The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-12-22
VERY SINGULAR VERDICT
RENDERED IN THE CASE OF A
BAILIFF WHO FROzE TO DEATH.

Steve Moore, the Foreman, Talks
About It-Charles West and George
Willis, Leading Lawyers in Chat
tshoochee Circuit, Jurors-The YER
dict is a Matter of Record-How
Moore Wes Swindled Out of His
Christmas Dram - How the Only
Witness Was Treated-Other Incl
dents of the Inquest.
TAYLOR COUNTY, GEORGIA, Dec. Ell
Recently l have had occasion to be in
Taylor county great deal. No more in
teresting people can be found on the face of
earth than these. 1t isa prosperous county,
rendered historic by being that in which
two of Georgia's famous governors have
found homes. The people are home-like,
and they never leS a new conner remain IA
stranger long.
Butler, the county seat, is an old fashioned
town of 1000 people-good, honest. warm
hearted people.
The court house is a two>story brick,
stu ated in the center of the town. This is
the great rendezvous for the countrymen.
Court week the old structure holds
very many rare characters Rainy,
cold days, when farmers cannot work
and other people do not dare to leave fire,
the court house swarms with citizens from
the rural districts. Then follows a whole
day of story telling, joking and chewing
and smoking the weed. The street gamins
have learned to expect treat on such days,
and they begin early in the morning to
wedge in the court house, sitting on boxes,
lghtwood knots. ETC., while the fun goes on.
Christmas times finds the town full of
countrymen. The mayor throws the gates
open 10 them and they make the welkin
ring. This tale telling and ioke cracking
has been in progress since / have been here.
THE CHRISTMAS STORY.
IU was Il weird, drizzly day, when every
body had to wear an overcoat to keep warm
The ordinary's Office was choci full Of people
and business was suspended Everybody
was smoking and everybody was laughing.
Steve Moore, genial, typical countryman
with mischievous eyes and laughing coun-
tenance, had the floor. Steve was talking
of the queer experiences of the county
bailitfs, when he suddenly seemed
to remember funny experience, and he
burst out laughing aud stamped his foot on
the floor. "But that coroner's jury, when
old man Bailiff Morrell froze TO death, beat
all. There was a general laugh, because
everybody seemed to remember the circum-
stance. Steve dragged the record out, and
putting his finger on what he said was
verdict, threw his head back and laIi yhed
again. well, that beats ALL" be said IN a
tone of ridlcule. "Well, sir, don't SEQ for
the life of me whatI was stu yiug about. to
write out such thing as thnth "Wasust
you drunk2' somebody asked. "Drunkan
repeated Steve. "Well, do you reckon
man ever got too drunk to know how to eat?
As many verdicts as I've made; then to go
and make such thing as that. Bad as the
fellow who told some friends his wife was
well when she'd been dead six weeks. |
forgo ."
there was another ripple through the
crowd, and Steve began: 1T was the ter
riblest, coldest weather I ever saw. No
mistake. 1t was 'sho huff cold Old man
Morren came to town and got full as goat,
and waddled long out bout half past A:
and that 'uz nearly night, you know. We
oil saw him. and somebody said the old
man better mind. You know he was then
GO odd, and better bailif never called
from this court house. Why, we could
hear him almost to Geneva. But the old
man would drink. When he waddled
along out that Christmas evening. it was
the last seen of him alive No, stree, he
couldn't stand the cold, and he wandered
out into the swamp about half mile
from his house, and set down beside a pine
saplin' aad thar he died. Right there, by
his lone self. 1t did seem pity, shore.
But 10 was the old mans time.
THE SEARCH BEGUN.
1.-THE family begins to get real uneasy about
9 o'clock, seeing that he did not come III.
and they got torches and began to hunt for
him. 1t was sleetin', and the ground was
covered with a toierable deep snow.
Buggies and wagons couldn't hardly pass
long the wood for the trees weighted
down hanging over it. But they couldn't
find the old man. Old man Williams Gross
the creek said he heard some body hoIleTin',
but he was afraid TO go outside. The hol-
lerin' didn't last long, | reckon. The old
man must have been sayin' his prayers.
Nv ell, sir, the next morning | happened
to be in town, and when | saw the boy
a comm said something's the mater, and.
sho' huff, there was. The old man was lost,
he said, and couldn't be found high nor
low. Well, Uncle Henry Peed dep
sutized about eight or nine of us,
and CHARLEY West and George
Willis were among the crowd. They're
first rate lawyers now, practicing in ell the
courts, but they were two OF the boys them
times. We got on horses and put out to
hunt the old man. Some said that he was
at some or the nelghDorS' houses. Some
said he was in town and some said this
and some said that, but felt Jest like the
old man had done bid good-by to these
parts. | thought could see him lying with
his face all covered up with snow, his eyes
sunk in and his hands all doubled up. |
didn't much want TO lay first eye on the old
fellow, aud somehow l kept being afraid |
would find him. The boys got pretty we'll
loaded before they could face the cutting
wind. but didn't know 1t. had two new
bottles of Mill Creek ! was saving for
Christmas night.
IN A DILEMMA.
81 know'd if l offered it to them the
liquor wouldn't more'n go round, and had
bought it for special purpose. l wanted u
drink, but hated TO sneak off and do it be-
hind their backs. | know'd one Of the
crowd was a preachers son. and l called
him aside and told him about my fix. |
knew if anybody In the crowd didn't touch
a drop 1t vas him. He said was all right;
that only one man in the crowd drlsk
liquor. Said he reckoned there never was
just such another crowd ever went
out before in such cold weather. Said IL
was a pity, too, none Of thom drank. /
asked hIm who il was that drank, and he
told me. When tho crowd collected az 4in
pulled out my whisky and offered some 10
the fellow that had been told drank, but
he kinder laughed aud said, No, thank
you, not to-day and the boys yelled,
That's a Sunday school superintendent
afdnft frrQsu arffv suHaf 20 fIfrir a. H.