Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1890-06-23
SHOT FROM AMBUSH.
Jno e. shemwell Killed in Stew
art County.
While Riding Along the Public Road
After Dark-Details Of the Crime.

winnie Riding Along the Public Road
After Dsrk-Details Of the Crime.
News was brought to the city this
morning of foul murder in Stewart
county. Last Friday afternoon John
Shemwell, constable of the county
who lives near Bumpus' Mill, on Sa-
line creek, left home, telling his wife
that he would be back between sun
down and dark, or very soon there
after. He did not return on time, as
was his custom, and his wife became
uneasy about him and went to a
neighbours and asked that he be
looked for. 1t was remembered that
shot had been heard soon after
dark and several of Shemwells
neighbors started out to hunt for
him. About II o'clock that night
they found his horse tied at the top
of hill about a half-mile from his
house with one rein of the bride
gone. They knew that he had not
left his horse there in that condition,
and getting reinforcements continued
the search.
A few hundred yards further ON,
near the home of VIM. Cobb on the
Dover and Cadiz road, his lifeless
body was found. The left arm had
been torn nearly off and there was a
hole in the unfortunate mans side
that the shot had torn that would adj
nit three fingers. He was evidently
shot with full charge of buckshot
from musket. In the death grip of
his right hand was bunch of the
horses name that he had torn out
in falling. The paper wadding from
the gun was lying in the middle of
the road about thirty or forty feet
from where the body lay, showing
that he had been carried that far af-
ter being shot. The body was car
ried to Bud Bumpus' and cared for.
Shemwell was shot by parties in a
wheat field at the side of the road.
The next morning the tracks of
three horses were traced distinctly
from the point at which the shot was
fired through the field and for a dis
lance of mile. The shot, which
was heard by several parties, was
fired about eight o'clock.
Shemwell was about forty-four
years old. He left a wife and three
children. His wife, if the LEAF
CHRoNILE is not mistaken, was
resident of this county before marri-
age. He had been a constable about
two years.
Readers of the LEAF-CHRONICLE
will remember an acco untof des-
perate encounter between John
Shemwell, the murdered man, and
James +. Wallace, also a resident of
Stewart county, in which Wallace
was killed. The circumstances were
briefly as follows:
Shemwell had gone to a logging
camp on Long creek to levy on a
raft of logs belonging to Wallace.
Wallace objected to the levy, claim
ing that he had given bill of sale of
the logs to other parties. A quarrel
ensued, when Wallace pushed Shem-
well off the raft into fifteen-foot
water. When he came to the sur
face Wallace punched him with a
spike-pole and threw double-bit ak
at him. While he was yet swim
ming Shemwell pulled a revolver
and fired five shots at Wallace, one
of which went through his breast and
produced wound that killed him in
few hours. Shemwell was acquit-
ted, having killed Wallace in self
defence. The belief is general that
Shemwell met his death at the hands
of some of Wallace's friends.