The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-02-01

borhood is that of a bad man when drunk.
/ IF | had business of great importance
would not trust Schuman TO manage it.
Dora alias "ChuCkyn Bacon gave savory
testimony. She was brought from the
/ chain-gang to give evidence in the case.
! She Is not altogether unlikely, and though
! apparently not old in years Is hardened
/ criminal. Her testimony was flippant IN ITS
! illusions TO her constant residence with the
! gang, and eXonerated Schuman. 1t was
| damaging TO Daniels She said that Lee
! Jason, the negro gambler, who was shot on
| Sunday last IN Namacraw, was the father
| of her child
| William Barrett, a white man who had
| been in the chain-gane for cutting a negro,
| gave evidence favorable to Schuman.
X. q. Growers testimony was exonera-
! tive of Schuman though he admitted that
| he had gone voluntarily to Commissioner
| Estill and complained about the conduct Of
| the gang, stating that he lived near by and
| was alarmed for the safety Of himself and
! family on account Of lax discipline. He
| was once sent for TO 60 to the camp because
there was a deficiency Of guards on account
| Of drunkenness.
Rehecca Edwards, a negro girl about IS
| years Old and an eX-conVict, swore to Illicit
| intercourse between herself and Schuman.
Her dates as TO the time she went TO the
Cham-gang, hcr release, the birth of her
child and its death were given readily to
the day and tailed with all her statements
MI. Daniels was recalled. He denied the
statements Of "Chucky' Bacon and Rosa
Mcclure, and resented imputations put upon
his character.
Commissioner Estill presented to the
court the letter rel erred TO during Mondays
session. The letter was signed W. s. Schu
man and denied that he was the party who
had fired the pistol in Dieters store. The
Commissioner stated that the letter had
been handed in to his Office during his alb
sence by man who was described as red
faced whom he supposed to be Schuman,
as it answered to his description. Schum1n
denied being the writer of the letter and
the matter was dropped.
Schumen was then allowed to make his
statement under oath. His attorney guided
him As to the topics upon which he should
touch. He carried him through all the
charges, ard Schuman positively denied
them all. He admitted that he got drunk
occasionally, but as well as he could remem-
Der he never attempted to transact business
in that condition. He tried to get all the
work out of COnviCtS he could and was
obliged to whip them some-no more severe
" than was absolutely necessary for their
good government. lie said that Daniels
was his enemy, and that he had turned on
him after he had been a friend
to him. When Daniels was destitute
of money he had borrowed sums amount
ing to so, and loaned them to him. The
circumstances about the women he fatty
denied. The fuss at Deiter's store was oc-
casioned by the accidental discharge of his
pistol. He admitted being drunk there.
As to gambling in the camp he said that he
had used every means i'll his power to stop
it, but he believed it was impossible to stop
gambling among negroes. When their
cards had been taken away from them he
had seen them gamble for tobacco by spit
ting at crack in the floor. During his
connection with the camp twelve convicts
had escaped, eight of whom had been recap
tured There had been as high as l25 con
victs there at a time, and as few as forty
six. There are seventy one in his camp
now.
This concluded the days investigation
A decision in the matter will be rendered
by the court in the future. The investiga-
ton will continue this morning at 10 O'Clock
when the Collins case will be taken up.