The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-09-11
THE MONTGOMERY TROUBLE
The Convicts Put in Irons and Guard
Sckuman DISCHARGED.

! I ne COnNlCLS FuJ III irons anu 0AaA "
ScEuman Discharged.
The trouble at the colored Odd Fellows
barbecue at Montgomery on Monday, led to
a number of CT oss warrants in the magis
trates' courts yesterday, and other arrests
are likely TO follow.
Ben Cusperd. porter for Fred Haar, was
stabbed in several places, aud his girl,
| Amelia Rivers, had her cheek sleshed open
with knife. Cusperd does not know who
inflicted the wounds, but he Iys he recOg-
nized Levi Rutledge as one Of his assailants.
Clara Jones, who was taken before JUS
tice Elsinger on Monday, and gave bond to
| answer to morrow at preliminary eXaml-
nation on charge of breach of good be
havior," went before Justice Naughtin yes
terday and swOre out a warrant against
I Paul Cohen for carrying concealed weapons,
and Emma Williams, Clara's friend and
| companion, swore out warrants against
| Emma Butler, Mary Cohen and
Fibbie johnson for assault and bat
terry. Cohen, who is a kind of special
deputy around Justice SheftalIs court, cross
warranted the two women Clara Jones and
| Emma Williams for assault and battery.
| Cohen is not an officer, but is deputized oc-
| casionally by Justice Sheftall to arrest
| people Of his own color.
The women were promptly arrested and in
default of bond were sent TO jail. Cohen
claims that they furnished the whisky to
the convicts. aud were the prime movers in
the ARRAY. He said that when he ate npted
10 take the convicts outside TO quell the
disturbance, the woman whom he hal ar
rested beat him over the head with bottles,
and assaulted him in other ways and kept
the row going. There were a number of
witnesses who corrob0rated the statements
of Cohen. The women denied the truthful
ness Of the charge and repeated their
charges against Cohen, which came out in
Justice Reynolds count.
The "trusties,n Stephenson, Green and
Burke, of the chain gang, who were mixed
up in the free fight at the dancing paw lion,
have been put back in irons, and yesterday
afternoon the county commissioners dis
charged w. j. Schuman, who had
charge of the convcts of gang
No. /, to which Green, Burke and
Stephenson belonged, and appointed Simon
Hesser in his stead. Hesser has had four
years. experience in the management of the
convicts, during which time he was chief of
what was known as gang No. 9. About a
year ago he resigned his position to go into
the bakery business, but it did not prove
remunerative, aud he abandoned it and OBJ
tanned employment as baker at Sch warz's
bakery, where he was employed up to yes
terday afternoon, when he was elected to
succeed Schuman, ana left at once to take
charge of Camp Lawton.
The discharge of Schuman no doubt grew
out of the conduct of the ''trusties" who,
aroused by liquor furnished them by friends
among the eXcursionistS caused the trouble
at the barbecue. Schuman, it is allege ID,
left the camp without permission and was
/dissipating yesterday and the day previous,
and this fact coming to the knowledge Of
the commissioners they took prompt action.
Commissioner Read, acting chairman OF
the chain-gang committee in the absence of
the chairman, ordered Mr.. Hesser to put
the three offending "trusties" back in
chains
The "trusties' had been sent to Mont
gomery to cut cedar posts, but they left
their work and attended the picnic and
precipitated the fuss by taking up the quar-
rel for Clara Jones, who was not permitted
to dance, as she had not oAly been with the
"tyustiesn on the train, but had purchased
for one of them a picnic ticket.
The picnic was married by the prese ce
of convicts in stripes, who, under
the influence of liquor, defiod the committee
and in the free light that ensued got the
worst of it.
An eye witness to the FRAY said that the
coored people were armed, the men carry
ing pistols and knives, and the women were
also armed with knives, and active in
fomenting strife, and encouraged the as
sault out of which grew the general fight
and the arrests which were noted in yeste.-
days MORNING News.