime,
and the indulgence of unbridled passion !;
it Furnishes the faithful and innocent
wife, the prattling children and the ten.
der sucking. With very sorrowful
heart l had to tell her that I feared your
conduct of yesterday had cut you of
frono tho cyno na thv of the com mI1n and