The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1889-12-07
A FATAL SLEEP.
The Dead Body of a Man Discov-
cred by an Old Negro.
Half Covered by Mud and With His Life
Gone John Lawrence Finishes His Nap
Finding and Identifying the Drowned
Man-verdict of the Coroners Jury.

Boys. yonder's dead man, out there
on that bank"
The speaker was old man Tom Jack
son, and the boys he spoke to were the
city convicts and number of hands who
are employed by the Brunswick COM
pany to unload lighters of oyster shells
ut the back landing.
1t was about 10 o'clock yesterday
morning that old man Tom started out
i'll small row boat oyster fishing.
When the boat was pushed off from
shore little did its occupant think that
he would come across the body of dead
man. But such was the decree of fate,
and it was when the body was sighted
that the Old oyster fisher made the re-
mark attributed to him III the opening
paragraph of this article.
All those who were in hearing of the
negl o's voice made for place on the
bauk where good view of the boat and
the opposite bank could be obtained.
EVERY EYE WAS TURNED
in the direction pointed out by the lone
fisherman, and just across the creek the
observers saw, buried about three inches
in the mud, the lifeless body Of man,
lying where the receding tide had left
it, one arm thrown across the breast,
While the other formed sort of pillow
on which the dead mans head was rest
ing.
The water I'd done its work we'll No
sign of life was left, yet the man seemed
as if he had only fallen into a quiet
peaceful sleep.
When the men saw the body several of
them embarked in the boat which be-
longs to the lighter they were unloading
and rowed to where the dead man lay.
His face turned up so that the men could
see it and one look at the features told
them that the man who lay dead before
them was John Lawrence, colored, who
had been engaged with them in unload
ing the lighter and who it was
THOUGHT WAS IN THE CITY.
As5 SON as the lpan was identified Mr..
w. EssKay was telephoned of Law
rence's death. A TIMES reporter was
the second person TO reach the scene
after the news was received in the city,
which he did before the body was novel
from where it was first found.
Deputy Marshal Lewis Beach had been
notified of the drowning also, and under
his directions two men went out in a
boat, and fastening a rope to the mans
body towed it ashore, in order that it
might be examined by the coroner's
jury.
The reporter saw Alexander George,
colored, the last person who had seen
the drowned man alive and from him
obtained the follow irg account of the
drowning:
, John Lawrence and myself were left
last night to keep the water bailed out
of the lighter so that she wouldn't sink
We worked on together until about T.
, O'Clock, when l told Lawrence that
HOUDD SLtEP AM HIDE,
and that he must wake me up when he
got tired. I laid down Oh the lighter
and went to sleep, Nobody called me
and [ didn't awake until the men came
down this morning to go to work. II
was light then and Lawrence couldn'I
be seen anywhere around, so some of the
boys asked me where hc was. / didn't
know, but L supposed that he had gone
ashore and told them so. Nobody
thought any more about the matter un.
til old man jackson found the body anG
called out to us. F"
George told his story in a straight
forward way, and everything seemed tt
Indicate that Lawrence became tired anC
sleepy and lay down to rest himself, sub
sequeptly falling overheard and drown
ing,
When tho body was brought ashore
however, 1t was found that blood was
trickling out OF his left eye. This ex
cited suspicion, and several in the crowt
that had gathered thought that it tolC
THE TALE OF SOME FOUL DEED.
: Coroner Davis arrived about u :3C
o'clock aud held an inquest over the
body. The jury was composed OF Messrs
L. G. Stacy, foreman; j. A. Carroll
secretary, W. A. Johnson, Mike Haas
J. L. Lamb, 7. B. Horton, H. s. Nc
Crary, q. q. Goodbread, George Walker
Alfred Turner, II. E. Schriever and J
j. Spears.
The story brought ont by the evidenc,
5 was just as given above, Tut the BLOOD
referred to attracted the attention of som,
Of the jurors, and they would not agre,
, on verdict until DR.. Dunwody haC
| examined the wound and prom ounced i
only scratch of some sort. That bein,
done the jury found that John Lawrenc
70 came to his death from accidental drown
= ing.
Lawrence had not been in Brunswic
IL