Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-03-29
DANVILLE'S WHITE MEN.
THEIR SIDE OF TIE RIOT STORY
NOW BEING HEARD.

/ No Bullets Poured into the Ranks of the
Fleeing Negroes, and no Guns Stored
/ in Anticipation of fTrOub1e-The FusiI.
ade all that Saved the Whites from
Massacre.
WASHINGTON, March 28.-The Dan.
vile investigation was resumed this
morning, and twenty-five witnesses, all
white, were sworn at once. William b
Kurtz, Postmaster at Waynesboro, Va.
200 miles from Danville, was first ex.
amined. He described the state of politi.
cal feeling in his neighborhood, and said
that he was himself the chief object of the
local Democratic enmity. He had heard
of the Danville riot first on the Sunday
after the riot. He had been told bv a
mail messenger. who was an ex-telegraph
operator, that telegram had passed over
the wires ordering large invoice of pis-
tolls to Danvllle. This was objected to bv
Senator Vance and the objection was sus-
tanned.
Mr.. Kurtz heard the iollifcation speech
after the election. A Democratic speaker
said that he thanked God for the Danville
riot. 1t was blessing in disguise.
). NJ. Shoemaker, of Lynchburg, but
who up to last February had been a resi-
dentofDanville, was called. He described
the antecedents of the riot. The Democrats,
as he gathered from conversations with
them, were much excited, and said that
tney were better organized than ever be-
lore and were determined to carry the
election.
BAD LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
They had reason to object to some of
the local officials then in power. The
local U0VprnmnOf q n NH 10 L..
ever, Ill the witness opinion an improve
ment upon its predecessors.
D. w. simmons, of Floyd county, living
ninety miles from Danville, was sworn.
The Danville circular was extensively
circulated before the election. He first
heard of the riot on Monday, the day be-
fore the election. The effect of the circu-
lar was to change about $50 votes in Floyd
county.
Job HawXhurst of Fairfax, Va, was
called. He was a coalition candidate for
state Senator. He first saw the Danyille
circular in Alexandria ON the Friday be-
fore the election. He never saw more
than two copies of the circular, The cir
cular caused a change from the Readiuster
to the Democratic side upon election dav
The Democrats relied on the race issue in
the canvas.
G. L. Pritchard, of Warren county,
~ hiAACo Albhi lllcs III Ile Snenln-
doah valley, was called. Printed exao-
geratiOns of the DanYilIe riot were circH-
lated by runners on the day before the
election, and had the effect to stimulate the
Democratic party and to change the votes
of some of the COalitionists. This effect
grew out of the representation that the
negroes were rising. The Danville circu-
lar also contributed to this result.
THE REBUTTAL COMMENCED,
The Republican side suspended exam
lnation at this point, although a few more
witnesses remained to be examined, and
Senator Vance began the examination in
rebuttal by calling to the witness chair
Peter '. Booth, grocer of DanVille. He
described the riot. He saw the preliminary
quarrel and went to the place. A coIOred
ana white man were fighting with their
fsts. NO weapons were being used.
There were then about three white men
and at least 100 cOlored men. After the
two men were separated the witness
turned to crowd of colOred people and
asked them to leave. They refused and
displayed pistols, saying that they had
been misused and would not leave. The
witness knew some of the colored neonie
One named Redd had pistol. The wit
ness did not know the names of
any OF the others who had pistols. The
witness went among the cOlored people
and with several others whom he named.
tried to get the c0lored people to disperse.
The witness was not armed. When the
firing began there were about Is whites
and about 200 colored men. There were
no alignment of whites. He heard no
command to fire. The witness did not
see the whites when they first fired. his
back being turned.
THE WHITES NOT BLooDTHIRsTY.
There would have been no possibility of
missing the crowd of blacks if the whites
had been seeking to kill them. The wit
ness saw cOlOred men fire. The wit
ness fully believed that if the whites had
not fired they would all have been muir
dered. The whites ceased firing when
the negroes began to run. Some of the
negroes turned as they ran and fired back,
The witness never heard of any precon-
cert to bring about a riot. In all the
meetings attended by the witness the
leaders cautioned their followers to avoid
rioting and violence. The election was a
quiet one; there never was quieter one.
me witness repeatedly tried to get the
colored people to vote, but without sue
cess. They said that they did not
want to vote. The witness heard
portion of Col. Sims speech.
In his opinion it had a great deal to do
with raising the riot. The witness went
out without a pistol. After the thing
commenced he went back and got pistol.
but the firing was over when he cot back
George Adams had testified that the wit
ness fired at him. The witness said that
1t was untrue. The witness did not shoot
at anybody.
THE CROSs-EXAMINATION,
When cross-eXamined by Senator Lap
ham, the witness said that the riot oc-
CURED on Saturday afternoon, when the
negroes are paid off and are usually on the
street in large numbers. When the
witness arrived on the ground Lea and
Taylor, whites, bad pistols drawn. He
saw kedd, cOlored man, with a pistol.
Lea and Taylor were urging the crowd to
stand back and give Noel and Lawson a
fair fight. The witness saw no metal
knuckles on Noe's hands. The witness
and Taylor separated Noel and Lawson.
"Can you name any other cOlored man
who had weapon that dayY'
81 can't name them by name."
"Well, can you describe themE"
'There was large yellow man; GIN
ger bread man."
"But you don't know his name. You
can't describe him so that we can sum-
mon hlmT Can you describe any others ?''
81 saw them as they ran, turn about
and ire. / can't describe them"
"Well, then, Redd and this yellow man
are all that you can specify who had
pistols"
eyes, sir"
The witness said that he went for his
pistol so as to be ready if the negroes should
return: The witness kept pistols for sale.
he had sold good many pistols before
the election. He had sold them. to both
white and colored men. He named
William Osborn and Wheeler Hodges as
cOlored men to whom he had sold pistols.
The witness named Walter Holland.
George Lea and Robert Taylor as white
men whom he said he saw with pistols
among the white rioters. He could not
remember distinctly any others. The
cross examination was continued at great
length, but without important result.
ONE OF THE ALLEGED ARsENALs.
w. j. Dance, young man who is a
member of the firm of RuffiE, Voolfolk &
Blair, in front Of whose office the riot took
place, was called. He described the riot.
He seized his gun, cooked both barrels
and stood in the door of the office. He
did not fire, but leveled his gun when he
saw the c0lOred men aiming their pistols.
The bullet marks on the front of the Office
building could not have been made by
shots from the white crowd. 1t was in
this office that a witness had said that
white men went and supplied themselves
with arms, there being, according to several
colored witnesses, a large quantity of
arms and ammunition stored there. The
witness said that he was the only man in
the Office and kept the crowd out. He re-
fused to let anybody in except two or
three of his friends. There were no arms
IN the Office except the gun held by the
witness and one old pistol, which was not
serviceable. 1t was absolutely untrue
that there were arms and ammunition in
the Office and that men went in there