Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1881-02-03
SWIFTLY AVENGED.
Details of the, grpeh Murder Of
Miss Wertz inJB outh Car
80 olina.
THy DOUBLE LYAcAINe THAT sue
CEEDED THE REVOLVING TRAGEDY.

"A
cEEDED TIE REVOLVING TRAGEDY.
Newberry rs. C.) Specialize st Louis
Globe Democrat.
The full details of the horrible
murder of Miss Wertz, and the sub
sequent lynching of the murderers
/ near Prosperity, in this county, have
just reached here. The murder oc-
Cured near hat place, on Monday
evening last, but
THE BODY OF THE VICTIM
was not found until the afternoon
of the next day, when it was dis
covered concealed ina dense thick
ct few hundred yards from the
residence of her father, a wealthy
cotton.planter of this. county. The
body Of the unfortunate lady was
found by some farm laborers return
ing home from their days work
The face Of Miss Wertz was fear
fully disfgured by heavy blows in
f1icted by stick or club. Her clothes
were torn and disarranged, and she
| bore other evidences of deed even
more horrible to contemplate than
her murder. The laborers recog
nized the face of the lady, and at
once communicated the unhappy
information to her father. On Mon
day afternoon Miss Wertz left her
fathers house to visit her brother,
who lives about half mi e distant.
About dark she started back h me.
She was never seen again until her
body was found. The crime caus-
ed the most intense excitement
throughout the neighborhood Word
was passed from neighbor to neigh
bor, and within twelve hours after
the finding of the body OF the lady
it was known to almost every man
within a circuit of forty miles. To
wards night hundreds of men
ASSEMBLED AT PROSPERITY,
coming from all sections of the
country. The indignation Of the
people ran so high that it was seen
at a glance that the capture of the
perpetrators of the horrible Grim
meant instantaneous death for them.
Rough farmers and farm laborers
gathered about the scene Of the re-
cent tragedy and discussed in whis-
pered tones and with menacing air.
The affair was discussed and the
names of those against whom sus
picion pointed given. Miss Wertz |
was highly educated, accomplished,
and wondrously beautiful. 1t was
no wonder that she was favOrite |
in the neighborhool and a great |
belle. Under these circumstances
it is not strange that her terrible
fate aroused such Indignation among
her friends. In the crowd of men
assembled around the spot where
her innocent blood had been shed,
and where she had met with
such dishonored death, were half
a score of young men who had been
more than ordinarily interested in
Miss Wertz. These were loudest in
their denunciation of the deed. One
manifested the greatest determi
nation to puESue and, when found,
to visit speedy death upon the slay
ers Of their hearts idol The body
of the murdered girl was removed
to the
RESIDENCE OF HER FATHER,
where it was viewed by hundreds cf
the neighbors. Strong rough men
shed tears at the sight Of the delicate
girl, and vowed in his own heart to
take the law into his own hands and
visit it upon the perpetrators of the
crime. Suspicion attached to two
negroes, named Dave Spearman and
Sam Fair, who were arrested and put +
in the guard house. By their own
confession their guilt was PIT beyond
question. Last night body Of men
broke into the guard houss and took
the. negroes out. Fair made his es-
cape. receiving some slight wounds
as he ran Spearman was taken to
the place where the crime was COM
mitted, tied to tree and shot to
death. Fair was recaptured, and /
hanged one milefrom the place by t
large crowd of enraged citizens. blacks /
as well as Writes particip pating-in the.
execution. An inquest was held upon
he body of Miss Bessie Wertz, and
the finding of the jury was that she
came to her death by choking and /
other violent odtrages and criminal |
assaults upon her person: with the
most diabolical purposes, and that