Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1884-03-20
The Aurkrille Guquirer.
YORKVILLE, s. c..
THURSDAY MORNING, MARCH 20, 1884
THE CHERAW MURDER.

The murder of Town Marshal Richards,
of Cheraw, by VIM. Boggan Cash, the fatal
shot having been fired on the 23rd ultimo,
has been the absorbing topic of the State
press ever since the death of the victim,
which occurred about a week after the
wound was inflicted. The strange, and as
yet unexplained apathy of the peace Off
GERS of Chesterfield county in their failure
to arrest Boggan Cash Immediately after
he shot the Town Marshal, and more par
ticularly their continued lukewarmness
after the death of Richards, contributed
more than all else to attracting public at
tention to the affair, magnifying its proper
tions and placing the entire State in false
position. Had Boggan Cash been promptly
arrested, as he should have been Immediate
ly after the commission of the deed, on
charge of assault and battery with intent
to kill, and held until the fate of his victim
was determined, and, as in the case of his
death, then committed to Jail as common
murderer, Chesterfield county would stand
before the world in q more favorable light,
and the State would have no cause for
shame. But it was otherwise, and in order
to vindicate the laws of the State, the Gov
ernor was forced to interpose the arm of
executive power, and with what effect is
told at length in our columns to-day. The
action of Gov. Thompson in his efforts to up
hold the laws of the State, as exemplified in
this affair, is worthy of commendatiOn and
will meet the approval Of all law-abiding
citizens Of the State. In his action we can
see that he has only attempted, with the
lawful means at his command, to arrest
man charged with murder, and by the same
means, for reasons set forth in his affidavit
read in the ha6eas corpus proceedings, ef-
fected the arrest of an alleged accessory after
the fact. This is the extent of his action.
In it we see no vindictiveness-no thirst
for blood-but only quiet and commenda-
BILE determination that so far as lies within
the power of the executive of the State, the
laws shall be enforced.
Of the guilt or innocence of either of the
accused it is not now the province of the
press to speak. The fact OF the murder has
been published far and wide; but with the
exception of the statement of Col. Cash,
after his arrest, there has been not word
for the defence Judicial investigation
may throw the whole case in an entirely
different light from what it has been placed
before the public. Until that is had, trial
by newspaper is ill-advised and eminently
improper. In making up our summary, as
published on the first page of this issue, of
the accusations against the younger Cash,
we are only glad of the opportunity to ac-
company it with statement of his father,
charged as accessory to the crime, which
statement is the result of an interview with
reporter of the Columbia Register. Sub
sequent to this interview the hadeas corpus
proceedings ensued, resulting in the grant
ing of bail to Col. Cash. We copy the
Ne,cs and Curriers' report of these proceed
ings, which, with what we print on the
first page, presents so far as the record is
complete, both sides of the case, and as
thus made up it carries its own comment.