The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1889-02-14
11oRMoNISM IN THE SOUTH.
The Insidlous Work of the Elders In Geor-
gia and the Carolinas.
From the New York Times

The elders laboring for Mormonism in
the South are, as rule, so gentleman
ly and so amiable that, however hateful
they may seem in the eyes of Metho-
dists and Cong,esationalisis and Bap-
tist, no fault can be found with them
except as to their advocacy of a per-
nicious dogma. They are quiet, una
suming men, and do their work so in
sidiously that they break into a home
and conquer weak one almost before
their presence is known. Rut, while
they antagonize society, they come in
to conflict with the civil law only in the
polygamy countenanced By their relig-
ion. Nevertheless, forbearance has in
a few instances ceased to be a virtue,
and a number of the elders have been
put to death, while others have been
subjected to painful indignities.
Elders w. S. Berry and Henry
Thompson, who were laboring as mis-
sionaries in Tennessee, and particularly
in Lewis County, made an engagement
to preach at 10 o'clock on August II,
1884, at the house Of James Condor, on
Cane Creek, in the county named.
Shortly prior to the service Elders John
H. Gibbs and William H. Jones mex
pectedly arrived, and three Of them
Elder Jones having an errand at the
house of Mr.. Garrett, in the neighbor-
hood-assernbl bled at Condor's and be-
gan the services. Elder Jones preached
short sermon to a few people congre-
gated at CARROTS, and tits conclusion
started to join his brethren. On the
road he was met by a mob Of men in
fantastic garbs, with masked faces and
equipped with firearms, who made
him prisoner. BY the consent Of the
guard left over him he escaped and
returned to Utah.
The mob, after leaving Elder Jones,
proceeded to the house of MI. Condor.
Condor was standing at the gate. They
made him a prisoner. Knowing the
mob was really after the elders, Condor
called his son and stepson, who were
in the garden, to defend the lives of the
men who We're his guests. By this
time Dave Hinson, who appeared to be
the leader of the mob, had approached
the house. He entered, and finding
Elder Gibbs there, he took a gun from
its place on the wall and without a
word of warning emptied its contents
into the body Of Gibbs, who fell to the
floor dead. Next the weapon was
turned on Henry Thompson, but Elder
Berry, powerful man, wrenched If
from Hinson. b this time others OF
the mob had entered the house, and
seeing Berry had overpowered Hinson
they shot four bullets into his body.
Thompson, during the scufhe between
Berry and Hinson, made good his es,
cape.
Martin Condor here engaged in a
hand-to-hand struggle with Hinson,
and he, too, was shot down by the mob.
In the meantime T.: R. Hudson, the
stepson Of Condor, had made his way
to the left OF the house, where he pro
cured gun and, returning, shot and
killed Hinson, but before he could fur.
ther avenge the wrongs done by the
mob he was himself slain. Thus, in
one conflict, five lives went out.
Not satisfied with their bloody work
the mob, as an afterpiece, fred volley
through the windows of the house, one
of the bullets seriously wounding Mrs
Condor. Governor Bates oferedsa re
ward of 500 for the arrest and convic
ton of any or all of the mob, the
amount to be divided pro rata, accord
ing to the number convicted.
In July, 1879, Elders Joseph Stand
ing and Rudger Clawson started from
Union County, Ga, to attend the
State conference of elders in Chatta
nsoga County, in the Haywood Val
ley. At Varnell Station they stopped
to visit a few Mormons, becoming
guests of Mr.. Holster. On the follow
ing day. July 81, which was Monday
they started to go to the home of 6
family named Hogan, about a mile dis
tant, and were arrested by Joseph n
Nations, Dave Nations, Hugh Blair
Mack McCleer, Andrew Bradley
Joseph Nations, James Fawcett, Berry
Clark, David Clark, JEFF Hunt, VIII
liam Nations and 4. L. Smith. Most
of these men were church members
Berry Clark being Baptist deacon
The two elders We're turned from the
roadway into the woods, and as soon as
the cover Of the trees was gained Stand
ing was shot in the face, dying instant
ly. Next the gun was pointed at Claw.
son, who coolly folded his arms an6
commanded the mob to shoot. His
bravery saved him, and he was let go
though he was refused the privilege o
taking care of his brothers body.
All the men named as participating
in this violence were arrested, but none
was convicted. In This charge to the
jury in the trial Of Jasper n. Nation:
Judge McCutcheon said: ''If two o.
more people combine to commit an un
lawful act, and while in the commits
sion of said act, not having as its OBJ
ject the taking of life, one goes beyond
the purpose and intention and homi
eide is committed, he alone is guilty
and the others are not guilty of homi
eide in any Of its degrees as principal
or as accessories Ofcourse the prose
cution could not tell which individual
of the company fired the fatal shot.