The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-03-27
MURDERED FOR SEVEN DOLLARS.
The Perpetrators of the Deed Confess Their
Crime and Will Be Hanged To-Day.

LEBANON, Tenn, March 26.-Jim Turnee
and Mack Francis, the two negroes who are
to be hanged tomorrow, have confessed
their crime. They killed Lem Martin, at
Round Top. Aug. 81, 1883. Martin was q
half-witted, inoffensive young man who
was known by all the negroes of his COM
munity. Itseems that on the evening of this
atrocity Martin went to a negro meeting in
in the neighborhood, carrying with him
about 81. He took occasion to count this
money while standing near a church door.
1t appears from the developement of the
case in court that one of these negroes
struck a match and looked at the money
while in the hand of Martin. These two
negroes went behind the house
during the evening to plan the murder,
andt were overheard by negro who
CHANGED to be feeling unweu and had gone
out of the house to lie down. After preach
ing was over and the congregation was dis
persing, these negroes, Turnee and Francis,
were seen going in opposite directions. but
In few minutes Mack Francis was met
going back in the direction of Martins
home. Jim Turnee also left the party with
whom he was walking and went back. A
pistol shot was heard by negro boy who
was sitting in front of hut near the spot
where Martin was found dead, and within
passing up the road to be Turnee and
Francis, and called them by name but re-
ceived no response. These negroes were ar
rested on suspicion within few
days df the tried SsrSa before the magistrates
and bound over to the Circuit Court, where
they were found guilty of murder in the
first degree and sentenced by Judge Can't
rell to be hanged. An appeal was taken by
the defending. attorneys, and the case was
hafnra Ia ST far nf no Su
Court, where the former decree was con-
trmed, and the execution set for March %.
The prisoners were lodged in the Nashville
Jail, from which they were removed this
in custody of Sheriff Bandy. In
his confession, to-day, Francis said:
I'VE waited outside the door of the church
till the crowd came out. and when Martin
lowed him; When we caught up with him
he was walking with some of the people
from the church, and we fell back and
waited till he got by himself; then we
caught up with him again and walked
along one of us on each side of him. Then
Jim drew his pistol and shot him twice.
Ions head fell forward and he said: Jim,
jim; he then turned to me and said, threat
eningly, Shoot! why don't you shootF /
then shot twice and hit Lon in the body,
and Jim shot three more times, when Lon
fell. We went through his pockets and
found So; Jim took S4 and L took So. When
we killed him we thought he had more
money, but when we left the church / had
no idea of killing him. have not told the
story of the killing before because Jim did
not want me to-"
Turnee heard the confession throughout,
and when 1T was over said it was a true
statement. Francis endeavored to get his
spiritual adviser to promise to tell his story
for him on the scaffold, saying that he
would corroborate it. but finally said that
he would make his confession on the
scaffold