Huntsville gazette., 1888-12-22
RACE TROUBLES IN MISSISSIPPI.

Kemper County the Scene Of a Terrible
Tragedy-Confiict Between Whites and
Blacks, in Which Three White Men Are
Killed.
MERIDIAN, MISS, Dec. I7.-This morning
a number of tele2ramss were received here
stating that riot had occurred at Waha-
lax, kemper county, fifty miles north of
Meridian, and that Holly Morton, of this
place, had been killed. A party of twenty
men was at once organized and left for the
scene on the regular passenger train. sub
sequently another party of forty was
raised and left on special train. A num-
| Ter of wild rumors were in circulation,
one to the effect that the posse from this
city had fight with the negroes and that
several of them had been wounded. These
rumors were set aside by the arrival of the
two posses on the regular mail train to-
night, who reported that everything was
quiet, and that their presence was not
needed. They told the following story of
the riot: Last Thursday the son of Mr..
u. f. Nicholson, a prominent farmer Of
kemper county, was driving a wagon
along the road leading to Suqualak, when
he met negro desperate driving team
in the opposite direction. Young Nichol-
son accidentally brought his vehicle in col
lison with that of the negro, who kept in
the middle of the road, as if determined to
| drive the boy out. The negro began curs-
ing the youth, when Nicholson appeared
and interfered in the boys behalf. The
negro thereupon drew revolver, but in
stead of firing, closed with Nicholson and
brought the weapon down with his full
strength on the formers face. Nicholson
fell senseless to the ground, and when he
recovered the negro had left The follow
ing day Mr.. Nicholson told his friends of
the assault, and on Saturday it was deter
mined to organize q posse and arrest
Maury. Information Of this determination
of the whites reached the negroes in some
way. 1t is said that two white men gath
cred party of negroes together at
church Sunday night, and after harangu-
ing them, organized force Of ten negroes
to resist any attempt to arrest Maury or
attack on his house. The whites are known
to the people of Wahalak, bnt their names
cannot be learned. 1t is their settled de-
termination to lynch them when found and
it will be the proper time to make their
names known. The negro force raise | by
| the white men weno to Mauzesss house wbez.
the church meeting adjou4 ned and con-
| cealed themselves in the smokehouse and
cottonhouses. Very soon thereafter the
posse of whites came up the road and
halted in front of Maury's place. A few
of them walked up to his residence, but
| found it deserted. From the residence they
went to the smokehouse, where they found
| three negroes. These negroes were asked
| the whereabouts of Maury, but they pre-
tended they could not tell where he could be
! found. While they were trying to exact
same information from the negroes, man
on the outside shouted, Here is Maury !;
suppose you come to arrest him."
The whites rushed in body from the
building, and as they emerged were re-
ceived by volley from eight or ten mus
kets and shotguns.
VIM. Vaughan was seriously wounded
| by buckshot in the left arm, neck and
| shoulders, and another man, whose name
| the whites will not reveal, received a
| slight wound in the hand. This volley
| came from the cotton house and was
| promptly returned by the whites, but the
negroes being behind stout plank wall
| received no injury. The whites soon
| discovered that they were fighting at great
! disadvantage and moved around to the
| north side of the structure. Here they
| received another volley, resulting in the
instant death of Henry Maury, and the
wounding of his brother, j. T. Maury, in
| the arm near the elbow. The whites now
| drew off and the firing ceased temporarily.
| Notwithstanding their losses, however, the
| posse determined to make another attack
on the cotton house, approaching it this
time from the south side. As they came
up to the building they received a third
volley, the negroes apparently waiting the
| order to fire, they had done in the two
| previous instances. At this third volley
Seth Cobb received twenty-five buckshot
| in the breast and stomach, tearing the
| entire front of his body from the neck to
the navel away. John Dew, another of
the whites, was also wounded, perhaps
fatally, by pistol ball in the groin.
| The whites again drew off for consulta-
| tion, when it was determined that another
| attack on the building with their reduced
force would be useless, and they deter
mined to wait for daylight and reinforce
| ments.
| While they were consulting the negroes
| rushed from the cotton-house to Maury's
residence in a body, and proceeded to
| fortify that building. The whites went
| back to Wahalak yesterday morning.
Another force Of fifty men or more was
raised and proceeded to Maury's residence.
| The place was found entirely deserted,
even the bedding and furniture having
| been removed. The whites burned the
| three buildings on the place, together with
| those Oh a near farm, securing the woods
! for the negroes in vain. No trace Of them
| could be found. 1t was impossible to come
across negro in five miles of the scene Of
| trouble while people from he adjoining
| towns began to pour into Wahalak all day
! and Joined in the search, but as none OF
| the negroes were known except George
Maury, they accomplished nothing. One
| negro was seen lurking in the woods and
was fired upon by a white man, but he not
| only disappeared when the pose from Me-
| ridian under command of Thomas Jamison
| reached Wahalak, but they were told that
| their services were not needed. They say
| the whites throughout Kemper county are
| very sore, and think more trouble will fol-
| low. 1t is certain that if any of the ne
| groes who fred on the whites are caught
! they will be killed at once. The feeling,
| however, is greatest against the two white
men who are said to have organized the
negroes. Not single negro is known to
| have received any injury whatever. Two
| white men beside those already reported
| We're wounded, but as their hurts are slight
| their names are withheld for prudential
| reasons.