Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1883-09-20
THE SHIELDS MURDER TRIAL.

was cOnCluQeQ III Tie superior court Oh
Mecklenburg, at Charlotte on Saturday last
the trial of Thomas l.. Shields for the muir
der of Joseph G. Sitton, on the 9TH of last
June. With the circumstances of the case
our readers are already familiar. The mo-
| tive for the deed-Which was not denied
was the alleged seduction by the deceased
of Molle Shields, a sister Of the prisoner.
The trial was begun on Tuesday morning
and continued until Saturday afternoon-a
large amount of testimony having been
taken, and bright array of legal talent
having been engaged-among the latter
W.. C. Benet, Esq, of the Abbeville S. G..
bar, who was retained to assist the prose-
cution. The jury returned verdict of gull
| ty, and the prisoner was sentenced to be
hanged on the 18th of October. The leading
points of the testimony for the defence are
embraced in the following:
| THE PRISONERS STATEMENT.
By reason of what knew and heard
went to see Mr.. Sitton early in the morning
of the 5th of June to induce him to marry
NV sister and repair her wrong. | started
over to see him, and, as my general habit,
took my gun which was loaded as usual.
l met him sitting in a room down stairs. l
said to him: "Joe, 1 want to see you Il min
ute privately" and he said, Lets go up
stairs" We went up, and / set my gun
down outside of the door. | sat down on
a chair leaning against the side of the door,
and Joe sat down on the bed. Joe said !:
'Here's that book, haven't had much time
to do anything with it." 1t was the book
ofmy blacksmith, and took it and stuck 1t
in my pocket. then said: 81 want to see
| on, irr1nOrta11f hnSInpSS. have
heard you were going away and want you
to marry my sister before you go; you have
seduced her and you must marry her." He
said he would die first, arose and made a
move for his pistol. AS he did so reached
outside the door for my gun and shot i'm
mediately. | went around to his head and
attempted to move him and got my hand
i'm blood. The account book dropped out of
my vest pocket, and l picked it up and
placed it on the mantelpiece; then went out
and locked the door. Went down, met my
brother and his wife and told them what |
had done. l went down, called my father
and Abner Alexander and told them what
l had done, and asked Abner to take me to
town. In the room my chair was nearly
half outside; l could reach my gun. He
was sitting on the bed, Ave orsiX feet, facing
me. When he rose up he said in an angry
tone: cpl die first" I knew he habitually
carried pistol. took no aim. / did not
see where l shot him until | saw him lying
on the bed. first knew of anything wrong
between Sitton and my sister on Wednes-
day before the homicide. l had worked
hard that day. 1t was II O'Clock at night
when the barking of dogs awoke me, and
went down. In passing the widow of my
sisters room 1 heard somebody in there !;
was so shocked that l couldn't speak. |
sat down on the steps and heard her say,
"Joe," and that he oughn't to 60 away.
| went upstairs and sat on my bedside.
Thought of going down and having row
about it, but concluded if my sister would
throw herself away she might 60. l saw
him 90 out Of the window, then out of the
yard; knew him very we'll. I saw him
again on Saturday night, but he didn't
come inside the yard. Monday night .!
saw him again, about II o'clock, but he did
not come to the house. On Thursday, the
day after he had been at my house, Sitton
said to me, "You had better have me to kill
that ID old dog" | told him | would
not have the dog Killed. On Tuesday morn
ing at breakfast, my sister was nearly
through eating when / asked her when Sit
ton was going away. She said: "TO-day."
'When is he coming back ?" / asked, and
she said she didn't know, for he had told
so many storiesabout it. Itoldher | was 60
ing to see him, and she said she didn't care
what did if he married her she reckoned
she would not be ruined. She said Sitton
had promised to marry her. My sister was
sixteen or seventeen years Old.
MoLLIE SHIELDS TESTIMONY.
am sister of the prisoner. was II
years of age few days.ago. About the lst
of June lived with my brother Tom in his
own house it was two miles from my ia
IL {<> hi
and to 90 to school the school was only a
short distance, but was outthen. yyoung-
er brother and Tom Shields and l occupied
the house. My room was down stairs in
the wing of the house Toms room was up
stairs. l knew Joe Sitton was acquainted
with him about a year, and became engaged
to him soon after met him. He was in the
habit of visiting me at night, but not with
the knowledge of Tom. He would come to
see me at the window of my room. On
Wednesday night previous to the homicide
he came into my room through the window.
l opened the window for him. That night
he accomplished his purpose, and that was
the only time. He did it under promise of
way that night. l told Joe that Tom would
catch him, and he replied that he was ready
for him, drawing something out of his hip
pocket which took to be pistol. could
not see what it was. He promised to come
back Monday night, but did not come. l
never talked to him after that. | saw him,
but did not have any talk with him. On
Saturday morning, before my brother went
to see Mr.. SittOn, he asked: "When is Joe
going away" l said: "To-day." Tom
asked "When is he coming back" and l
answered that he had told so many tales
about it, | didn't know. l then said to
|
piled that | need not be surprised, for he
knew what had happened. then acknowl-
edged it, and he asked me when we were
going to marry. told him didn't know.
He said he would 60 and see Joe, and un-
less he (Joe) agreed, then there'll be some
trouble. Just as Tom was going out said !:
| don't care what you do, after the way he
has treated me. / didn't see Tom leave the
house, only saw him leave the room. Ithen
went to my room and fell on my bed in con-
sequence of what | had heard. / don't
know how long lay there. am uncOn-
scious of having gone up to David Shields
that morning. | don't remember that
heard gun fire, but if l did, it was no un-
common thing. don't know how learn
ed that Joe was killed. | first came to my
consciousness in my fathers store, after -
o'clock my father and mother were with
me. / have no recollection of any cOnVer-
sation that took place at vidShields' that
morning. If | said anything | don't know
what it was.
oss-examined, the witness said: l have
been restrained since that time by my ia
ther and mother from communication with
the outside world. | don't remember that
Joe proposed to wait till next Christmas
day, and then if he could not get my pa
rents conseat to run away and marry. |
told him l would rather marry when got