The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1880-12-15
THE CLARENDON OUTR AGE AND
ITS SPEEDY PUNISHMENT.
Details Of the Horrible Crimc-Three
Negroes, Iastigatel by Cupidity,
Brutally Murder n Young and
Harmless Lady - The Guilt Fully
Proved Hanged to the Nearest
Trnn
Ncu,s ana COp,.jol.

NEW ZI0S, December 9.-In the ahscn"c of
a representative OF your paper. and at the re-
quCS: of many citizens, both black and white,
/ send you hcrcw iih 4 full and true Statement
OF the murder Of Mrs. Kennedy, and the pun
iSh!nent OF her aSSaSSinS.
on sunday last, the 9Th instant. Mr.. Thos.
kcnucdy, living near Salem, intending to
visit Charleston. went over to his fathers
house Il little after noon, 4 short distance
from his own, to ask his mother TO stay with
his wife during his absence. Mr.. kcnncdy's
%linston. haJ only been married about Il year
and expected soon to present 10 her husband
the first pledge of their mutual love. She was
Il young lady On;y 10 or 20 years OF age, intclli-
gent aud refined and highly respected by all
who knew her. When her husband left she
shut the door OF the house and sat 10y Il win
dreaming of the terrible fate that 81 soon
awaited her. AS she sal there she saw in ;hC
yard Joe Barnes, Il colored boy about IL years
old, who had been employed by Mr.. kcnne-
harm she asked him to bring her an arnItul
of wood. This boy had tcrn induced hy two
negroes living near by, Vance Brandt and his
sister Julia, aged respectively IS and IS, 10
hang around the pr, misses, and when Mr..
Kennedy left the place tive Il signal to N:n
and ,Julia who kept themselves concealed in
II thickct. This couple had heard Of Mr.. Ken
ncdy'S intention to visit Charleston, and
thinking that he would hav Il good deal of
money in the house determined to break in
and get IL. When Joe I urucd TO go for the
wood he gave the signal and soon met Vance
coming into the yard. Eanc asked him
where Mrs. Kennedy was. and went imincdi-
atciy to the window and three times tried 10
get in and three times he was slowed out by
Mrs. Kennedy. Finding he was determined
TO get in she opened the front door, ran
through the yard, and was just going through
the gate when Vance Snatchcd up Il hoe lying
in the yard, overlook her ut the gate and
knocked her down. She implurcd mercy and
told him she would give him all the money
she had II he would only spare her life. He
cursed her and said, as been waiting to kill
you 4 long time,'" and at that struck her two
more blows, In attempting to avcrt which. it
is supposed, her hand was broken. Just then
Julia came up with another hoe and severed
her head.
When Mr.. Kennedy returned about three
hours afterwald he found his wife lying out
side the front gate, nIutilatcd, cold and Stiil,
her head almost severed in twain The en-
tire cIanh,m was cut oil from car to car,
leaving the brains scattered around on the
ground.
Ajury of inquest being held, returned a
verdict Of ,murderin the highest degree by
unknown hands," Several culorcd persons
were arrested on Monday but no clue to
their guilt being obtained, we're promptly re-
leased. ON Tuesday the colorrd boy, Joe
barnes, was arrested. He showed SO much
confusion on BEN" questioned as to his
Whereabouts on Sunday that only a few qu"s-
sions served to bring out his full confession
from which the above account Is taken.
Vance and Julia denied having anything to
do with it, but the clothes which they wore
on sunday were very bloody, with small par
tlcics OF brains upon them. The money and
pistol OF Mr.. Kennedy found IN their posses
SionS were bloody, and ON being questioned
about the blood upon their clothes. the wom-
an said she had killed Il chicken and the man
said he had killed some cartridges. On close
examination the bloody finger prints on the
hoe handle correSl Ondcd precisely with those
on the shawl worn by the woman on the i'll
fttcd day, whic. circumstance had as great
weight to convict her as the testimony OF the
boy.
AS was natural the community became So
cnraeed and Infatuated that n crowd Of citi.
zens, numbering between two hundred and
fifty and three hundred, both white and col.
oretl, after due delibcration decided to hang
the nIurdcicrs to the nearest tree IN sight Ol
the place where the murder was committed.
After satisfactory examination, which fixed
their guilt, ropes were adjusted to the nearest
tree. q cart was pushed under the tree, and tho
prisoners ordered to mount. Just then Joe
Barnes begged TO be allowed to pra;, and
commenced by saying he had never prayed
before, and never expected to pray again,
Nothing was said by either of the others. OK.
crpt a groan and Lord have mercy" from
Vance. handkerchief being tied over tn Gil
faces, the cart was pushed away and the trio
were soon dangling In the air. II.