The Dawson journal., 1884-12-25
ROSE KEATON's CONFESSION.
A Tragic Recital of the Recent Night
of Horror in Mitchell County.

| VI hUIIOT III MltCHclI OUuuJH.
| BA1NBRIDGE, GA, Dec. IT,
Sheriff Burkett, of this county
who has shown commendable ef
ficiency in the final arrest of the
Mitchell county murderers, pur
sued them to Tallahassee, tn e1
, back through this place, passing
here in the night and not stop.
ping; thence on to Bloxton, Ga.
where he found the hors and bug,
gy they had stolen from their vic.
tim and had there sold them to an
old farmer. The farmer, though
unwilling, was made proceed Oh
with him to identify the parties.
To disguise him, his long gray
beard was first cut off, his hair
trimmed, boots blacked and his
broad-brimmed white hat changed
to some other. Under the threat
to put him in prison for receiving
stolen property and promising to
pay all expenses, Burkett induced
the old fellow to yield and 90
through, and he stuck out we'll.
The Sheriff lost the trail at Blox-
ton, but went on through Cuth-
bert, where he again heard of
them; thence to Eufaula, and
there lost the trail. Then up
and down tie river in that neigh
borhood, till at Columbus the
farmer pointed out the man stand
ing in a shoe shop. Burkett i'm
mediately put one hand on the
mans shoulder, presented his pis-
tol and told him his errand. The
man surrendered, Burkett put his
pistol in his pocket and was get
ting out a stout rope with which
to tie him, he having no hand
cuffs, when the fellow jumped on
him and long and severe strug-
gle ensued, but with the aid of the
old farmer he was finally secured.
A great crowd of negroes crowded
about, .calling the fellow by the
name of johnson, and claiming
that he lived there. Soon the
woman, his wife, came in and ask
ed what was the matter and adj
dressed him as Nose. Burkett
then asked her her name, which
she said was Rose Keaton and her
husbands Nose. Keaton and she
confessed then and there that they
did the deed. Burkett was obliged
to get the assistance Of several
policemen in Columbus to secure
his prisoners on the cars, so great
was the rush of negroes. The
third guilty party is not yet
found. He is believed not to have
left the county.
THE wOMAN's CONFESSION.
Keaton and his wife are now in
Albany jail. The woman, in her
confession, tells this story: "On
Tuesday morning Peter johnson
came to Moses house and had a
long talk, which she did not hear.
Nose came in the house and or
dered her to cook rations for sew
eral days, as he had determined
to move away and go to a better
country. She, with her two-year
old child, followed Nose and Pc
ter, and they reached Godwin's
house little after dark. They
went in and Goodwin told them to
warm at the fire. Nose told God
win he had come by to get the
little bllauco Of several dollars
due. Goodwin said that he would
settle in the morning. He gave
Nose the gin house key and told
him that he and his companions
could stay there all night. After
being in the gin house some two
hours Nose awakened Peter, who
had gone to sleep, and said: 1T
is now time to CO. and all went
together to Godwin's house. The
door was not locked. They went
in and Nose took some splinters
and kindled faint blaze from the
smouldering embsrs AS soon as
there was a little light in the
room Nose picked up an AK which
he had previously slipped through
cracks, and dealt Goodwin blow
as he lay in the bed not aroused
by the noise. When this was
done, the woman, wife of Nose,
says she ran out at the back door
and ran around to the front gate,
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