Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1883-12-05
t through crowd OF colored people.


A ll.tle after midday on The 81 of
November NOEL, passing down the
street, had without any provocatlon
been insulted BY lawson and his colored
companion. This NOEL resented with
blows, and passing on determined TO
let the matter drop and 90 into the
country, expressing his determination
to keep out OF further trouble on ac-
count of the prevailing excitement.-
But Afterwards, as he was driving along
n buggy, he was. without provOca.
ton on lis part, three times detiantly
jeered at by his late assaiant Lawson,
who followed him with a crowd of me-
groes. Not able TO brook these in
suits. NOEL rapidly called to his side,
TO secure fair play bis friends Lea and
Taylor, white men, 10 whom he declar-
ed lie would strike lawson only with
his fists, and again got TO blows with
the negro.
A great crowd Of blacks we're now
pressing around, and Lea and Taylor
babe them stand off, as it was fair
| fight and the two men should be left to
fight it out. To enforce this Lea and
Tay Tor drew their pistols.
Shortly afterwards, as the testimony
of B. f. Williamson shows. a negro
bamed Adams ran up behind Lea aud
attempted 10 snatch his pistol from bin.
In the scufile which followed the pistol
was discharged. This pistol-shOt, for
which the negro George Adams, as the
aggressor, is distinctly responsible,
seems to have wrought up the crowd Of
100 10 lJC-some say 3C0-Degroes 10
an uncomfortable pitch Of excitement;
and though the colored policeman
Wilhers and his ahlte comrade and
Booth, Oliver, and otter white cIti-
zens, eutreated The coiored people to
lisperse and keep the peace, cries were
now heard from the negroes Outnum-
bering the whites by certainly five, and
proboblY ten, to one-that they might
as sell have 1t out there as anywhere"
firmly answered by the little band OF
whites, I'VE are ready for you. If you
won't dispense, we'll settle It," Then
negro Jumped up in the crowd and,
holding up pistol shouted, "D-n
you, cone on" At that moment the
firing began-from which s:de cannot
be asc, rtalned and was kept up from
both sides, though The negro police
man (Wilhtrs) tesufes that at first
the white people shot up in the air as
Tito scare The people away, and then
tie firing seemed 10 be on both sides
at each other. -
What seems Certain is that il the ten
or fifteen brave white Ell, standing
there and facing that ,fy crowd so
enormously Outnumbe.ing them. had
flinched for an instant, or ret5eated one
foot from tie ground they occupied,
they themselves would have been
at the mercy Of an lniuriated mob
That there was a predispOslllOn on the
part Of the negroes aud their Coalition
leaders 10 bring on disturbance Is
shown b, the unproyoked insult offered
TO Tay lor on the lst OF November, and
twice repeated on the 81 to NOEL; by
the declaration o: Epp BarksdAle, an
active white Coalilionist, on tie night
Of Noyen.ber 81; I've have got the
negroes solid against YOU, and III be
damned If We can't turn them loose on
you Ii five seconds"; by the statement
OF Arlington (;olored) that he heard
TaliaterrO, a leader OF the negroes, say
about - O'Clock on the 81 OF Novem-
Der, There will be diff July here to-
day; and, lastly, by the Inhl nmatorY
speech Of Sims on the night of the 81.
During the fight all the leading
white men Of Danville were gathered
in public meeting in the Opera
ou.e. A few Of them reached the
scene cf the conflict toward its con.
clusion, and by their aid peace and or
der were Immediately restored by the
ocal authorities, so that on elect on
day there was not quieter town in
the country than Danvile. But be-
fore quiet was restored two whites
and seven negroes had been wounded
Of the negroes, four afterwards died
One of the white men wounded was
certainly shot by a negro, and the
other most probably also. a third
white map, patrolIDg the streets as q
special policeman, was shot GA Satur-
day night by a hidden assailant.
On Sunday and Monday proceed.
ing the election prominent citizens
aud the superintendent of both polit-
ical parties published circulars guar
anteeing to all citizens, without regard
to color or party, free and uudiS-
turbed opportunity to vote. AS a
matter of fact there wss not thereafter
the slightest disturbance of the peace
Upon this head the testimony Of
James Wood, Coalition sergeant Of
the town, and many Others, is abso
lutte. So is that Of the negro police
man Withtrs, who says: Il did not
vote, but | was not afraid 10 vote. |
was at The polls, and everything was
quiet
That the negroes mainly abstalued
from voting in this town was the re-
suit Of an order from their leaders
esigued to effect party vancouver
namely, to lay foundation to con-