The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1886-10-19
STIEF'FIELD'S SINS
THE END OF A DESPICABLE
CAREER.
The Story of an Assassination of
the Murdered Man-His Loves and
PeccadilIOes-A Mixed Family
of White and Black.

ARLINGTON, Ga, Oct. 10. - While
Seaborn Sheffield, one of the wealth
lest citizens of Southwest Georgia, was
sitting at his table counting his money,
the loud report of shotgun was
heard, followed by still another. II was
at a late hour in the evening. Tom
Maury, colored boy, who was asleep
in the room, was awakened by the
shots, when horrible sight presented
itself to his eyes. There, by the table,
upon which was sitting Pickering
lamp, sat the aged man, his head
dropped upon the table, and his blood
flowing in pools over the bank bills,
which he was in the act of counting.
The bullets had shattered the lamp
shade and passed through the head
and shoulders of the dying man.
While the afIrighted negro was taking
in the situation he heard the sound of
retreating hoofs, and by the time he
reached the door the riders were too
far gone to distinguish them. In few
minutes Ben Taliaferro and Rufus
Lawrence, sons-in-law of the murdered
man, together with their wives, were
on the spot. The alarm spread rapidly
through the county, but there seemed
to be but little desire to hunt down
the assassins.
MIR. sHEFEILD's LIFE.
Mr.. Sheffield was the son of one Of
the original pioneers of this county,
having been raised in boyhood among
the Indians. His father was notable
man, and accumulated quite fortune.
His children were Seaborn and three
sisters. The sisters married men who
have become prominent and well-to-
do, rearing large families. Seaborn,
however, lived bachelor all his life,
thoroughly irreligious, and only enjoy
ing his passions and accumulating
lands and cattle. lie had at the time
of his death $4,000 acres of the best
land in the county: 1000 head of cattle,
besides other important interests,
which made him very rich man for
this section of the country.
AMOURs IN WHITE AND BLACK.
This mans amours in white and
black have been the scandal of the
community for forty years. He lived
alone in rather shabby house, where
he carried on a life that would shame
a Turk. In his younger days he con-
fined himself principally to white con-
quests, the Illicit results of which were
three daughters. These girls he finally
took to his home, and for a time it
looked as if the parental instinct
would save him. He appeared to love
the children, took great pleasure in
their company, and finally when they
| grew large euouSh hO sono eHN"A AN
several terms to a female college, where
they became quite accomplished
and returned home charming young
ladies. 1t was then that they were
shocked by the discovery that their
father had installed in the house, as
their brother, mulatto named John
Sheffield. The old man insisted upon
keeping his variegated family under
the same roof, while he still continued
his disgraceful career with the aban-
doned women of the ncighborhood.
Ouarrels eusued in which the father
invariably clung to the cause OF the
black son. The girls finally married
respectable young farmers, and ieav-
ing home Sohn Sheffield became the
exclusive idol of his fathers heart.
PREFERRING BLACK TO WHITE
Sheffield, on taking his daughters to
his home, had formally adopted them
as his own. He opposed their mar