Daily Republican., 1890-05-06
CLAyToN's TWIN BROTHER.

At the opening OF the CLAYTON Breck-
enridge inquiry st Little Rock. Ark. on
Fridsy, Hon. W. q. II. Clayton, United
States District Attorney for the Western
Arkansas Distrlct, and twin brother Of
the murdered contestant, was put on the
stand. Judge Clayton was very much
Affected during the recital oi his s.ory
aud several times gave way to hts feeling.
Among other things he said:
"On the night Of January 90, 1880, /
happened TO be In Little Rock on buai.
ness. Shortly aifer retiring that night a
telegram from Carroll Armstrong came
10 me stating that my brother had been
assassinated at 0 o'clock that night at
Plumnersville. ! took tho first train
for Plummersville, arriving there at IL
O'Clock next morning.
"Armstrong met me. and I asked him
who WAS the murderer and he replied
that he did not know; l then asked him
to call on me during the day. stating
that desired TO talk with him privately
about the affair. He did not reply to
my request but said tho inquest was
then IN session and he thought perhaps I
could ilnd out more from the testimony
Of Alnut, who was my brothers clerk at
the time Of the assassination, than from
uny Ono tlbo. WAS buOWu tn5 room
where my brother had been killtd.
saw him lying on board, his lower jaw
tied up with a coarse. dirty towel.
"While there OF. Bently came In and
| made himself known as deputy sheriff.
/ asked him what steps he had taken to
discover my brothers. murderer. He said
he had examined the point from where
the ehot was fred, and found traces
leading out through an old garden to the
road, and that Coblentz bad picked up q
pisiol near the road, which he showed
me- I then asked II he had followed
the steps further, and he said no.
said;
"Mr. Bently, you should make a cir
cult around the town for the purpose Of
discovering whether or not any one came
In last night"
In reply to this suggestion be said:
"No one caue In from any direction"
"How do you know" l asked, to
which he again answered:
"No one came I'm from outside"
"Then," said, my brothers. mur-
derer must be in this town." to which
he did not reply. / then asked Beptly II
he had any suspicions who the murderer
was. He said he had. 1 attempted to
work on his sympathies, and told him
that my brother, who was an honorable
man, had been foully murdered; tDat the
man who did b-uould be found out. At
this Bently threw up bis hands and said i:
'I'Il swear to God / didn't kill your
brother
Judge Clayton then stated that upon
his arrival Ia Little Rock with the re.
mains OF his brother evsry attention and
kindness was paid him by the citizens. /
| D.. lr,p.o oh Ind
In the ~. Louis Republican, an interview
with Major breckenridge, In which he
stated that the Clayton Brothers had
acted as prosecutors OF the people OF the
State. This statement is an Infamous
| slapder without one grain OF truth.
~ divide those interested in that muir
der as follows: Those who actually mur-
dered Clayton, those who planned the
execution OF the deed and thone who gave
their sympathy to the criminals. The last
regard the greater criminals OF the
three. His brother considered 1t his duty
to himself and his constituents to contest
| the election, inRsmuch as he had been
fairly ell eted."
In reply to the remark that the election
WAS over and the crime could have NO
political significance, he said that the
political complexion OF the National
House of Representatives was then In
doubt The result OF the election iu the
Second Congressional District depended
on the result OF the count OF Howard
| Township. II the vote of that township
I had been counted Breckenridge would
have been defeated. He said he believed
as IN any as twenty five or thirty political
leaders in Con way County are implicated
In the murder. Addressing Major Breck-
enruige, he said:
"When ! entered the court room and
saw sitting on your risht o. I. Bently,
and TO your left Bob Pate, the two men
suspected of aesasatIAtirg my brother.
and you frequently whispering IN their
cars. / was compelled to believe that the
interest yon have seemingly manifested
In the capture Of the assassins was very
insincere. /"
"Do you connect every man who is
charged with crime?' replied Major
Breckenridge. mo, but i certainly dc
not consort with them"
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