Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1880-07-31
TRACKING AN ASSASSIN.
Some Sharp Detective work in
2r Stewart County.
fCIarksyiIle Tobacco Leaf


About four weeks age, ,Egbert Fagan,
a Young mau who lived Wlth bis father
near Rough-aRd-Ready furnace, in
Stewart county, was shot, while plow-
ing ia the field, by some one concealed
in the bushes, just outside the fence.
He was found some hours afterward
with terrible hoie in his side and in
diving condition. He lived long
enough, however, 20 mplieate one
George Washington, negro who
tIived in the Belghb0rhood, and was
Engaged in burning charcoal FOR the
furnace near by. This negro had, on
one or two occasions, accused Pagan
of being too Intimate with his wife, and
it is supposed that jealousy was the
cause of the murder, With the dying
mans declaration as clue, his friends
put detectives 10 work on the case, and
the web of ,circumstantial evidences
woven around the man Washington
fastened the assassination Inevitably
upon him.
AS subsequent developments have
made this case quite interesting, 3 rep.
| resentatiye of the Tobacco Leaf got
aboard the Julien GEacey last Friday
and steamed down the Cumberland
about forty miles to the scene of the
| killing, and from parties who live
upon the ground, and the curious mass
of testimony developed at the prelim>
| inary examination, we are able to lay
| before the readers OF this paper the
/ following story, which shows that
| Stewart county can boast of detectives
who "cook upn a case with as much
skill as the Professionals OF any of our
! large cities.
I 1t was ehown that The assassin se-
lected his position in thicket at the
end Of the corn rows where young
! Fagan was piowipg, snd cutting away
enough Of the brush that he might
take unerring aim 81 his victim, be
waited patiently for the pl0wmsn to
run his furrow up to the fatal spot
and when within ten steps, he fired
emptying the contents of his gun into
| Fogau's side.
1t was noticed tha. the murderer
/ wore new shoes. with sharp, well-de-
| fined edges TO the heels and soles
| These tracks were followed down 9
path leading away from the fence, and
IN crossing little creek near by the
party STUN bied, and, in falling, run bis
quo intotbe bank, and a close exarai-
! nation of these signs showed that /!
was single.barreled. The footprints
were followed on aud lead directly
/ from the place where the murder was
done to the cabin of the negro, George
| Washington, No one was 4 the cabin
but an old army musket was noticed
in the corner, and upon examination
it was discovered that it had been re-
csntlY fred and had fresh dirt in ttt
n3Izzle. The sheriff's posse then wenI
to a neigh boring cabin and found
WashiDgt t)n's wife. who said that hel
! husband had lett for the coaling at
/ O'Clock that morning. At the coalina
Ithey came upon Washington, who
was very busy burning char
coal. The other workmen said
that he had not reported that day
untlI o'clock in the evening, aud
upon being questioned be could give
no account of himself up to that time
He had on pair of shoes that were Of
the identical shape and size of thc
tracks that lead to his cabin. He wa!
taken into custody and lodged in jail
at Dover. Atthe coroner's inquest The
/ wound ia the murdered mans sidG
was probed, and four irregular shaped
pieces Of bab5itL- meta We're extracted
AS this metal is very hard, it was eug
| ECSACO bnhI II -khEES Stu2H NCIS EAC
l from Washington's musket, the CUR
itself would show il; and upon holding
the muzzle go that the suns rays coulC
! penetrate the barrel. four white streak
were plainly visible. The babbitt-
metal suggested to these amateur
detectives that additional! proc
! might be gotten by visiting |
mill in the neighborhood, whert
this metal is used for the bearings o
Journals, and sure enough they fount
bar of babbitt on sill, freshly hack
, ed. and an old case knife lying nea
which had been used in cutting piece
from the bar. Ii was discovered tina
gap had been made in the knife
and g piece Of steel that exactly fttet
the nieked place in the knife was foun,
in one OF the slugs taken from Fagan'
body, WashiDgton's wife identifies
: the case knife as hers. and said that i
had been missing for two or three days
Other circumstances were brought for
ward to fix the guilt upon the negrt
| Washington, out that given in detail
here, and the dying declaration Of th
murdered man, were considered snffi
cient to justify the magistratein com
rnItting him to Jail without bail E
. await the action of the grand jury.
Shot by "a Lawyer. 40 -sy