The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1889-05-05
Committed at Greenville, Miss.
A Negro Murders HuIh Cunning,
ham, q Very Popular Man.
The Deed Done in the Most Cow.
ardly Manner.
This Is Followed By tho Killing
a Negro
Who sympa.hissd With tho Murderer OF
Cunning aam-The Fesling Of tho
People at High Tension and
Trouble May Follow.
Special Dispatch to The App, ]

Special Dispatch to The Appel
GREENvILLE, Miss. May i-ITugh Cum
bingham, special nightwatchman, was shot
and instantly killed at about half past two
o'clock today in Conway Il Kcnncdy's
saloon. more atrocious murder has
never been committed III the State. Cum
ningham was universally beloved ON ac-
count of his genial disposition aud fidelity.
Irish by birth he pos ,esed all the pleasing
characteristics of his race combined with
an amount of zeal and devotion to his duty
that made him valuable 70 his patrons and
| TO the generally. II would hardly have
been possible to pick out more universally
popular man. As Street aud Sanitary In
spector and Special Constable ne has served
| the city or and on for many years at night,
q work IN which lac has never been oqualcd.
| lie was, in fact, the watchdog on the bust
ness portion Of Grcenville, aud large mum
Der OF merchants paid .or his work. Deceased
had a room In the rear of4ihc saloon where
the shooting occurred. AZ 2SCoc clock Nose
Weston, yellow negro employed Temporal
rily Us Constable by Justice O'Bannon, en-
tered the saloon and plssod To the bar In
| Cunningham hal resisted this invasion Of
his quarters anl ordered the negro oil
Something like an allegation followed.
| Witnesses ut the inquest Ibis afternoon tcsti.
: fed that Weston was very insOlcnt aud
dared Cunningh nm 81 put'him out. lie also
| drew pistol aud placed 20 under his coat
| The bartender states that Cunningham, who
carried u cane. dill not strike at Weston until
after the first shot This occurred Just out.
| a la
| two compartments Of the saloon. The de.
ceased was shot In the lower part Of the
neck Weston fired again, tn bullet going
| right through Cunniuglmms heart. The
poor fellow fell dead at the bar
his blood squirting over thc fixtures. The
murderer backed out 10 Tho street, pistol In
hand. BEING Saturday evening, busy day,
aud especially ~ ~ Grsuyllc, the storc
was crowded. A white policeman failed To
hold Weston, who managed to g,t ~ Tar as
! finlay's drug store, where he was disarmcd
| aud M once taken o. the County Jail, where
lac now lies in barren cell
The excitement over The drca linl deed l.
intense among the whit aud blacks alike
They called out iur Justice ~ the dead man
had no enemy IN this community. a promi-
ncni planter. who had ku, VA him Tor years,
was affected h. tclr+ 'Nt7 o'clock this
morning % said hc Il saw Hugh clipping
tie grl.s Oh some graves ~ the cemetery o.,
| rode plst. liz was a. fftod q ma ns ever
lived. aud was always dhins some act OF
kindness"
The funeral will take pllcc tomorrow, and
q large outpouring u expected
Mpsc Weston the mdrler'r bclonW To-
the cunning. Intelligent Tsars Of liis race,
ever ready 10 better thcmsflyct and only too
apt 10 bc most offensive 20 his tupcriur,.
Your correspondent Jaw aim In jail half ma
hour after the crime. whsu Ia made a ram.
bling statement, the only material point
being that hc shot CunBihfhgm because hc
thought the latter would strike Inn with
liis cane.
ASoTurR NAN KILLED.
AtT.31 O'Clock, while this dispatch wa,
being written, the umiIous sound uf pi, iul
shut rnng out in the cfuW7lcl street There
was scene II wild confusion when II was
found that another man lad been Killed.
The nsslilant was John Kelly q bartender.
The dead man was Lem Col'iorcx policeman.
belonging 81 the better class u colurcd people.
The cause was Golfers open sympathy with
the murderer Weston. Kelly i an Irish.
man Of bad temper, bu: otherwise a good
character. The proyUcat.oh upon the killing
Of hi cOuniyman must have been great,
but ,hc awful crime that hc committed J.
deeply dcplorcd. The town !, comparatively
quiet, hut there II an unparalleled tension
Of feeling. Kelly Is safe in jail