The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-12-11

P.iSit"::n j'0Es: iH s',S.:I--.tppiirS f0'
! Post oiiicr-.EuunEs~ into - Guilcy
AMI Erra5s> His E.r%-Dcnocrmtie
Doctors ans: Democratic Money
Nurse IEim--Whcs, azc ia Well. g2c
fakes His Oli E.cg To Washington
Philadelphia Press.
II WASIII INC;TOS, Dec. h-Thc brief statement
of the violent manner in which William Il.
Finley, cOiOrcd, q citizen Of Abbcvil!c, =. c.
| was persuaded 10 cease being u candidate for
the EostmaScrShip of That town, published in
the Washington dispatches of the Press on
Thursday, excited good deal Of attention
and comment here. Members Of the House
rs well as Senators read the bare sketch OF
Finley's wrongs with Indignation. Postmas-
ter General Wanamaker and First Assistant
Postmaster General ClarEson were already
familiar with the ta'c. but when they read tho
outline OF the brutal outrage in cold type they
realized more wildly its barbarous signli-
canoe.
rude crutcheS made by himself. was to-day
appointed II walchman ut the poSt-otlicc De-
partmcnt. This is far humber post than
| the one he dared to he n candidate for. but
since he was ma!lurd by Il mob OF white men
who objected to his becoming postmaster of
AbbevIllc, the victim is made to earn food
and shelter rs best he may.
| Senator Butler, of South Carolina, said, af-
| ter reading the summary OF Finlcy'S story rs
published in the Press, that he did not he
| ievc that anything of the kind had ever hap
| IL,
remarked, he would surely have heard of 1t,
rs his home is not tar from Abbeville. The
Press correspondent found the crippled Fin
| ley at the P0st-oce Department to-day, and
he readily agreed to make affidavit TO a state
| lnent Of just what had happened to him when
he had vcntured to suppose that he had the
same right as any other citizen Of the United
States to become n candidate for a Federal ap-
| pointment. The statement may give Senator
| Butler a little information about the custom
of some of his constituents after dark, when
they number twenty armed men to q single
naked victim.
FISLEY's STORY OF Ills WRONGS.
Finley is a very black man. with keen eyes
and figure which would be erect and viGor-
ons had he not been crippled by the mob
He repeated the statement which follows
word for word, and when IL was read over to
him he wept at the condensed recital of his
wrongs. The simple, pathetic tale speaks for
itself. When the moment came for him TO
sign the affidavit, Finley, who has taught
school for many years, surprised the Press
correspondent and the notary public who was
present, by stating that he could not write.
His listeners had momentarily forgotten his
injuries. His right hand had been 50 smash
cd at the wrist. ami his right side was still so
paralyzed from the terrible beating lie had
received that he found difficulty in holding
the pen. He managed, however, to scrawl his
signature and then, with upliftcd hand, his
rude but eloquent crutclcS at his side, hc
called God TO witness to the Truth of the ALL
davit, Of which the following is q literal copy ;,
the original being In the possession OF the
Press correspondent:
Only name is William Thomas Finley, lam
Il citizen Of Abbevillc, $. c., where l paid a
poll tax and taxes on personal property.
am n Republican, but did not vote at The last
gia. Last April became candidate for the
post Office at Ahbcvilic, and secured sigma.
lures of ll3 men and forty women, all cOlorcd,
TO q petition for my appointment. Previous
to this: before became a candidate for the
post office, had secured q certificate of good
character and intelligence, signed by thirty
one or thirty-two White M, 0f The best iam-
lies in Abbcv!lle. l secured this certificate in
order 10 help me procure situation to teach
school in Alabama, but did not go to Ala
bama on account OF the yellow fever. was a
teacher IN the public schools Of Abbeville
county, $. c., from 1915 TO 1887. Last April
sent my petition ard this certificate of good
character to the Postmaster General.
.'ihc next thing knew the d6bcuHle Press
and Banncr on May % published my petition
and certificate of character, with the names
Of the sgners OF BOTH The newspaper said
that the Information had been secured at the
through Colone! Cothran. member of Con-
grcsS from the Abbeville district.
4 NIGHT VISIT FROM TIE MOE.
ION May 81, at about a quarter after 10
O'Clock IN the night, was lying in my bcd
asleep in the house where boarded. Some
body Knocked at the front door OF tho house
Mrs. Adams, the landlady, went to the door
heard somebody ask her where was her lus-
band, Robert Adams. Mrs. Adams replied
that he was nj church board meeting. Their
several men came 10 the door OF my room and
knocked. | looked through a crack and saw
about fifteen or twenty men standing there
with pistols and sticks BY the light of the
Congressman Cothran, j. NJ. McClory, II don't
know how to spell his name) George Shillito,
II. Sines, I:ous Sines. J. NJ. lawson, William
Mcmillan, William Wilson, Lee Miller, Tom
Coogler, Mack Carter and about dozen 9th
crS, whose names | can not at this moment
recall. had no weapon to defend myself
with, and | jumped out Of my window and
ran. had nothing on buta mig ght shirt and
pair Of drawers.
"The party, who were all white men, ran II.
ter me along a footpath that runs through the
town. They shot at me two or three times
After running about 200 yards they caught
ME. Mack Carter caught me first Then the
rest all gathered around and beat me with
sticks. This was in gully right at the edge of
the town. They broke my right leg above the
ankle Then they dragged me about 800 or 100
yards through the town toward the railroad
depot. Then they stripped Off all my clothes
wires had teeth like snws. Thcy gave mo,
reckon, about 100 laShcs. vas all bloody and
raw. They also l;ijurcd my right hand and
side;~ThcM they told nc Tia; .hey didn'. II.
there. They asked me whether l would ever
tell what had happened to me that night. |
told them no. Then they said that if ever
told of it l wonld be killed. Wade Cothran
them never would say anything about II.
WARNED TO LEAVE.
"They told me must leave South Carolina
that night. for if T didn't they would come
back and finish inc. Then they left me, and
came back again and asked me if was going
to leave that night; said ! conldn't go, be:
was n liar. Then ! told them to strike q
match and look. George Shllito struck a
match and looked. The leg was hanging
down like piece of rag. lie insisted that
il was not broken, and he said that il was
not gone by morning | would be killed.
Then they left me lying on the ground.
II was in terrible pain and thought would
die there. ] couldn't move and laid there
until about II o'clock. when Tom Brown and
Howard Taylor, colorcd men, came along. I
hOllcred to them and they came me. They
carried me back to the house and put me to
bed. They went for II doctor, but came back
and said they could not get any until the
morning.
Next morning Dr. +. L. Harrison came TO
me- He said the leg was broken badly. He
washed 1t of and dressed it and put q Splint
on 1t. The morning Of June 18th, hc took the
splint OFF, He tended me every day for five
weeks and let it grow crooked-the way it. is
now. was so sick that didn't know this,
and the doctor told me it was straight. lie
told me to give him s., and think he said
that the white folks would pay the rest.
have never yet been able to pay him the s..
left AbhGvilc last Wednesday week and
from my cosorcd friends and from one white
Republican.
ARRESTED on A THUMpED-Ur CHARGE.
AS soon as | got well enough to move
about was arrested OH the charge OF assault
and battery on a colorcd cripple. was then
just able tD walk and us weak as a baby.
could not even feed myself, and | never
touched him; ! was thrown into Jail for ff-
teen days. While was in Jail was splitting
blood all the while. a the taller would ii We